What separates the epic poem Beowulf and John Gardner’s Grendel is how the devil-spawn Grendel, is presented. Is he a monster set on destroying humanity, or is he a misunderstood creature that is just trying to make amends with Hrothgar and his people? Gardner’s Grendel is a retelling of the story of Beowulf, through the monster’s eyes in depth. On the other hand, the epic poem introduces Grendel briefly, yet assertively. He is described as a terrible, evil being spawned by the devil and shunned by the most high.…
Grendel from Beowulf differs in character from Grendel from the novel Grendel because in Beowulf, Grendel is confident, predictable, and a static character, while in Grendel, he is an outsider, confused, and a dynamic character. In the epic poem, Beowulf, Grendel is characterized from the third person point of view. The third person point of view creates distance, and it limits the depiction to only the beliefs of those who are not Grendel. Grendel is viewed as a monster who is full of confidence.…
Both Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel, and Grendel by John Gardner depict similar qualities between the two main characters, but different perspectives offered by each book also differentiate the characters by illustrating unique details described only in one of the books. There are many qualities of both Beowulf and Grendel that are mentioned in both books. For example, Beowulf possesses superhuman strength in both Beowulf and Grendel. This is shown when Beowulf, “__________” (Gardner ##).…
It was a “vault” or a den of a “hellish turn-hole” as they would fight as they go into the lake. As Grendel’s mother senses his arrival and attacks with much confidence to fight while Beowulf’s reposes was to confront evil straight forward. He has a sense of sacrifice to obtain victory from evil, when his normal tactics failed him.…
Although Beowulf always gets all the attention for being being the good guy, Unferth should have won that praise. Unferth is more noble than Grendel or Beowulf because he displays courage through chasing after Grendel to fight him and save Heorot, he displays honor by challenging Grendel to a fair fight, perseverance through his constant attempts to continue fighting Grendel, and truthfulness through admitting he isn’t strong and he is probably going to lose. To a Viking, being honorable meant staying true to your beliefs. Unferth does this in the mead hall owing to the fact that he doesn’t want to fight Grendel with Grendel at a massive disadvantage.…
Heroes triumphing over monsters is a major theme in Beowulf, with characters being clearly one or the other. Often, however, heroes and monsters share characteristics, making the distinction between what makes someone good or evil more blurred. They share similarities to show how thin of a line there is between being a hero and a monster, and how easy going down the wrong path is. In Beowulf, the word fire is used to draw the similarities between Grendel and Beowulf, as well as to highlight what makes Grendel a monster and Beowulf a hero.…
Many of times, poems that are enjoyable because they are so intriguing often get ruined due to the fact that when it gets released as a movie, the plot and characters are not portrayed the same way it was in the poem. Take the story of Beowulf as an example, the poem follows a brave warrior who is afraid of no one, a warrior who would fight for both glory and pride. But in the movie he is one who tells lies and is easily weakened by women. A character who was once highly respected in the poem loses some respect in the movie because of lies he has told. Characters who were displayed as vicious monsters in the poem gets a role in the movie that makes you understand their background and, why they are the way they are which in the end makes you feel sorry for them.…
As a result, readers see a side to Grendel they are not able to see by reading the original. Grendel is presented as being evil in Beowulf, however the extent to his evilness isn’t as effectively portrayed…
In the Epic Poem Beowulf, the titular hero, Beowulf, is set upon, or willingly goes out to fight against three great foes. Grendel, a large demon, or debatably a giant or monster. Grendel had been harassing a mead hall for twelve years before Beowulf 's arrival. His second opponent was Grendel’s mother, when Grendel retreats to and pleads for help after his defeat at the hands of his adversary and main protagonist, Beowulf.…
Compare and Contrast Grendel Essay At first glance, both Grendel in the novel and in the poem are the same. Both are perceived as to having the exact characteristics in both the novel and the poem. Though, going in depth, Grendel in the novel compared to the poem in Beowulf has a major difference in ways that Grendel in the novel gives more understanding on his perspective in life, Grendel in the novel wants companionship, and Grendel in the poem is showcased as a ruthless, evil, and cruel character. In John Gardner's novel, Grendel is regarded as a monster who gives more perspective in his life, and readers are able to go in depth into the monster's views and what he believes.…
The saying “there are two sides to every story” rings especially true when comparing the various personas of Grendel throughout the poem, Beowulf, the story, Grendel, and the YouTube clip shown in class. Grendel’s characterization varies greatly in the movie, book and poem equally. The contrasting viewpoints play off of the theme “Morality vs. Instinct”. Also, Grendel’s character differs based upon the perspective of the writer and his prior experiences with Grendel. However, Grendel’s action remain constant throughout each outlet.…
Furthermore, the second example of similarities and differences in the Beowulf poem and movie is Grendel’s mom role. In the Beowulf movie and poem, Grendel’s mother was a seduced; she used her body to get Beowulf’s attention. Regardless of how Grendel’s mother is described as a seduced, however, in the poem, she was a monster but in the movie, she was a human form. In the poem, “Beowulf”, Grendel’s mother is described as a female monster and sea hog. In the movie, she was an actual human form when she came out of the water and met Beowulf; this is when she asked Beowulf for a…
The context of a manuscript enables the close study of the Anglo Saxon period, the manuscript on which a text is written provides a bridge between those reading the literature and the script its self. As John D Niles said when studying old English poetry the format in which it is presented allows a clearer view of the original intent of that piece. The original manuscript can portray common themes by the position of the texts within it, and the layout of each text on the page also gives vital clues in deciphering the text. “For medieval books often constituted composite artifacts in which each component depended on its environment for part of its meaning” Nile`s theory is that by studying the text in its original context many more factors…
Also, Cultural values immense a huge chunk of altercations throughout the two stories. In the poem, Beowulf is God like and fears no such thing, a incredible warrior with no pity for any enemy, while in the movie Beowulf and Grendel, he is more human like and isn’t as savage like as he is in the poem. His attitude seems to change completely at the end of the poem. Grendel in the poem is a monster who attacks any of the Danes for any reason, feared by all and has Hrothgar looking for any way to save his people and land. However, in the film Grendel displays human qualities he mates and reproduces with the witch showing he isn’t just a monster.…
Beowulf, Grendel Compare and contrast. In story telling there are often two sides to the story such as how it is shown throughout Beowulf and Grendel. Beowulf is a story from the viewpoint of the danes and favors them in their story, but in Grendef it is in favor of the young monster named Grendel. In this paper I will talk about the similarities and differences between the two stories, Beowulf, which is a book about a mighty hero that sets out to slay monsters and Grendel, which is the same story from the monster 's point of view.…