The onset of winter foreshadows Grendel’s death. Quotes related to Communication within Grendel. I no longer remember exactly what he sang. It was their confidence, maybe—their blissful, swinish ignorance, their bumptious self-satisfaction, and worst of all, their hope . Grendel laughed as man after man attacked him, shouting about honor, Hrothgar, and God. But, the Shaper might make it true. Set in a dystopian future rather than the past, this adaptation makes many changes to the poem’s story. This stylistically and thematically postmodern novel is an example of a metafiction—fiction about fiction. The goat continues to climb, and Grendel shoves it down the mountainside and throws a rock at it, splitting its head. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. Summary and Analysis. Mendez-Egle, Beatrice , ed. His people give him a glorious funeral, but they have been left unprotected, and they foresee “enemies on the rampage, bodies in piles, / slavery and abasement” (ll. Grendel thinks the boy may already have thoughts of. Although she is smaller and weaker than. Summary. And so begins the twelfth year of my idiotic war. A detailed description and in-depth analysis of Beowulf in Grendel. Grendel observes Hrothgar, noting how drastically his face has changed over the years. In the end each clan on the outlying coasts. Chapter 1 Summary: The novel begins with Grendel, a bear-like monster, watching a “stupidly triumphant” ram standing at a cliff’s edge. Rumors of witchcraft spread through the town and a crowd gathers. The alliteration helps emphasize the descriptive nature of the words. A wicked queen of legend who punishes anyone who looks at her the wrong way. A summary of Chapter 11 in John Gardner's Grendel. The rivalry between Unferth, a Danish warrior, and Beowulf has formed a subplot of the story since Beowulf’s first appearance at Hrothgar’s hall, when Unferth challenged the hero’s claims. Her "hall" is inaccessible to society. 99/year as selected above. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “Maid” by Stephanie Land. Wiglaf speaks: he laments that no one was able to persuade Beowulf from attacking the dragon. At every step of his career, loyalty is Beowulf's guiding virtue. 2 of 5. Grendel stumbles into Hart with the corpse in his hands, yelling “Mercy! Peace!”. I feel my anger coming back, building up like invisible fire, and at last, when my soul can no longer resist, I go up—as mechanical as anything else—fists clenched against my lack of will, my belly growling, mindless as wind, for blood. Unferth's behavior goes against the code of hospitality. It enraged me. Character List. Suggestions for essay topics to use when you're writing about Grendel. Grendel and his mother’s dead bodies. Warriors viewed the grisly guest. A young boy playing dangerously close to the cliff’s edge. Afterward, will cover all fundamental of Spark components. Emerson concludes by noting that self-reliance is the true path to peace. Grendel, a large bearlike monster, has spent the last twelve years locked in a war against a band of humans. Summary: Chapter 12. He commits extreme violence against a mountain goat. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like What happens the night the Danes celebrate Beowulf's victory over Grendel?, The next day, Hrothgar tells Beowulf about the two monsters and . How, in Grendel’s estimation, do the Geats appear when they first arrive in Denmark? 19 . Active Themes. 99/month or $24. Prelude of the Founder of the Danish House. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Grendel and what it means. ”. No total vision, total system, merely schemes with a vague family resemblance, no more identity than bridges and, say, spiderwebs. A light appears, and Beowulf looks around, his sword held high in readiness. Section 1. 99/year as selected above. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Grendel and what it means. A summary of Chapter 4 in John Gardner's Grendel. Unferth's behavior goes against the code of hospitality. In his youth, Grendel explores his vast underground world with childlike abandon. E. