Compare And Contrast Grendel And Beowulf's Actions

When Grendel is battling Beowulf he thinks that he can escape and that he is no match for Beowulf . For instance , “ His syllables lick at me, chilly fire.” (Grendel 170) . Grendel

Beowulf is brave and grendel is spiteful. They both act out pride because Beowulf is an epic hero and most epic heros let the pride eat then. In other words it gets to their heads, which then hurts them in the end. Grendel has more of a vengeful pride. He killed Herot men for fun and because he was annoyed by their stories.

What do all great works of literature have in common? All impressive literary works have hugely contrasting alienated characters, usually portrayed by the villains, and heroic characters. These two distinct characters may not get along well, but they both work together to highlight the underlying themes woven in the story. Alienated characters reveal the things a society values and desires by embodying characteristics that go against these wants. On the other hand, heroic characters highlight these morals and aspirations by exemplifying them.

Several differences can be seen throughout the old-English Beowulf (Heaney) and the modern-day film Beowulf and Grendel (Gunnarsson) due to the cultural difference between the Middle ages and Modern time. More details entered the film to appeal to a more modern audience that requires reason and details. The old English poem held no use for complexity to tantalize the reader. Additions that add complexity to Grendel’s character in Beowulf and Grendel include backstories and new characters.

Extra Characters in Beowulf Beowulf is a story that has been around since the year 580, or since 1000 AD. With that being said, there are bound to be several adaptations and modern re-imaginings of the same story about this dynamic warrior and all his glorious battles. The epic Beowulf (Heaney,Seamus) and one of its modern adaptation Beowulf and Grendel (Gunnarson, S) has a few similarities, but they also have a great deal of differences, ranging from views on religion, Women, and even changing some of the story’s main characters. The movie’s addition of the main characters such as Grendel’s son, the witch, and Grendel’s dad, show that we, as the modern people, have a vastly different worldview with regards to the hardships of life’s complexities. A major addition to the main character 's roster was Grendel’s son.

Prepared to spill the blood of unsuspecting, intoxicated warriors in their slumber, Grendel fleetly removed the strengthened door to the Herot with monstrous strength and cruelty. Grendel's strides were expansive. With every step, the beast's huge, thickened feet much flew, one once the opposite. the ground gave the impression to be instantly displaced owing to his spectacular lightness. " His eyes gleamed within the darkness, burned with a grotesque light".

During the Anglo-Saxon period, heroic characteristics are defined as being courageous, brave, loyal and victorious in arduous battles. In Beowulf, by Seamus Heaney, Beowulf is given the title “hero” because he wins the battle between Grendel by killing him. However, the Danes see Grendel as a monster and a bloodlust because he is the total opposite of how the Danes discern the definition of a “hero.” Although Grendel is fated to be a “God-cursed brute” (Beowulf 11), there is another side of Grendel where the Danes do not see. Grendel can be seen as a gruesome, yet a pitiful creature.

Beowulf is an epic poem about a brave heroic man that comes and helps a king get rid a monster. An epic poem is a story about someone who has heroic like ideas in a society. Beowulf is a story that was sung by the bards and scops because that would be the only thing that will be passed on even after his death. It was written by the Anglo-Saxons, who did not believe in the afterlife, unlike Christianity. So the warrior would have to do something that would let his memory be passed on.

In the epic poem, Beowulf, there are clear distinctions between an epic hero and a monster. Beowulf is the prime example of a epic hero possessing characteristics such as superior strength, courage, and loyalty. On the other hand, Grendel and Grendel’s mother are characteristized as evil and immoral based off of their actions. These characteristics are presented throughout the poem, and monsters are given grotesque, hideous appearances to further prove that they are evil. After Beowulf kills Grendel, Grendel’s mother reaction revealed how the full presentation of a character can allow readers to react differently than before and even sympathized with them.

The common characteristics of what makes a monster have remained constant throughout society: evil, isolated, violent. Monsters have no regards for social normatives, and cause chaos and destruction wherever they go. Grendel is no exception. In Beowulf, Grendel manifests every characteristic of a stereotypical monster. He is considered inherently evil, and is an outcast; he roams alone and commits devilish atrocities whenever he pleases.

Throughout the poem, Beowulf is seen as a hero through his actions and how he helps the Danes and the Geats. Three of the best examples of Beowulf’s heroism is seen in each of the three battles he has. When Beowulf fights Grendel, he tells Hrothgar of how he will fight Grendel, “…my hands alone shall fight for me, struggle for life against the monster…” (Beowulf 38). Beowulf shows how he is a hero by not only facing this terrifying monster that has already killed so many, but he will face him, and defeat him, with his own hands, nothing more.

Grendel’s story is not only from his perspective, but it also starts far before Beowulf enters the picture. Grendel does not even know of man’s existence before he encountered Hrothgar whom he starts to fear when he says “I knew I was dealing with no dull mechanical bull but with thinking creatures, pattern makers. The most dangerous things I’d ever met” (pg 27). His first encounter with these men left him wanting more. He spent most nights watching them in the shadows, trying to make sense of their actions.

Grendel in the novel is different from the Grendel shown in the epic poem Beowulf because Grendel shows a different side of himself. Grendel in the novel is much more complex, whereas in the epic poem, he is much more epic and destructive. However, in both the novel and the epic poem, the reader is able to see how short tempered he is in both. This helps the reader get a better insight of how Grendel actually feels throughout the novel rather than the way he is perceived in the poem, because it takes into perspective on how he lives his life and feels throughout the entire war. Grendel is much more epic and destructive in the poem, than the novel.

Beowulf slayed them because he believed it was his duty. No one could defeat these monsters like he could. There had to be a reason Beowulf fought these monsters because he never did it for himself. He put others ahead of himself because he believed it was his moral obligation to. When he fought Grendel he had to defeat him to balance good and evil.

Beowulf is a fierce warrior without a shameful thought or action, or so the story tells. The cinematic version of the Anglo-Saxon tale portrays Beowulf as a flawed human that has both created and killed the monsters that haunt the land of the Danes. Although both stories highlight the battle between Beowulf and a monster named Grendel, of who brings terror to the mead hall, and a dragon that later haunts the same lands, there are a few major discrepancies between the text and the movie that alter the characters, plot and subsequently the overall theme of the story. Beowulf’s difference in character and morality is one of the most substantial differences between the two versions of the story. In text, Beowulf is a flawless prince who selflessly travels lands to protect strangers, all for the sake of honor.