What is a monster? The dictionary definition of a monster is a creature that is typically large, ugly, and frightening. When I think of Grendel, this is exactly what I think of. Anyone who has ever read the story can tell you that this is a perfect description of Grendel throughout the entire story. He is a large creature who attacks the humans on many occasions, and seems to have no regard for life at all. He is the perfect example of a monster in my eyes.

From the beginning of the story, we are told of the horrible things Grendel does, and the nasty stench that he carries with him. On page six, it talks of Grendel smelling of “murdered men, women, and children.” This was at the very beginning of the book, so this paints an image of some horrible beasts that murders anyone. Ad as the book continues, we are able to listen to the horrible things that Grendel talks to himself about. “Murdering old women”, (page 7), and “being hungry for blood, (page 9). This continues to paint that picture in my mind of some horrible creature.

Now some may say that the humans are the ones in this book that are the monsters, but I would strongly disagree. One of the parts of the definition of a monster is frightening. On page 25, it says that, “the humans attack Grendel because they think he is a monster, and they fear him.” After hearing this quote, I do not see at all how someone could say that he is not a monster. The humans that he was killing all the time knew he was one, and it is easy to see why. The humans also fear Grendel so much, because of the horrible things that they see him do to their friends and family. “He takes the dead after he raids the Herot”, (page 12), and “He bites the head off of a guard”, (page 79). These people are truly scared of Grendel and the description shows us why.

It is very easy for the reader to read the book and hear about all the horrible things that Grendel does, and easy say that he Is a monster, but I think that there is another aspect to him that makes him even more of a monster. One of the things that troubles Grendel throughout the story are the thoughts that he has in his head. We can tell that he is very troubled, and is searching for some meaning in his life. On page 52, Grendel even goes on to call himself a monster. That shows me that he even thinks he is one. We also see on page 37, that he sits on a hillside outside of Herot and watches the humans and thinks of horrible things to do to them. This is truly a disturbing description of the things that Grendel does.

We have heard about all the things that Grendel has done, but now I would like to give some comparison to the things that the humans do. On page 11, when he is walking into the town, he sees two humans having sex while there is a dead body lying in the middle of the street. I can see in Grendel’s eyes how this would be extremely disturbing to him. It also shows him that the humans may have no regard for human life. Another example of the humans being greedy would be Unferth. Throughout the story, he is trying to ill Grendel, not to help is people, but only so they would think of him as a hero. This is an extremely guilty thing, and because of it, Grendel spares Unferth every time he raids the kingdom, and he is amused by his attempts to kill him.

So even though in the book, we see some scenes of the humans being bad creatures and committing murders, I think that the real monster in this book is Grendel. The things that he says, does, and thinks about are truly horrible, and they cause him to be a monster in my eyes. Throughout the entire book, he attacks the innocent humans because of the music that they play. He murders hundreds of them in horrible ways, and he feels no regret about it. In my mind, this is the true definition of a monster. And Grendel fits this description perfectly in the story.























Works Cited
Gardner, John. Grendel. 1971, Random House Inc., New York. Print.