Throughout “Grendel,” the character Grendel takes a philosophical journey as he develops his identity and pattern of thought. In the beginning of Grendel’s journey, he is trying to make sense of his existence. We are introduced with his first attack on Hrothgar’s mead hall and Hrothgar and his people’s response. We learn what Grendel does, how he feels, and his curse. Grendel mentions how he use to feel pride towards the animals using caution when he came near them. However, now Grendel realizes the fear the animals had because of him was not something worth satisfaction, because they cautioned him due to his ancestral curse.
The next step in Grendel’s philosophical journey is when he is sees the Shaper. The Shapers brilliant poetic words attract Grendel and make him re-think what he knows to be the truth. “I too crept away, my mind aswim in ringing phrases, magnificent, golden, and all of them, incredibly, lies” (Grendel 43). This quote shows how the Shapers words grabbed Grendel’s attention and made him rethink the truth that he knows. The Shaper also speaks of the origin of Grendel, which takes Grendel by surprise and provokes him to not want to be what he was cursed to be. Grendel’s intuition provokes him to want to befriend the humans, which backfires.
The next step in Grendel’s journey is his meeting with the dragon. During this meeting, the dragon delivers his perspective to the purpose and meaning of life. “You improve them, my boy! You Drive them to poetry, science, religion, all that makes them what they are for as long as they are” (Gardner 72-73). The dragon reveals to Grendel that his purpose is to scare and instill fear within the humans; which stimulates them to create poetry, science, and religion for their time on earth. Originally, Grendel does not want to do what he was created to be. However, after meeting the dragon, he realizes this is what he is destined to be. “Nothing was changed, everything was changed, by my having seen the dragon” (Garnder 75). He comes to this conclusion when he faces the fact that he will never be accepted by the humans in any other way than as a horrid monster.
He is side tracked in his war with Hrothgar two years later when Wealtheow is married to Hrothgar. Wealtheow’s innocence, beauty, and peaceful spirit puts a charm on Grendel, similar to the Shaper’s spell. This charm prohibits Grendel from attacking Hart as he feels that he is in love. Wealtheow symbolizes all the love and passion he wants to have, which he didn’t receive from his mother. For a moment, Wealtheow makes him remember his want to be different from what he is destined to be. Wealtheow also embodies the Christianity and felicity of women when she brings peace among all the men. Although Wealtheow side tracks him, he continues to pursue his raid on Hrothgar. Grendel further destroys Hrothgar even though Hrothgar’s kingdom is under many threats from his nephew, Hrothulf, brother-in-law, and enemy Ingeld. Grendel has reached a new point in his philosophical journey where he has no sympathy for Hrothgar or any human for that matter. He sees no point in their existence, and no point in sympathizing with Hrothgar for the way he established his power.
Grendel further develops his philosophical thought when he meets the priest, Ork. The priest Ork delivers his interpretations of the King of Gods and the Great Destroyer to Grendel. Grendel is amazed at Ork’s interpretation of things, and the falseness of religion. Grendel believes there is no god, and time here on earth will pass and be purposeless. This idea that Grendel has relates to the nihilistic concept of Nietzsche; the concept that there is no real substance to traditional social, political, moral and religious values. This idea develops and festers towards the end as Grendel’s final philosophical view is that there is no meaning in the world. He sees how the humans create their own poetry and religion to resemble what they want to believe to true, and what will give them hope. However, in Grendel’s world there is meaning in nothing, and purpose in nothing. Therefore, what him and the humans come to think of life means nothing. For example, in the end, Grendel refuses to accept the truth of his death that he knows the humans will think. Grendel knows the humans will believe they defeated him by power, but Grendel says, “Poor Grendel’s had an accident. So may you all” (Gardner 174). This also displays how Grendel believes there is no purpose in life, because all life on earth will have an accident and die in some way, just as Grendel has done.
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