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. The livelong time after that grim fight, Grendel’s mother, monster of women, mourned her woe. Grendel fled from the meadhall crying, feeling ridiculous and pained by the Shaper’s poetry. He then presents Beowulf’s men with rewards and compensates the Geats with gold for the Geatish warrior that Grendel killed. The monster Grendel has been attacking the Danish king Hrothgar and his mead-hall, Hart, for twelve years. Explore an in-depth analysis of Ponyboy Curtis, the plot summary, and important quotes . Lines 607-836. Provides an illusion of reality--puts together all their facts with a gluey whine of connectedness. Grendel study guide contains a biography of John Gardner, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Take a quiz about the important details and events in Plot Overview of Grendel. Such is His mystery: that beauty requires contrast, and that. The action. John Champlin Gardner was born in Batavia, New York, on July 21, 1933, to John Champlin, a dairy farmer and lay Presbyterian preacher, and Priscilla Gardner, an English teacher. Beowulf makes good on his boast that he will fight Grendel single-handed. He has arrived to help the Scyldings; for 12 years, a mighty man. Many readers have seen Beowulf ’s monsters as embodiments of evil, representing the idea that evil is a mysterious, inhuman force. Hrothgar was skeptical, but then the king brought out a beautiful woman, his sister, and offered her in marriage to Hrothgar. In Grendel, however, he is an intelligent and temperamental monster, capable of rational thought as well as irrational outbursts of emotion. The dragon. Grendel is profoundly bored and sick of the scent of the dragon that is around him, accompanying his protective charm. Grendel is based on the sixth-century Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, a work in which Grendel is a grotesque, violent monster who terrorizes a small community of Danish warriors. Grendel, an outsider who spurns society, and Beowulf, an outsider who joins the Danes in fellowship, battle. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. Which description of Grendel from the poem best supports the universal theme that Beowulf's battle with him is a contest between good and evil? Malignant by nature, he never showed remorse. Tone Grendel attempts to maintain a satirical, mocking distance throughout the novel, but often finds himself slipping into an impassioned. The hero is valiant, strong, noble, and mighty, a legend in his own time and loyal to his leader Hygelac. John Gardner and Grendel Background. Lines 1-193. 99/month or $24. She is a lady I have watched with the greatest admiration. Summary and Analysis Lines 1-193. In Beowulf’s bloody battle against Grendel, the first part of the story reaches its climax. . When Grendel grabs a vine to reassure himself, what does the vine turn out to be? A spear. D. An Inspector Calls As You Like It Death of a Salesman Frankenstein. The poem’s overarching conflict is between close-knit warrior societies and the various menaces that threaten their boundaries. The dragon, too, lies slain on the ground. The boredom is more than he can take. After twelve years of continued aggression, the great Geatish warrior Beowulf comes across the ocean to rid the Danes of the beast. Vivian Bearing, the play’s protagonist, is a fifty-year-old woman with stage-four ovarian cancer. Under welkin he walked, till the wine-palace. 99/year as selected above. . The play opens with Pythia, the priestess of Apollo, preparing to perform her morning prayer. Life-bloated, baffled, long-suffering hag. Unlike Grendel, his mother neither speaks nor questions the world. He smells the dragon in his presence as he notes that he has not yet “committed the ultimate act of nihilism” (93), which would be to murder Hrothgar’s queen, Wealtheow. The monster was minded of mankind now sundry to seize in the stately house. Vandergrift British Literature H. The date of composition is a matter of contention among scholars; the only certain dating is for the. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Grendel and what it means. 1258), seeking redress for the death of her son at Beowulf’s hands. Founding Brothers Summary. Their people suffered “slavery and abasement” (l. Grendel’s narration starts to alternate with dramatic scenes of dialogue. Its status as a symbolic object is renewed when we learn that Hygelac died in battle wearing it, furthering the ideas of kinship and continuity. Spring, for example, the time when cold weather retreats and new vegetation appears on the earth, has become a. Significantly, Grendel ends before we actually see Grendel take the plunge into the abyss. Beowulf introduces himself and requests to speak to the king. The poet chooses to relate much of this struggle from Grendel’s. 99/month or $24. The book takes a closer look at Grendel and how he discovers the order and disorder of people and the world (Sanchez). Grendel is described as a "walker in darkness," who is "wearing God's anger" and "lacking in joy" because he has inherited the curse the Biblical Cain… read analysis of Grendel. Take a quiz about the important details and events in Chapter 8 of Grendel. Read Beowulf here, with side-by-side No Fear translations into modern English. Wiglaf then orders that wood be gathered for the funeral pyre. Grendel’s mother, like her son, is a mysterious humanoid creature. Yet I was swept up. The play opens on the scene of an abandoned farmhouse. After killing Grendel, Beowulf goes. Hinton that was first published in 1967. With this description, the author introduces Grendel as he rages at the ram standing on. ”. