Preview

Religion and Grendel

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
618 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Religion and Grendel
Authors often have to choose between concentrating on

either plot or social commentary when writing their novels; in

John Gardener's Grendel, any notion of a plot is forgone in

order for him to share his thoughts about late sixties-early

seventies America and the world's institutions as a whole.

While Grendel's exploits are nearly indecipherable and yawn

inducing, they do provide the reader with the strong opinions

the author carries. This existentialistic novel can be seen

clearly as a narrative supporting nihilism in its many forms.

Most easily, the reader will be able to see the blatant

religious subtext in the guise of corrupt priests and the foolish

faithful. There is also some negativity placed on the notion of

the old being the wise. Gardener deems hero idolization

unacceptable as well; knowledge that the Vietnam War was

prevalent at the time gives additional insight into his

complaints. Religion plays a large role in Grendel. Priests do

not want to perform their services without the proper

payment which, in turn, causes the rich to be able to become

the most 'religious.' The citizens of the village are also

confusingly poly- and monotheistic. When praying to their

king god does not decrease the frequency of Grendel's visits,

they retreat to begging any god of which they have known

for help. This reveals their faith to be not faith at all but rather

faith that will remain faith as long as it can be proven. A

proven religious faith is contradictory term, for it can only be

placed in a religion that cannot be proven lest it is true faith

no longer. Grendel's interludes with the dragon portray, at

their onsets, the dragon as a worldly, wise creature with

much to share. The dragon haughtily informs Grendel about

his vast store of knowledge as he teases him with how much

he knows. As Grendel's interests are piqued, the dragon

expends the cumulative result of his travails: "Know how

much you've got, and beware of strangers…My advice

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Grendel : Evil

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In the beginning of his novel Grendel, John Gardener portrays Grendel as a rational creature, not necessarily caring about the humans but just observing them from a distance. He murders humans as well, catching anyone unlucky enough to run into him. Even so, this does not take away from his charisma. Instead the humans seem to take on the role of the monster early on. They slaughter each other, pillaging and destroying neighboring villages in the name of their leaders so that they may gain power, and Grendel is frightened and confused by it. For example, "men staggered, gesturing wildly, making speeches, dying ... It was confusing and frightening, not in a way i could untangle, I was safe in my tree" (36) he cared not for the men dying, he was only disgusted by the fact that they shared a similar language. He was disgusted, and this is where his spite for the humans…

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    God and Grendel

    • 1345 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Beowulf is an Anglo-Saxon epic poem. The poem was written in England but it is set in the Scandinavian country. The time period is between the 5th and 6th centuries, but was written between the 8th and 11th centuries. Beowulf is noted to be the most famous of epic poems, especially in the Anglo-Saxon works of literature. All things in the world boil down to being either of the two, good or evil. In the story Beowulf good and evil are portrayed in a very black and white manner. There are two main characters representing both, one good and one evil. The good character being Beowulf and the bad character being Grendel. Their reputations, the manner in which they use their strengths and their surroundings define the good and evil characters alike.…

    • 1345 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    n Chapter 9, the priests help Grendel gain insight into human nature and beliefs of the people. In John Gardner's "Grendel", the opposing viewpoints of the younger priests and the old priest, Ork, help to portray the division between the people; the ones who blindly follow traditions and the ones who question the age-old practices. Ork represents the new generation of theologians, who believe that faith and reason are not purely exclusive. In comparison, the fourth priest understands Ork's perspective but does not think it to work practically in their society. When they have their encounter with the "Great Destroyer" their differing beliefs are shown by the questions they ask. Grendel pretends to be the Great Destroyer so that he could learn…

    • 149 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Grendel is a powerful monster and he lives in darkness. Grendel was waiting patiently until dark, he went up to Herot and snatched up thirty men, smashed them unknowing in their beds and ran out with their bodies back to his lair.…

