Beowulf .vs. Grendal
Contrasting points of view in Grendel and Beowulf significantly alter the reader's perception of religion, good and evil, and the character Grendel. John Gardner's book, Grendel, is written in first person. The book translated by Frederick Rebsamen, Beowulf, is written in third person. Good and evil is one of the main conflicts in the poem Beowulf. How is Grendel affected by the concepts of good and evil? Grendel is an alienated individual who just wants to be a part of something. His desire to fit in causes him to do evil things. Grendel is fascinated by the Shaper's poetry. He often returns to the mead hall to listen to it. One night while he is listening, he hears the story of Cain and Abel, including the Danes explanation of Grendel. His reaction to this leads to one of his most dramatic emotional reactions: "I believed him. Such was the power of the Shaper's harp! Stood wriggling my face, letting tears down my nose, grinding my fists into my elbow the corpse of the proof that both of us ere cursed, or neither, that the brothers had never lived, nor the god who judged them. 'Waaa!' I bawled. 'Oh what a conversion!'" (Gardner 51). Grendel then cries for mercy from the Danes. He wants their forgivenes
In reading Grendel and Beowulf, one can find many similarities in the way the events occur in the books, however because of contrasting points of view, the reader gets insight on the entire picture from two different sides. The ruler understands that Grendel attacks his men out of spite and jealousy. -An ugly god pitifully dying in a tree!" (Gardner 22). They are outside threats to the order of society as shown by Grendel with the Danes. Even though this is true, evil lives the high life for a long time. The epic poem Beowulf contains definite references to Christianity, but it is also full of Pagan symbols such as that of fate. Grendel is pitiful in Grendel; however, Gardner uses this pity to arouse sympathy for Grendel by giving him human traits and emotions and by using first person. King Hrothgar, leader of the Danes, fears his visits: "The renowned ruler, the prince of long famous, sat empty of joy; strong in might, he suffered, sorrowed for his men when they saw the track of the hateful monster, the evil spirit. They attack the good side by killing innocent men because they are hungry or just want to defy the laws. This novel is actually narrated by Grendel, which offers understanding of the beast's innermost feelings, as well as evoking sympathy from the reader. He also has strong emotions of fear, anger, and sorrow as well as intellect. The basis for his version of existentialism is the following excerpt from the book itself: "I understood that the world was nothing: a mechanical chaos of casual, brute enmity on which we stupidly impose our hopes and fears. I create the whole universe, blink by blink. The character Grendel is viewed in a different light in the book Grendel.
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