Good and evil have
always gone "hand-in-hand." Because of this, stories about epic heroes
usually contain monsters in some form that symbolize bad or evil. In the poem Beowulf, the epic hero is forced to save
Hrothgar’s threatened community, battling and defeating three evil monsters.
One of the monsters is the character Grendel, who terrorized the thanes at
Herot, as well as the citizens, in the past. Throughout Beowulf, Grendel is portrayed as evil. However, through reading
Gardner’s novel Grendel, the reader
can see that Grendel is not totally the blame for his belligerent behavior. Also,
in Beowulf, the anonymous author
characterizes Grendel through his actions, motives, and the way that people see
him.
Upon reading the
poem, readers can see that Grendel is given the role of the antagonist. Grendel
gets his reputation as an evil beast based off of his actions and personality.
The fact that he can kill and steal with no remorse portrays the image of a
heartless murderer with a lust to kill. The poem opens by stating,"...A
powerful monster, living down/ in the darkness, growled in pain..."
(Raffel 1-2). These lines foreshadow an evil in the story that readers are not
yet aware of. Shortly after the opening, readers get a taste of how devilish Grendel
really is. "So Hrothgar's men lived happy in this hall/Till the monster stirred,
that demon, that fiend/Grendel, who haunted the moors" (Raffel 15-17).Throughout
most of Europe, people knew to fear the name and the actions of Grendel as they
did not know when his next attack was going to occur. Grendel's first horrifying
attack was the invasion of Hrothgar’s mead-hall. Grendel, far beyond ruthless, went
through the mead hall smashing men and leaving bloody trails. His actions are
described as, “Killing as often as he could, coming / Alone, bloodthirsty and
horrible,” (Raffel 80-81.) Although readers know much of the character Grendel,
the readers learn more about Grendel upon reading the final fight with him and
Beowulf. Although Beowulf would win in the end, it would not be without great
effort as Grendel was not an easy opponent. Grendel was stronger than most
creatures, especially humans, for "…their points/Could not hurt him, the
sharpest and hardest iron/Could not scratch at his skin" (Raffel 481-483).
At this point readers learn of Grendel's almost supernatural powers. The fact
that Grendel has tremendous strength makes him all-the-more a ferocious
creature, which gives readers a better understanding of the Grendel’s evil,
vicious state as he kills with no remorse.
Grendel's first
reason for being evil is that he is naturally drawn to it. The author describes
Grendel as being “…spawned in that slime" (Raffel 19), saying that he was
born with an evil nature. Grendel knew nothing but to kill, attack, and do anything
else evil because it was his way of life. The author states that Grendel was
"conceived by a pair of those monsters born of Cain," (Raffel 20-21)
pointing out that Grendel was merely born a killer; it was only natural that
Grendel would be evil as he is a spawn of two evil beings. This is directly
alluding to the Bible story of Cain and Abel, the sons of Adam and Eve, in the
book of Genesis. In the poem, the story uses the two biblical names in a
negative connotation because Cain is known as the first murderer in history as
he killed his brother, Abel. Another
reason for Grendel's actions is his hate for society. Grendel was forced to
live away from people in the swampland because he was a descendant of Cain, and
also because of his physical features. Upon knowing his past, you can generate
the idea of Grendel wanting to be accepted instead of feared but doesn't know
how to do so. The reaction people had towards Grendel portrayed his role in
society. No other warrior would fight Grendel except for Beowulf, but seeing as
though he was stronger than his peers, he was suitable for the task. With
Grendel gone, people felt safer and they were ultimately happy knowing that
they didn't have to live in fear. Grendel's death ended the pain and suffering
of the Geats. Grendel was the perfect choice for the role of the evil monster,
given his rejection by society and the way he was portrayed in the poem.
Throughout the
poem, Grendel’s character is the most memorable. He mercilessly murdered
people, stole from them, and showed his lust for evil. The author suggests
Grendel’s motives were probably a growing hatred or a natural inclination. Finally,
the way people reacted to him ultimately decided his role in society. By
creating such an evil creature in the poem, the author of Beowulf explains the
evil in the world as well as its reasons for being here.
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