Grendel And Beowulf Comparison Essay

Within both, Grendel the novel and Beowulf, there are a large number of differences between the main character. Grendel in the novel is portrayed as a more complex character than in the epic poem, Beowulf, because of his ability to comprehend the world, seek out companionship, and because he is able to transform as a character throughout the book.
Due to the first person point of view in the novel, we are able to get a glimpse inside of Grendel’s mind, which shows us that he is able to comprehend the world as it truly is. It is easy to view him as an intellectual character, which is a stark comparison to the blood-thirsty beast he is depicted as in Beowulf. Grendel is able to show the readers that he is more than a simple character when he comes to realize “…that the world was nothing: a mechanical chaos of casual, brute enmity on which we stupidly impose our hopes and fears” during a “near-death” experience (Page 22). When the only characterization of Grendel and his actions in Beowulf that we get are along the lines of: “Grendel will carry our bloody flesh to the moors, crunch on our bones and smear torn scraps of our skin on the walls of his den” it’s hard to view him as anything other than a brainless,
Grendel becomes so surrounded by loneliness that he is driven to question the night sky, “’Why can’t I have someone to talk to?’ I said. The stars said nothing, but I pretended to ignore the rudeness” (Page 53). The readers are able to understand, even as early as the first line of Beowulf, “A powerful monster, living down in the darkness, growled in pain, impatient as day after day the music rang loud in the hall” (Line 1-4), that Grendel is living a life of isolation out of choice. However, it could be possible that he is showing disdain towards the celebrations because he was jealous of the Dain’s