Beowulf & Grendel

The stories of Beowulf and Grendel are very similar in many aspects. There is only one major difference. In Beowulf, we do not know what Grendel is thinking, like we do in Grendel. Both stories portray Beowulf and Grendel as monsters, but they are both actually misunderstood humans, not monsters. Being misunderstood is one of the hardest things to be. Life is too complicated, but “so it goes” (142). The monsters in Beowulf and Grendel are both presented the same way. In both stories, the monsters are seen as evil, and are the lowest of the low. No one human treats them with any decency. There is one major difference in the two stories. In Grendel, the reader can see what Grendel thinks and why he acts the way that he does. While in Beowulf,…

In the epic Beowulf, Grendel is depicted as a demon with a horrific nature. This nature is elaborated by the poet through, the incorporation of the Christian element: the story of Cain, and Grendel’s extraordinary physical strength. Coming from a Christianized culture there are many references to the bible. The Spear-Danes (majority being Christian) see Grendel as the embodiment of all that is evil. He comes from an evil that crosses the Spear-Danes values. They believe “Of [Cain’s] blood was…

Compare and Contrast: Grendel from Two Different Sources The epic poem Beowulf is known as the oldest epic poem, it features the hero Beowulf who gains fame by fighting several monsters. Grendel is a monster who is the main antagonist for the first parts of the poem, who gets swiftly killed by Beowulf and is used as a stepping stone for Beowulf to progress as a hero. Grendel also appears in the novel of the same name where he gets a story of his own as the main character however, Grendel is…

Beowulf experienced three battles between Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon. As news spread throughout the world Beowulf and his men agreed to battle this demon like character. The first interaction between Beowulf and Grendel occurred in the mead hall. Grendel enters the mead hall after tearing down the doors and eats a warrior. Beowulf steps up to Grendel with no armor or weapons. With Beowulf’s mighty strength he eventually rips Grendel’s arm out of socket and keeps his arm while…

character of Grendel in John Gardner’s novel is evidently more detailed than the character given in Beowulf due to the use of first person point of view, the emotional connection he conjures up on the reader, and the constant struggle of understanding his purpose in life. In John Gardner’s novel, Grendel describes all the events that are happening in his point of view. Grendel narrates in first person which allows us to know his inner thoughts and observations. We are able to go into…

details in it. In the epic, Beowulf is a valiant soldier who is in search of monstrosity, known as Grendel terrorizing Heorot. The movie Beowulf vs. Grendel (Gunnarrson 2005)is similar to the Beowulf (Heaney 2000)in many ways but there is a cultural shifts between the two, as well as additional characters. Beowulf is a Geat from Geatland that traveled to Hrothgar that was in need for assistance to defeat the evil Grendel that was destroying the town. Beowulf is depicted as this impeccable human…

Introduction The extract is from Beowulf the poem. Grendel is described as a man-eating demon; the assumption is that he is in the form of a human he is Cain’s kin. While it is not clear if he is in human form possessed by a demon the above lines show that he is not loved by the Lord and is defined a monstrous evil who stalkers the marshes for human flesh. Monsters were not considered favored by the gods and thus were exiled to live alone in places that human could not inhabit. However, at…

roster such as Grendel’s son. Grendel, as a father figure, portrays the attempt some people try to make. The reasons behind this particular character’s inclusion in the movie appear infinite due to the multiple situations that take place in the film. Grendel’s revenge on Hrothgar, became absolute due to the pain…

poem, Beowulf, continuously strives for the new views of the thematic approach. Seamus Heaney translated Beowolf in an effort to help create different theories and views on this epic poem. This epic poem is based off Danish warriors seeking revenge on a monster, while being saved by a tenacious leader during the Anglo-Saxon time period. This has lead to two very different and yet similar films. “Beowulf and Grendel”, directed by Sturla Gunnarsson in 2005, and Beowulf, directed by Robert…

A look into Cultural differences based on Beowulf Many cultural differences between the epic poem Beowulf (Gunnarson) and the movie Beowulf and Grendel (Heaney) were demonstrated, including character behavior. In the epic poem, characters that portray this difference from epic to movie are Beowulf and Grendel. Beowulf in the epic poem is mostly known as a God among men, he kills all the evil in his sight, has no flaws, and doesn’t care about much, other than being honorable. Being that this was…