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1990. Important quotes from Chapter 11 in Grendel. John Gardner’s work is often classified as postmodernist. Updated: 11/21/2023Beowulf is huge and strong. The best study guide to Sing,. Its. Grendel warns the goat to get away, but it won't obey; it just keeps climbing up the rock. 99/month or $24. Chapter 3. Crucially, Grendel is never clearly. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. In Never Caught, historian Erica Armstrong Dunbar tells the story of Ona Maria Judge Staines, who was born into slavery at George and Martha Washington’s Mount Vernon plantation. . The dragon mocks Grendel, claiming to know his thoughts—in fact, to know everything that ever has happened or will happen. She carries him to her "hall," a cave protected from the water. Chapter 9. The eyes slanted downward, never blinking, unfeeling as a snake’s. The Spear-Danes in days gone by. Grendel tries to scare it away, eventually howling so terrifyingly that the water nearby freezes, but the ram doesn’t react. Throughout Grendel, the Shaper and his beautiful though fictional systems are presented as an alternative to the cynical, fatalistic outlook of the dragon. The idea that violence and shame would make Hrothgar calm seems contradictory. Grendel' s one thought was to run From Beowulf fle, e back to his marsh and hide there: This was a different Herot than the hall h e had emptied. Yet he also says that Beowulf followed his destiny, and won the gold as was his fate. His mother. Other things are falling apart, too: the Shaper is sick. John Gardner. A summary of Chapter 1 in John Gardner's Grendel. Unferth has a change of heart after Beowulf defeats Grendel and even gives Beowulf his own sword, named Hrunting, to help him defeat Grendel’s mother. A wicked queen of legend who punishes anyone who looks at her the wrong way. Read an in-depth analysis of Beowulf. A study guide to the popular novel offers a plot summary, a review quiz, and an examaination of important quotations, along with analysis of the key themes, motifs, characters, and symbols in the work. I shake my two hairy fists at the sky and I let out a howl so unspeakable that the water at my feet turns sudden ice and even I myself am left uneasy. I shake my two hairy fists at the sky and I let out a howl so unspeakable that the water at my feet turns sudden ice and even I myself am left uneasy. #2,045,568 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books. ”. While Grendel's psychology is not explored in detail in Beowulf, there is a sense. Wiglaf conforms perfectly to the heroic code in that he is willing to die attempting to defeat the opponent and, more importantly, to save his lord. Eliot, Virginia Woolf, and James Joyce experimented with an idea that came to be known as modernism, characterized by experimentation with new, nontraditional forms of expression. Beowulf sails to Denmark to help Hrothgar and his people in their battle with the. Chapter 4. Chapter 1 Quotes. Grendel is a postmodern novel as well as prose poem modeled after the 6th century Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, on which it is modeled. The change is noticeable in the shape of the text on the page: beginning in. The house is in disarray, with various activities interrupted, such as dishes left unwashed and bread prepared but not yet baked. But the ram stays; the season is upon us. She is also an indomitable force in the academic field of seventeenth-century poetry (particularly the sonnets of John Donne) and a professor in a university English department. recovered the symbiote and experimented with it for the Sym-Soldier Program, which was an attempt to recreate the Super Soldier Serum. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. Take a quiz about the important details and events in Chapter 10 of Grendel. In his prime, Hrothgar built the Scyldings into a powerful military and social entity, symbolized by the erection of his great mead-hall, Heorot. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. I understood that the world was nothing: a mechanical chaos of casual, brute enmity on which we stupidly impose our hopes and fears. I listened, felt myself swept up. Search all of SparkNotes Search. 99/year as selected above. Violence and shame have lined the old man’s face with mysterious calm. by Gardner, John (ISBN: 9781586638184) from Amazon's Book Store. Grendel’s mother is evil, not because she seeks sorrowful revenge but because she is a creature of hell who hungers for death. ”. At this time, Beowulf, nephew of the Geatish king Hygelac, is the greatest hero in the world. The protagonist and narrator of the novel. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. The goat upsets Grendel because it represents the inexorable approach of death and because it causes Grendel to see his own pointless, self-destructive path mirrored in the goat’s interminable climb. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. He notes that the weak humans observe the rituals, while the strong ones ignore them. Having spent his life working in the. Chapter 1. From a general summary to chapter summaries to explanations of famous quotes, the SparkNotes Grendel Study Guide has everything you need to ace quizzes, tests, and essays. Beowulf lies awake, watching, as Grendel kills and eats one of the warriors. A summary of Part X (Section1) in John Gardner's Grendel. Iago Vs Grendel Analysis 968 Words | 4 Pages. Gardner’s twist on the tale is his choice to narrate the story from the. The winter after Hrothgar marries, whose presence keeps Grendel from attacking the meadhall? After Hrothgar marries, the Shaper's songs turn to what subjects? When Grendel finally gets his hands on Wealtheow, what does he consider doing before releasing her? Take a quiz about the important details and events in Chapter 7 of Grendel. The Golden Torque. After twelve years of continued aggression, the great Geatish warrior Beowulf comes across the ocean to rid the Danes of the beast. Grendel is a novel by John Gardner that was first published in 1971. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. Edinburg, Texas: Pan American University School of the Humanities, 1983 . If the ideas of art were beautiful, that was art’s fault, not the Shaper’s. 99/month or $24. "The poor fellow is minding his own business, living in his lake with his mother, when Hrothgar and company show up and ruin the. She enters the poem as an “avenger” (l. But the ram stays; the season is upon us. He lives in Geatland, a realm not far from Denmark, in what is now southern Sweden. Fifty years later, during which Beowulf has ruled nobly, a treasure-guarding dragon is awakened. R. Next section Beowulf. The corpse expands in significance, becoming not only a symbol of man and Grendel’s twinned fate, but also of Grendel’s desire to be accepted by the human community with which he has so many similarities. She caused him pain in the same way that the Shaper’s songs once did. Shakespeare No Fear Shakespeare Translations. The poem clearly announces that Beowulf will defeat Grendel: “[Grendel’s] fate that night / was due to change, his days of ravening / had come to an end” (ll. Readers can learn some things about Grendel in Beowulf but in order to dive deeper into the character and who he is, people go to the book Grendel. Quotes related to Communication within Grendel. 4 out of 5 stars. As Beowulf feels his own death approaching, the dragon emerges. As a break in the monotony, Grendel confronts a goat lingering near his cave. Hrothulf sees the injustice and poverty, and he hates knowing there is such a large divide between the rich class and the lower class. The Geat champion grabs hold of Grendel's claw with the strength of 30 men and won't let go. 649 Words3 Pages. Grendel sees the priests’ rituals as mere showmanship. PLUS. Lines 194-606. Take a quiz about the important details and events in Chapter 11 of Grendel. Character Analysis Unferth. Below you will find the important quotes in Grendel related to the theme of Philosophy, Theory, and Belief. I no longer remember exactly what he sang. Grendel is a novel by John Gardner that was first published in 1971. 