Grendel Summary and Analysis

Chapter 1

The novel begins with Grendel trying to scare away a ram standing at the edge of a cliff. Much to Grendel’s annoyance, the ram appears elated, and Grendel lets out a terrifying howl in his bid to scare it away. The ram is unperturbed, though the water nearby is frozen by the power of the growl. Grendel realizes that the ram’s lack of fear is due to it being spring and the ram is in season; in other words, the ram is struck by lust.

This incident marks the twelfth year of war between Grendel and humans. He is revolted by the ram’s animalistic sexuality and walks away from it and toward the forest. His memories of his pointless killing of humans leaves him disturbed and lost. Grendel nonetheless enjoys the onset of spring from the desolate cave he lives in with his mother. He is constantly talking to his shadow, to the nature around him, and to himself.

He contemplates the nature of his relationship with his mother, a creature much less developed than himself. In a habitual manner, he reaches King Hrothgar’s mead hall, causes ruckus, kills men, and carries away their dead bodies to devour. Grendel returns home angered and disappointed by the humans’ “crackpot theories” and vain attempts at keeping him at bay. They hold a funeral, sing songs of victory, try to understand which god’s curse must have led to this destruction. The humans, Grendel observes, are keen to make meaning out of the dangerous situation they have been in for eleven years.

Chapter 2

Flashing back to his childhood, Grendel remembers his idyllic but isolated existence. He remembers discovering the moonlight and the absence of the firesnakes. He remembers his childhood with his mother, his feelings of love, unity, and separation. He also thinks of the time when other creatures in the cave wouldn’t talk to him. He then remembers getting stuck in a tree and being charged at by a bull repeatedly. He is, however, able to escape the bull’s attacks. When he feels extremely isolated, he attempts to understand the world and comes to the conclusion that only he truly exists. He is aware, while being stuck to the tree, that he will never be able to see the world through anyone else’s eyes. He is discovered by a group of humans, King Hrothgar being one of them. They attempt to identify what sort of creature he might be. Grendel is able to understand the humans’ language, which catches them by surprise. In fact, they’re terrified by Grendel’s attempt to communicate with them.

Grendel is later saved from the humans by his mother. While he tries to talk to his mother about the lessons he has learnt from the exploration, he realizes that she doesn’t speak the same language. Returning to the present, he becomes aware that he and his mother still do not have a common language.

Chapter 3

This chapter, a retrospective from Grendel’s point of view, details the development of civilization around him. He speaks of the early feuds between groups of hunters and how they told stories of victory and defeat. Later, these hunters settled down and discovered agriculture, while the menfolk continued hunting and storytelling. Grendel observes the vicious nature of humans warring against one another. In parallel, Grendel talks about his own development, too. He reveals that he took particular interest in these conflicts in a bid to understand humans, but failed to do so. Notably, he hadn’t yet begun attacking humans; at this point, he was still only attacking their cattle.

He sees that wars are not just futile but also tragic, resulting in the loss of many lives. Grendel also finds himself confused by the various rituals employed by warring kingdoms. He notices that the rituals performed after victories and defeats are rather different. He observes these confusing developments around him from his treetop perch. He is especially put off by the deaths humans cause and the waste they produce, especially their wastefulness when they eat meat. It is during this time that he observes King Hrothgar’s victory and his subsequent success in getting smaller towns nearby to pledge allegiance to his rule. The king builds roads to make his kingdom unparalleled, and his treasury soon overflows with wealth from across the kingdom. As he watches their encroachment into the forest, he feels a “violent and growing unrest.” The final embellishment to Hrothgar’s kingdom arrives in the form of a creative historian and talented performer, the Shaper.

The Shaper enchants everyone, including Grendel, with his songs and made-up tales about the people’s history. Grendel, having witnessed for years the bloody reality of human development, knows the truth, but finds himself charmed by the Shaper’s language and harp. Angered, confused, and saddened by the beautiful, but ultimately, false stories, Grendel returns to his cave, his own realm.

Analysis of Chapters 1-3

Grendel leads a lonely life. He constantly tries to communicate, to form connections with other creatures around him, including humans, and language is central to these attempts. The creatures that surround him, however, do not speak his language, and they also seem less inclined to be friends with Grendel. Most creatures do not see him as an equal. He faces the same challenges with his mother, with whom he shares an ambivalent relationship. Her language is rather basic, and is mainly limited to primal, animalistic expressions. Nonetheless, they do find comfort in each other’s presence, and she also saves him when Hrothgar attacks him. Furthermore, he feels profoundly alienated by humans, whose language he understands and speaks. Yet, humans deem him dangerous, alien, and evil. In Grendel’s eyes, humans are quick to go to war. The wars, moreover, seem pointless to him. In fact, humans and their way of life appear quite silly to him. The ram’s brute force, the deer’s unthinking nature, and his mother’s seemingly disconnected existence only exacerbate his loneliness.

The readers are thus made privy to Grendel’s musings and dilemmas as he navigates the world. Grendel is fascinated by humans’ “crackpot theories.” He believes that humans have a very narrow way of living and making meaning, that they are oblivious to the larger scheme of things. On the other hand, he is captivated by the Shaper’s song, but knows that the Shaper’s version of the past is false. To Grendel, the Shaper’s main motivation seems to be gaining Hrothgar’s trust and praise. Grendel has lived a supernaturally long life, and is thus aware of the fabrications in the Shaper’s songs.

His explorative childhood marks a time of innocence, which, unfortunately, only results in a solipsistic outlook: according to Grendel, it is only he who actually exists, whereas the external world is just a figment of imagination. His attempts to communicate with humans only lead to violence, and this in turn confirms his solipsistic theories. Since no one else is real, he directs most of his enquiries toward the sky and the readers.