Relationship Between Grendel And His Mother

1. What do you think about the relationship between Grendel and his mother?
Grendel’s mother does not talk much and refuses to tell Grendel their origins, but she often clutches at Grendel that makes Grendel feels a sense of belongingness and security, she loves and protects Grendel. Grendel has no friends, he always stays with his mother, and he thinks that the bond between him and his mother is unbreakable when he is still a child. However, the tie between Grendel and his mother starts to tremble when Grendel first gets out of the water and he feels hopeless being trapped on a tree. Grendel comes to realize that he is one isolated creature that do not make connection with anyone, in his own word, “I alone exist”, shows his individualism

and egoism.

2. What are the two major literary devices the author use to narrate the story? How are they effective?
Symbolism is one of the major literary devices.

In chapter two, the bull represents a figure of violence and hostility. The bull attacks Grendel for no reason, the bull is immoral and it does not think before acting, represents creatures or people in the world that are violent and illogical, such as terrorists and criminals. Another symbol is the ram in chapter one that represents the desire of sex as a physiological need in every living being. The author also uses foreshadowing, Grendel was not born to be an evil killer, he tries to be moral and thoughtful like human at first. Unfortunately, mankind’s misinterpretation of Grendel forces him to question his own identity, when human says he is a fungus not even an animal, Grendel sees men less than human as well. His experience with human foreshadows the immoral and brutal monster he would

become.

3. At the end of chapter 3, how is Grendel affected by the word of Hrothgar’s harper? How does it change him?
The word of harper totally shocks Grendel, because in the poem, he realizes that he is a wild and irrational animal even a cold-blooded killer to human.

It totally changes him, he is trying to learn to be rational in the previous chapter, but the song overwhelmed Grendel and has turned him back into an unreasonable and primitive savage. Grendel starts to confuse about human nature, and he also gradually loses his self-awareness becomes the monster harper portrays him as.

4. Why do think the author made the decision to use Grendel as a narrator?
Reading the Beowulf story again from Grendel’s perspective is totally different, in Grendel’s point of view, the wickedness of human nature exposes to readers that makes reasonable for Grendel to become what he is. From Grendel’s perspective, we as mankind start to recognize and see what we really are despite the hero figure describes in Beowulf. It arouses reader’s sympathy and compassion to Grendel by the fact that human is partial responsible for Grendel’s brutal behaviours.

5. What is the tone in these chapters? Is it consistent or

shifting?
The tone is changing, Grendel‘s tone is bitter and helpless at the first chapter on description about the ram. At that time, Grendel is so sick of the war and exhausted about everything, nothing seems important to him anymore. His tone changes when he is trapped at the tree, he is mocking, depressed and sarcastic, he mocks at other living creatures and he is sad about the fact that he might die. At the end of chapter three, his tone is shocking, angry and confused about he is only a savage in human’s perspective. From the shifting tone of Grendel, we learn that Grendel is a very emotional creature and he has feelings as well.