    • 150 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    How does time periods like Anglo-Norman, Medieval, and Renaissance interact with religion? Anglo-Norman, Medieval, and Renaissance show us that we do not only interact with religion in church but we also interact with religion through our beliefs. People sometimes look at religion as someone having power and authority to take control over something. Many times religion can get caught up with people believing that they have power and that they can do whatever they please and they are to never be proven wrong. Some people look at religion as being somewhat larger than life itself. In a negative way some people only rely on religion when they need God for something. In a positive way some people make it their duty to have a relationship with God…

    • 1756 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The history of Europe in the Middle Ages or in the medieval period lasted from 500 A.D to 1500 A.D. The church was very powerful in this time and could even control the kings of the land. The main church in the time of medieval period was the Catholic Church. They had great control over the European people and had more power than any feudal state. Christianity, began approximately 500 years before the start of the Middle Ages. The Catholic Church was wealthy and power and Bishops and archbishops advised kings and great loads who ruled Europe. Through this power the church was able to impact the lives of many people in the middle ages specifically through the control of education, influence of the feudal state and their influence over the people.…

    • 732 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Lines 100-125 In Beowulf

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages

    It is already known within the context of the story that Grendel is wretched and his demonic attacks hold the people of Herot under his power, thus ruling the kingdom with fear. Act one, lines 100 - 106, informs us that despite Grendel’s power over Herot’s people, he was constantly afraid and made truly powerless by God. Grendel had to lurk in the night which “hid him”, and as stated in lines 103 – 106, “he never Dared to touch king Hrothgar’s glorious Throne, protected by God – God, Whose love Grendel could not know”. Upon reading these lines, a spark of sympathy is lit for Grendel, making him more three-dimensional as a character – thus more realistic, without demeaning his horrid…

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Oscar Wilde once said, “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.” Ladies and Gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that I am here today to speak to you about a contentious topic. The question for debate is the definition of a classic and who shall decide which works deserve this highly esteemed title. The canonical value of a work can be decided at the hands of an elite range of high culture intellectuals. This exclusive few can deny the quality of a work, or confer the novels value. Lexically, this guarantee of high aesthetic quality serves a contract that redeems in the authoritative list that ensures the novels value is recognized as a timeless classic for many generations to come. The natural question is then to ask ourselves if the truths conveyed throughout the work have been silenced or marginalized, and to what extent the author has made to produce the whole truth. The novel I will critique and look more…

    • 1228 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    In this novel, religion has a deluding role, however this role has reflected negativity and irony. The town in which the story takes place revolves around values that had been set hundreds of years preceding the story. These values are woven so strongly into this community to an extent that it makes it very difficult to overcome and adjust to present day social values. This is portrayed when…

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Religion

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In Africa he witnessed discrimination against people with dark skin, so, he decided to stay in Africa to try to improve the situation.…

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Religion

    • 2572 Words
    • 11 Pages

    * Memorised the Qur’an by the age of ten , received an modern, secular education…

    • 2572 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Religion

    • 259 Words
    • 2 Pages

    * Enactments, which each have a beginning, middle, and end. They are directly linked to supernatural beings…

    • 259 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    religion

    • 351 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Sacred Texts of Judaism include the Tanak and The Torah. The Torah which is the first five books of the Tanak is considered the law. The question posed today is: are these sacred texts still valid in today’s society? This essay will explore the importance of these sacred texts in Judaism and the importance the Torah plays in schools and how it is now compulsory to be taught to children.…

    • 351 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf depicts Grendel as a demon, a beast. The writer makes Grendel powerful, merciless, and a source of pure evil. The author shows this while describing Grendel and by making him commit heinous acts. The narrator takes away any sign of humanity in him. This makes the God-cursed brute one of the most evil villains in literature.…

    • 855 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    ← “Femininity and masculinity - or one's gender identity - refers to the degree to which persons see themselves as masculine or feminine given what it means to be a man or woman in society. Femininity and masculinity are rooted in the social (one's gender) rather than the biological (one's sex). Societal members decide what being male or female means (e.g., dominant or passive, brave or emotional), and males will generally respond by defining themselves as masculine while females will generally define themselves as feminine. Because these are social definitions, however, it is possible for one to be female and see herself as masculine or male and see himself as feminine.”…

    • 1024 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays