Grendel is an unhappy soul in John Gardner’s book “Grendel”, because he
feels useless in society and doesn’t want to accept his given role. Throughout
this whole book Grendel feels he has no friend in the outside word and no one to
except him besides his own mother. He doesn’t want to except his role in
society which is to be the Great Destroyer. Man creates a huge problem in
Grendel’s life and has had a major effect on the way he lives with man.
Grendel is unhappy in many ways. He wants to be accepted by man but never knew
why he was always shunned out of there society. Grendel in the beginning never
set out to hurt man just understand him. When Grendel shows up the first time in
the mead hall he yells “Mercy! Peace!” But no one even gives him a chance
when he walks in holding a dead body and using it for protection against the
drunken men swinging axes and swords at him. Grendel dose not understand this as
he says “they were doomed, I knew, and I was glad.” showing the hope for
destruction of the human race. In Grendel’s eyes humans are going to destroy
themselves and he will be glad when it happens. Grendel is very lonely in the
world of man. He has only one person close to him and that is his mother. She
cares for Grendel but just with the natural motherly instincts which Grendel
sees as mechanical. Grendel doesn’t understand, “Why can’t I have someone
to talk to?” as the world starts to look darker in his eyes. Animals of all
sorts are enemies of his because they don’t understand him. Grendel is more
superior Grendel’s role in society is to be the great destroyer. The Dragon
tells Grendel this “ You improve them, my boy! … You stimulate them!” but
Grendel dose not want to except it. HE want to be part of the humanistic world.
He want a different role in society. This makes Grendel very unhappy that he
cannot be accepted. The Dragon puts a spell on Grendel that lets weapons not
harm him. At first he dose not like this because he thinks that the fun of
destroying men would be to easy at this point. He starts to grow into this
though and plays his role as the great destroyer. This book shows how Grendel
put up with man and learned to adapt to the humanistic ways of life. It took him
a while to adapt but he did find it fun to reck the humans world. Since he was
not excepted he would have to take the role of the great destroyer at the end of
the story.