Beowulf
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Re: Beowulf
I never considered Grendel's mother a sea monster, I will have to reread the epic but I always just considered her amphibious.
- falloutlunartic
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As to Grendel, I've seen the live-animation movie version nearly a dozen times now, so the image of the monster in that monster is the one in my head. At the same time, I seem to recall the version I read having a few illustrations, so that's how I pictured it until the movie came out.
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One point backing up the giant theory, however, is that the author says he is descended from the lineage of Cain: the implication here is that Cain's descendants were cast out from humanity and therefore unable to intermarry with them, so Cain and his descendants might have intermarried with the Nephilim instead. FYI: the Nephilim were supposed to be a hybrid race resulting from the intercourse between humans and fallen angels, who were so notoriously sinful and violent that God wiped them out in the flood, at least according to some interpretations. This gives them some degree of overlap with the Norse giants, who were a sort of counterpart to the Aesir (the ruling order of Gods), except that they lost the battle for divine supremacy - thus the connection to fallen angels, which is reinforced by Grendel's apparent aversion to music (in medieval Christian lore, demonic beings hated music, as it was considered the closest earthly thing to experiencing heaven). Though this reading still requires one to make a couple of assumptions.
The basic problem with saying that Grendel was one thing or another, however, is that in many polytheistic cultures, such as the Vikings had, concepts of the supernatural are cumulative rather than exclusive, such that when they make a transition to a monotheistic system, they simply take the monotheistic concepts and overlay them onto the polytheistic ones, as for example, with modern Santeria, or Shinto. So, it's entirely possible that Grendel might have been both an elf-giant and a half-demon in the imagination of the poet - one that simply had the ability to breathe underwater by some magical or genetic means.
All that aside however, I personally see Grendel as a sort of tragic figure; he had simply been minding his own business in his fen out in the wilderness, trying to make a comfortable existence for himself with his mother, when Hrothgar and his inconsiderate warriors started disturbing his peace with their loud partying, and then when he tried to assert his property rights, the resulting death and destruction left Beowulf honor-bound to destroy him, creating a blood-feud that left his mother dead as well. Also, I think Gardner's interpretation is decent taken for what it is, but I felt it tried too hard to philosophize Grendel's point of view.
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Similarly I also had to read Beowulf several times throughout university, including one instance where I had to read it in the original Old English and translate sections of it into modern English. Like you, the "Grendel was juts an outcast" theory is one that I heard from my Old English professor. I personally think he's a combination of things, and more of an idea than a specific breed of monster. I see him as a kind of symbol of some kind of unruly wild chaos. He very much ticks off a lot of the boxes for things the Anglo Saxons were wary of, ie. having no father, not being a part of any community, connections to unholy beings, connections to the wilder more dangerous aspects of nature such as storms/wind/swamps, lawlessness, irrational behaviour and he fights dirty (ex. attacking the hall while everyone is asleep). He's kind of like the ultimate extreme example of a lone wolf/outsider figure.godreaujea wrote:I had to read this book several times in college and I think the most interesting theory I have heard on Grendel is probably the most boring. The theory goes that Grendel is just an outcast. In medieval times, there are certain "rules" in society, and one of these is the importance of the hierarchy. For instance, when Beowulf first introduces himself to the guard when he arrives at the beach, he describes who he is by saying who is father was. However, Grendel does not have a father, he has only a mother, and that is one reason why he was shunned by society, among other reasons we discussed in class.
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Reading Beowulf always made me long for the experience of hearing from an elder over the campfire that staves off the bitter winter cold. Haha oddly specific, but I can't get the image out of my head!
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Sounds very interesting. I have never actually read this, but keep meaning to. I have so many books in my pile to read, so I will add Beowulf too.ITemple wrote: ↑21 Jan 2014, 01:02 I have read the story of Beowulf several times and have always enjoyed it. Throughout my experiences discussing it with others I have heard multiple theories on what Grendel is, what he looks like, and how he came to exist. (I have not yet had the opportunity to read the book titled "Grendel" though). I would love to hear any/all of the theories that you have or that you've heard!
One of the theories that I have heard is that in the Garden of Eden when Eve was persuaded to partake of the "forbidden fruit" it was not literally fruit; and she became pregnant with the serpent's child when she was cast out of the garden. Then as generations passed, that child's offspring evolved and Grendel is one of its descendants. Therefore he is a mix between reptile and human, with tough skin like a reptile but limbs like a human.
Another theory I have heard is that Grendel is a dragon, specifically he and his mother are the last of them. All the other dragons had been hunted down, tortured, and killed long before; but because Grendel's mother had learned to change her form to deceive men she had escaped that fate.
(But I think the first one is more interesting)
“We’ve all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That’s who we really are.”
—J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix