The zodiac calendar is an astrological theory that divides the path that the sun seems to follow around the earth into twelve equal sections, each of which are associated with a sign, a symbol and a personality type. John Gardner embraces this astrological theme in his parallel novel, Grendel, by connecting each of the twelve chapters to its coinciding zodiac.
Grendel’s astrological journey starts out with Aires. The beginning of this new Zodiac cycle disturbs Grendel because of how cyclical. Aires’s symbol, the ram, disgusts Grendel because it repeats the same motions that it had repetition without even realizing that fate is repeating itself. Although Grendel possesses the physical attributes of a beast, he doesn’t succumb to the same anomalistic urge to mount anything. The ram’s stupidity and lack of dignity separate Grendel from the community of beasts.
In chapter two, while innocently adventuring, Grendel traps his foot in a crack between two old trees and, suddenly, a bull defending a calf begins to attack Grendel. After one successful stab at his knee, Grendel finds an easy way to avoid nearly all of the bull’s lunges. Before long, the repetitive, mechanical bull hardly even phases Grendel. The bull, unlike Hrothgar and his men, incompetently flings itself at Grendel’s tree the same way it would fight anything Like the ram, the bull’s stupidity contrasts Grendel from the common beast that doesn’t “even know that the calves they defend are theirs.” (20) The bull’s “brute enmity” (22) is compared to mankind’s competence when Hrothgar and his men attack Grendel. Although the men are smaller and less physically capable than the bull, Grendel calls them “the most dangerous things [he]’d ever met” (26) simply because of the...
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...xo nihilo, I always say” (150) meaning nothing comes from nothing.
The Aquarius, or the water bearer, is typically defined by its unpredictability. The deep, complex cave is the first Aquarius symbol because the underground river bears water through itself. Because the cave is so deep and intricate, it’s bound to be unpredictable. Another Aquarius symbol is Beowulf’s ship because, through water, it bears Grendel’s destroyer.
Similar to Aires marking the beginning of the zodiac in chapter one, Pisces’s purpose marks the end of the astrological cycle. At the end of the fight, after Grendel and Beowulf realize that Grendel is going to die, Beowulf creates a link between fish, Pisces’s astrological sign, and human endurance. This link instills the same repetition theme that Grendel felt in chapter because it implies that humanity will continue, cycle after cycle.
For ages, humanity has always told stories of the classic struggle between man and monster. The battle between Beowulf and Grendel is a prime example of this archetype, but is Grendel only purely a monster? In his article “Gardner’s Grendel and Beowulf: Humanizing the Monster”, Jay Ruud makes a point that Grendel is a hybridization of both monster and man, particularly in John Gardner’s novel Grendel. In the poem Beowulf, Grendel is depicted as a purely evil monster who terrorizes Hrothgar and his people, but the novel provides a more humanistic backstory to the fiend. Throughout the novel, Grendel tells of his internal struggle between his thoughts of filling the role of the monster versus attempting to make amends with the humans. This conflict
In the first chapter of the novel, Grendel uses mechanical imagery, perhaps the most noteworthy instance of the many mechanical images and character traits that appear throughout this narration. This starts the beginning of a theme with a major use of imagery that travels throughout the story. In Chapter 1 on page 9, Grendel begins to recount the cycle of the seasons as “cold mechanics of the stars”, a cold and unfeeling progression that puts him into a routine, infinite loop. Grendel even describes himself as a mechanical beast at the same time. “When my soul can no longer resist, I go up, as mechanical as anything else, fists clenched against my lack of will...”. All of his senses are seen as calculated, all except for three specific instances
the men as the "beasts" and Grendel as the victim. & nbsp; Another aspect of the humans in the story that Grendel defines is their concept of a hero. Not only does he allow for heroes to exist he gives them their purpose in life. Grendel is the monster in the darkness. that every loyal thane would defend his king against. Without Grendel this unique situation would not exist. On the other hand, Grendel has the ability to humiliate and cause a man to be named a coward. He does. this to none other than Unferth. Unferth is treated like a hero because he would defeat the "monster" Grendel, or die trying. When Grendel does not. allow him to complete this task he is shamed by his fellow thanes. Grendel realizes that by killing the man he will be defining him as a hero in the eyes of the humans. Considering the way Grendel was treated by Unferth. and others like him, it becomes easy to sympathize with him extracting this.
