rendel: A Stereotypical Evil Character?
Although from the beginning of Gardner's work Grendel is displayed as the conventional “evil” character--spiteful towards the world, agitated at nature’s innocent creatures, and disfigured in the ugliest way, Grendel is truly not an evil character. The interactions and experiences Grendel shares with the humans, as well as the lonely philosophical path he has somewhat accepted, have condemned him to accept a role labeled as “evil” in society. But, Grendel is not evil, he is just dealing with incredible loneliness, facing rejection by humans and struggling against tendencies to love and feel. On the surface, Gardner’s character seems to fit the hackneyed role of an “evil” character, but after examining …show more content…
While the word “evil” may not describe Grendel, the word “lonely” certainly does. Grendel deals with an incredible loneliness throughout the novel that would cause a miserable and traumatic life for anyone. He shares no emotional connection with any other lifeform, not even with his own mother after early childhood. In Grendel, Gardner writes “I was intensely aware of where I sat...and the shocking separateness from me in my mama’s eyes. I would feel, all at once, alone and ugly, almost--as if I’d dirtied myself--obscene,” and “Being young, unable to face these things, I would bawl and hurl myself at my mother and she would reach out her claws and seize me...and she would smash me to her fat, limp breast as if to make me a part of her flesh again,” (Gardner 17). At a young age, Grendel craves to be one with his mother. The thought of being separate naturally terrifies him, and he is instinctively miserable when he is alone. After he is rejected by the humans and all other organisms, Grendel spends the rest of his life isolated, which must engender a dismal life without value. Apart from his emotional separation, Grendel is also separated through his philosophical thoughts. In the text, Grendel narrates, “Whatever I may have understood or
Although from the beginning of Gardner's work Grendel is displayed as the conventional “evil” character--spiteful towards the world, agitated at nature’s innocent creatures, and disfigured in the ugliest way, Grendel is truly not an evil character. The interactions and experiences Grendel shares with the humans, as well as the lonely philosophical path he has somewhat accepted, have condemned him to accept a role labeled as “evil” in society. But, Grendel is not evil, he is just dealing with incredible loneliness, facing rejection by humans and struggling against tendencies to love and feel. On the surface, Gardner’s character seems to fit the hackneyed role of an “evil” character, but after examining …show more content…
While the word “evil” may not describe Grendel, the word “lonely” certainly does. Grendel deals with an incredible loneliness throughout the novel that would cause a miserable and traumatic life for anyone. He shares no emotional connection with any other lifeform, not even with his own mother after early childhood. In Grendel, Gardner writes “I was intensely aware of where I sat...and the shocking separateness from me in my mama’s eyes. I would feel, all at once, alone and ugly, almost--as if I’d dirtied myself--obscene,” and “Being young, unable to face these things, I would bawl and hurl myself at my mother and she would reach out her claws and seize me...and she would smash me to her fat, limp breast as if to make me a part of her flesh again,” (Gardner 17). At a young age, Grendel craves to be one with his mother. The thought of being separate naturally terrifies him, and he is instinctively miserable when he is alone. After he is rejected by the humans and all other organisms, Grendel spends the rest of his life isolated, which must engender a dismal life without value. Apart from his emotional separation, Grendel is also separated through his philosophical thoughts. In the text, Grendel narrates, “Whatever I may have understood or