Menacing Misapprehension
Society and its culture indoctrinate everyone, leading to preconceived opinions, which inevitably prohibit a person from observing all stances of a situation. This notoriously leads to the destructive nature within a person because he cannot happily live the life he desires. This idea is well portrayed in the poem Beowulf by Seamus Heaney and the movie Heathers directed by Michael Lehmann. One of the main antagonists in Beowulf is a monster named Grendel. From the day he was born, a nefarious lifestyle was projected upon him, and society punishes him for trying to live as the being he always dreamed to be. No one ever assesses why Grendel acts in such a villainous manner, so it becomes expected from him. Comparably, …show more content…
Both J.D. and Grendel envy those surrounding them because they are bombarded with other people living the same dreams that have been stripped from them. Grendel’s primary goal is to have his own culture, which would be passed down for generations to hear. Grendel is furious with the constant reminder that many thanes actually have a culture. Every single day he “Endured it ill that he heard […] / The din of revelry ring through the hall, / The sound of the harp, and the scop’s sweet song…” (58-60). He continuously hears these stories, driving him crazy with covetousness because they only make his dream appear much farther away. Murdering thanes is the only way that Grendel sees himself creating everlasting fame, which motivates him to kill thanes every night for twelve years. Just as Grendel wants culture, J.D. aspires love. He never experiences the unconditional love of a mother, father or significant other during his life. In order to try and explain his tendencies, he confesses, “So maybe I am killing everyone in this school because no one loves me” (Heathers). He possesses the mindset that if he cannot experience love, then no one can. His unresolved emotional conflicts and great sense of entitlement lead to an intense fury within his own mind. This fundamentally causes him to murder numerous students. In both stories, desire unceasingly surrounds the antagonists, …show more content…
Due to the fact that strength and bravery were common traits in those honored by Anglo-Saxons, Grendel’s enemy is the plethora of thanes. In order to get the fame that he longs for, Grendel goes after a thane every night. He “Tore [a thane] in pieces, bit through the bones, / Gulped the blood, and gobbled the flesh, / Greedily gorged on the lifeless corpse” (560-563). The thanes are slaughtered, making Grendel further develop his image as a savage instead of someone who is strong and worthy of remembrance; however, Grendel does not realize this just as J.D. fails to see that ending the lives of those who have hurt Veronica will not make her love him more. Already knowing the pain of uncontrollably losing a loved one, in addition to never feeling loved, play significant parts in J.D.’s decision making for his next victims. Veronica is the love of his life, and he does not want to live a life without her now that he finally experiences love. At one point, J.D. thinks that Veronica is going to commit suicide In order to prevent her from committing suicide, so he prevents her from doing do by killing anyone who causes her any emotional or physical pain. He wants this to show that he will always protect her. This leads to J.D. thinking that all of his murders are justified because Veronica would not end up the only person hurt by these students. When trying to calm Veronica down about her being an accomplice to the
Society and its culture indoctrinate everyone, leading to preconceived opinions, which inevitably prohibit a person from observing all stances of a situation. This notoriously leads to the destructive nature within a person because he cannot happily live the life he desires. This idea is well portrayed in the poem Beowulf by Seamus Heaney and the movie Heathers directed by Michael Lehmann. One of the main antagonists in Beowulf is a monster named Grendel. From the day he was born, a nefarious lifestyle was projected upon him, and society punishes him for trying to live as the being he always dreamed to be. No one ever assesses why Grendel acts in such a villainous manner, so it becomes expected from him. Comparably, …show more content…
Both J.D. and Grendel envy those surrounding them because they are bombarded with other people living the same dreams that have been stripped from them. Grendel’s primary goal is to have his own culture, which would be passed down for generations to hear. Grendel is furious with the constant reminder that many thanes actually have a culture. Every single day he “Endured it ill that he heard […] / The din of revelry ring through the hall, / The sound of the harp, and the scop’s sweet song…” (58-60). He continuously hears these stories, driving him crazy with covetousness because they only make his dream appear much farther away. Murdering thanes is the only way that Grendel sees himself creating everlasting fame, which motivates him to kill thanes every night for twelve years. Just as Grendel wants culture, J.D. aspires love. He never experiences the unconditional love of a mother, father or significant other during his life. In order to try and explain his tendencies, he confesses, “So maybe I am killing everyone in this school because no one loves me” (Heathers). He possesses the mindset that if he cannot experience love, then no one can. His unresolved emotional conflicts and great sense of entitlement lead to an intense fury within his own mind. This fundamentally causes him to murder numerous students. In both stories, desire unceasingly surrounds the antagonists, …show more content…
Due to the fact that strength and bravery were common traits in those honored by Anglo-Saxons, Grendel’s enemy is the plethora of thanes. In order to get the fame that he longs for, Grendel goes after a thane every night. He “Tore [a thane] in pieces, bit through the bones, / Gulped the blood, and gobbled the flesh, / Greedily gorged on the lifeless corpse” (560-563). The thanes are slaughtered, making Grendel further develop his image as a savage instead of someone who is strong and worthy of remembrance; however, Grendel does not realize this just as J.D. fails to see that ending the lives of those who have hurt Veronica will not make her love him more. Already knowing the pain of uncontrollably losing a loved one, in addition to never feeling loved, play significant parts in J.D.’s decision making for his next victims. Veronica is the love of his life, and he does not want to live a life without her now that he finally experiences love. At one point, J.D. thinks that Veronica is going to commit suicide In order to prevent her from committing suicide, so he prevents her from doing do by killing anyone who causes her any emotional or physical pain. He wants this to show that he will always protect her. This leads to J.D. thinking that all of his murders are justified because Veronica would not end up the only person hurt by these students. When trying to calm Veronica down about her being an accomplice to the