This ‘beast’, the protagonist of the story, fights an internal struggle, of which is a part of the Hero’s Journey. Grendel is unable to decide what to make of himself and of the world surrounding him. He has only ever known the world as wild and mechanical, yet he is charmed by the artistic brilliance of the Shaper’s words. Grendel ultimately meets a brutal yet peaceful demise. Standing on the face of the same cliff he found himself in the beginning of the novel, surrounded by mindless eyes, he states, “Poor Grendel’s had an accident. So may you all.” (Grendel, John Gardner, pg.174) Previous to this, he questions if what he is feeling is joy. The reader is lead to believe that Grendel must feel nothing but peace. This, is the concluding moment of his
“‘Mama, Mama! I’m dying!’ But her love is history,” (Grendel 173) Grendel states as he escapes Beowulf’s hold and runs to safety- although mortally wounded. Grendel is left alone to perish, but it is not as he had always had company other than his shadow to stand by him. Though this holds true, other animals gather to watch the horrid beast take his last breath, as if to assure themselves of the horrid monsters passing. As he looks at the “mindless, indifferent eyes” (Grendel 173) of the array of animals gathering to watch his final moments, Grendel utters, “Poor Grendel’s had an accident, So may you all” (Grendel 174). Dazed and confused, Grendel seemingly utters these words as a curse to his surrounding audience; however, through further evaluation, “So may you all,” (Grendel 174) is actually a blessing to all animals.
"People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive...." Joseph Campbell made this comment on the search for meaning common to every man's life. His statement implies that what we seem bent on finding is that higher spark for which we would all be willing to live or die; we look for some key equation through which we might tie all of the experiences of our life and feel the satisfaction of action toward a goal, rather than the emptiness which sometimes consumes the activities of our existence. He states, however, that we will never find some great pure meaning behind everything, because there is none. What there is to be found, however, is the life itself. We seek to find meaning so that emptiness will not pervade our every thought, our every deed, with the coldness of reality as the unemotional eye chooses to see it. Without color, without joy, without future, reality untouched by hope is an icy thing to view; we have no desire to see it that way. We forget, however, that the higher meaning might be found in existence itself. The joy of life and the experience of living are what make up true meaning, as the swirl of atoms guided by chaotic chance in which we find our existence has no meaning outside itself.
In the story Beowulf by Seamus Heaney, Grendel is a slimy green swamp monster that has human emotions but is portrayed as a hideous beast and an outcast of the Anglo-Saxon society.
In Chapter 8, Grendel exclaims, “I’m a machine. Like all of you. Blood-lust and rage are my character,” (Gardner 123). This profound statement establishes a connection between Grendel and the ambiguous “you,” the reader. The monster, though he confesses to his wrongdoing, asserts that readers are no better than he. Countless bible verses reiterate this concept: “For all have sinned,” (Romans 3:23) “[Humans] are all. .impure with sin,” (Isaiah 64:6). Gardner’s reminder to readers of mankind’s predisposition to sin earns pity for the monster. He expands on these sympathies by describing the nature of Grendel’s lonely existence. “But there was one thing worse,” Grendel states after discovering the dragon’s charm, “no weapon could cut me,” (Gardner 75). In this moment, nihilism overcomes Grendel; if fighting poses no danger, it has no purpose, and neither does he. Any reader who has had an experience which challenged his or her values cannot help but feel empathetic towards the purposeless creature. Perhaps more piteous, however, is the suggestion that Grendel has no choice in being “the dark side. . the terrible race God cursed,” (Gardner 51). The dragon condemns Grendel as “the brute existent by which [humans] learn to define themselves,” telling him that it is worthless to better his character (Gardner 72). It is not until after
Grendel represents everything that an Anglo-Saxon warrior should not be. As he is introduced into the story, he is characterized by having, “…no idea of the
...n very human feelings of resentment and jealousy. Grendel was an unstable and saddened figure because of his outcast status. Though Grendel had many animal attributes and a grotesque, monstrous appearance, he seemed to be guided by vaguely human emotions and impulses. He truthfully showed more of an interior life than one might expect. Exiled to the swamplands outside the boundaries of human society, Grendel’s depiction as an outcast is a symbol of the jealousy and hate that seeks to destroy others' happiness and can ultimately cripple a civilization. This take on the outcast archetype ultimately exposes the Anglo Saxon people’s weaknesses, their doubts and anxieties towards the traditional values that bounded nearly every aspect of their life.
