Grendel is portrayed in two radically different ways in the novels Grendel and Beowulf. What accounts for most of the differences in the portrayal of a monster, in both novels, comes two completely different perspectives. The main thing that separates Grendel in both novels is the fact that we are exposed to the humane side of Grendel. We are shown a Grendel that thinks and has a sense of reason. While in Beowulf we are just shown a brute with no thought except that of the next meal and the juiciness of it.
             One of the main differences in the novels is the relationship between Grendel and his mother. There is a lot of detail that goes into explaining the rather complicated and intricate relationship they have. In Beowulf, there is no real description or an account of any interaction between the two aside from Grendel's mother's attempt to avenge her son's death. But then, Beowulf wasn't about Grendel. In Grendel, however, we learn that there is a close relationship between the two, more so as Grendel is growing up. As he is growing up, his mother is the only companion we are aware of. Grendel is not shown to have had any friends aside from his mother. The only flaw in their relationship is that they cannot communicate. Somehow his mother has forgotten how to speak. Even with this setback, the bond between the two is still very strong and they find ways to communicate. An example of this is when Grendel's mother holds Grendel and he rests his head against her chest to comfort him after his first encounter with the humans.
             The place in which they live is also very different in both novels, not literally, but in how they are portrayed and shown to the reader. For example, in Beowulf, their cave is described as this hell-hole with no light. An lair where the evil lie waiting for dusk to come so that they may hunt for blood. A nasty place overall where no healthy, sane person would nor could possibly...