Iram Liu, Period 5, 2/8/21, Day B

Iram Liu
Period 5
02/08/21
Day B
Modern Mythology 2021


Literacy & Learning
- Write about your thoughts regarding any of the fiction or non-fiction covered in class.
- Reflect on any new information you have learned in English class by considering how that learning influences your critical perception.
- How is what you’re learning applied to any other classes/the world around you?

After reading the introduction to Beowulf and watching a video about Abel and Cain this past cycle, we were tasked with drawing connections between the Biblical story and the epic poem to better characterize Grendel. At first, the poem was a little confusing since the structure was very different from previous translated and modernized stories that we read. However, after defining and providing examples to the literary devices such as kennings and stock epithets, the second reading was a lot easier to understand.

Through the initial descriptions of Grendel, he is characterized as a bloodthirsty beast that preys on humans. At first, my group decided that it was perhaps unfair to only see him as a demon since he was a direct descendant from Cain, the first murderer. Therefore, he couldn’t help his desire to perform evil, and since humans were his source of food, he had to hunt them in order to eat. As modern readers, we have the bigger picture and therefore understand his innate evilness. However, once Ms. Fusaro noted that Grendel was actually “feasting” on the humans, we realized that Grendel’s characterization was actually reasonable. When we think of the word feasting, there is usually a positive and celebratory connotation which shows that Grendel is not doing it because he has to. Upon closer reading, we found the following lines further proof that his actions were not out of necessity but out of “greed” and “lust.” As a result, we ultimately came to the conclusion that Grendel’s characterization as a monster was fair and accurate.

Continuing with Grendel’s descriptions, we realized that Grendel is extremely envious and hateful towards the halls of Herot and the people who rejoice in it. Similar to his precedent Cain who was envious of his brother’s blessings from God, Grendel hates that the Danes can have these fun and joyful feasts. Therefore, we concluded that Grendel can be a metaphor for the unrestrained enviousness and violence of mankind, a monstrous trait that cannot be quilled with weapons. This metaphor can be extended to the present as these traits can lead to otherwise unthinkable acts.

Despite the initial conclusion about Grendel being wrong, there was still value to seeing the backstory to his evilness. This is definitely prevalent throughout history and our world today. Someone just reading the text as it is would not question Grendel’s evilness and place the full responsibility on him. While keywords refute any argument, had it not been there, we might have sympathized with Grendel. Instead of only looking at the effects, we must also dig deeper and find the causes that led to the harmful acts. It is only through careful analysis that we will be able to address the roots of the problem and help to prevent future evil acts.