An innocent, joyless, outcast lurks in the depths of the earth. He is feared by all due to his violent behavior and thirst for humans. Stories about this monster stretch across lands, intriguing the one and only Beowulf. In this notorious Epic, Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney, Grendel is the Frankenstein of this poem, the Joker of this time period, the Lord Voldemort of this book. Basically, Grendel is the villain and when there’s a villain there’s a hero. Our hero today is Beowulf, who challenges Grendel and he trounced not only Grendel but Grendel’s mother as well. Not only are Grendel and his mother villains but they also played the role of being the outcast/scapegoat. Symbolically they play the role
Grendel is the embodiment of all that is evil and dark. He is a descendant of Cain and like Cain is an outcast of society. He is doomed to roam in the shadows. He is always outside looking inside. He is an outside threat to the order of society and all that is good. His whole existence is grounded solely in the moral perversion to hate good simply because it is good.
Depicted is his first emergence from the cave and the dreamlike state he is in when venturing out into the wilderness, “I lived those years, as do all young things, in a spell”(pg. 16). This childish state he is in brings out complacency and apathy in addition to building his self image and relies heavily on feelings and tends to be more sensitive. Grendel endures several situations where he feel hurt, endangered and calls for his mother to help and assist him but no help comes. Being forced to find his own way causes Grendel to generate some understanding of worldly views, “I understood that the world was nothing: a mechanical chaos, brute enmity on which we stupidly impose our hopes and fears. I understood that, finally and absolutely, I alone exist”(pg. 22). This epiphany is brought on by the second zodiac Taurus represented by the bull who comes to protect the calf Grendel is hunting. Taurus and Grendel are related on the basis of feeling and self security, faith. Again the feeling of self centeredness and reliance is exemplified when Grendel confronts men for the first time. Exception is that his mother does come to his aid on this occasion and when it slides over to the cave his thoughts come to fruition , “ ...the meaningless objectness of the world….the world is a pointless accident...I exist nothing else” (pg. 28). Like a Taurus he is decisive and resolute in regards to
...zes humanity in this scene by portraying them as the evil beings instead of Grendel who is the helpless victim of their savage assault. The men attack Grendel solely because they could not understand him and because of his appearance. Grendel makes no attempt to harm the men but to communicate with them while they are the ones that savagely tried to kill him. John Gardner portrays the men as the real monsters who mercilessly tried to kill Grendel while he was defenseless. Grendel has another revelation due to this attack in where he states. “The world resists me and I resist the world… “That’s all there is.”(Gardner, 28) Grendel makes this assertion as a means to organized the ways he perceives the world. While he once saw the world as a confusing array of frightening images, now he can separate the world into categories: those who do not resemble him and himself.
It was not up until 200 years ago that people started identifying their zodiac sign with the position of the Sun. So when a person is asked what is his or sign, the Sun was passing through on the day that person was born. This can be demonstrated on a birth chart. Our birth charts are special "sky maps" which reflect the quality of the exact moment we drew our first breath. With that first breath, we each began our own incredible hero's journey through life on planet Earth. The birth positions of the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto all play their own unique symbolic roles as messengers and ambassadors of the universe.