Sunday, April 19, 2009

Are there any other monsters in the novel?

Though Grendel is the main monster in the novel, there are also other monsters that are present. The other two characters that would be considered monsters are Grendel's non-verbal mother who is abusive towards Grendel, and the other monster is the dragon who Grendel encounters only once. Are these three monsters the only monsters present in the novel? Do you think that Beowulf could be a monster in someone else's view? Though Beowulf is a human and a hero to many, he murders many people and he also brutally murders Grendel at the end of the novel. Just because Beowulf is human and thought as heroic for killing the monster Grendel, does that not make him some sort of monster too?

4 comments:

ashley said...

Personally, from what Grendel described, I beleive all of the humans were morally monstrous. They murdered for fame and glory and killed for honor. Not just beowulf, but everyone Grendel describes is monstrous in a way. In addition, Grendel points out how misleading and untruthful the humans are. Morally, I would even consider the humans to be more monstrous than grendel because of their lies. Grendel is true to himself and what he wants or beleives. The humans on the other hand, twist their stories of bloody battle into glorious triumph.

Anonymous said...

I definitely agree with your view about the humans being more monstrous than Grendel. By reading the novel, a reader is able to see the true relation that human beings share with Grendel and vice versa. The humans in the novel kill for fame and glory, as you said, and I believe this to been a monstrous quality of a person.

jill said...

Has this book been made into a movie?

GRENDEL said...

There is the movie Beowulf.