99/year as selected above. Analysis. He’ll kill Grendel before nightfall. Not only is Beowulf accomplished, but he. We assign a color and icon like this one to each theme, making it easy to track which themes apply to each quote below. Violence and shame have lined the old man’s face with mysterious calm. In his youth, Beowulf is a great warrior, characterized predominantly by his feats of strength and courage, including his fabled swimming match against Breca. The firesnakes scattered as if my flesh were charmed. He thinks the Geats are asleep and ties a tablecloth around his neck as a napkin in his excitement to eat them. Grendel shouts and mocks the cliffs, from whose height he could fall and die. /Not hell but hell on earth. His nature is ambiguous. On the train, Eric and Four divide the initiates into two teams to play capture the flag, a Dauntless tradition. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “Long Way Down” by Jason Reynolds. With this description, the author introduces Grendel as he rages at the ram standing on. When the Geats first arrive, Grendel remarks on his first impression of Beowulf. A summary of Chapter 5 in John Gardner's Grendel. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. What does Grendel take “Warovvish” to mean? 17 . 4. This first appearance of Beowulf in the poem shows him to be a worthy representative of that code. Betty faints in fright at being discovered, and will not wake. The Shaper represents the power of art and imagination to change people’s perceptions about themselves and the world in which they live. Beowulf, a warrior from another Germanic tribe called the. Chapter 3. She spends most of her time in her underground lair and generally experiences the world in a purely physical way. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Grendel and what it means. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4. His people give him a glorious funeral, but they have been left unprotected, and they foresee “enemies on the rampage, bodies in piles, / slavery and abasement” (ll. Hard grip. Suggestions. Enjoying being out under the open night sky, Grendel walks to some nearby cliffs. In Beowulf, treasure simultaneously has an eternal and an evanescent quality. Lines 837-1062. 4. The Shaper represents the power of art and imagination to change people’s perceptions about themselves and the world in which they live. Rising action Grendel’s attack on Heorot, Beowulf’s defeat of Grendel, and Grendel’s mother’s vengeful killing of Aeschere lead to the climactic encounter between Beowulf and Grendel’s mother. Beowulf is divided into three main parts, each of which centers on the hero’s struggle against a particular monster—first Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, then the dragon. Following Grendel’s confrontation with Thor, the symbiote ended up frozen in ice. He notes that the weak humans observe the rituals, while the strong ones ignore them. No one in the kingdom is convinced that the gods have life in them. In Grendel, he is a lonely creature who seeks an understanding of the seemingly meaningless world around him. 99/year as selected above. 440 But Higlac' followes r remembered his final Boast and, standing erect, stopped The monster's flight fastene, d those claws In his fists till they cracked, clutched Grendel Closer. 4:37 The Battle with Grendel; 5:37 Analysis; 6:46 Lesson Summary; Save Timeline Autoplay Autoplay. When Grendel grabs a vine to reassure himself, what does the vine turn out to be? A spear. A detailed description and in-depth analysis of Beowulf in Grendel. Grendel's Mother's "hall" is an underwater cave, again emphasizing her outcast status. Grendel imagines Hrothulf's thoughts as he moves through the woods, his mind filled with thoughts against the king and queen, to "snatch. The poet is introducing the last hero of the poem, the young warrior who is the only one of Beowulf’s men to come to his lord’s aid against the dragon. Grendel. Character Analysis Hrothgar. I listened, felt myself swept up. Time and again, Grendel’s intellect is overcome by the emotional response he has to the Shaper’s art. The idea that violence and shame would make Hrothgar calm seems contradictory. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. In Beowulf, Beowulf “heard how Grendel filled nights with horror and quickly commanded a boat fitted out. By this time, Hrothgar and Wealtheow have two sons of their own. In the first scene, Wealtheow welcomes Hrothulf to Hart. Beowulf’s boasts and encounters reveal him to be the strongest, ablest warrior around. Wulfgar, impressed with the group’s appearance. After the gifts have been distributed, the king’s scop comes forward to sing. Chapter 4. Written in sections of alternating prose and poetry, The Consolation of Philosophy begins with Boethius describing the conditions in which he actually wrote the book in the year 524: he is sitting in a prison cell awaiting execution for a crime he did not commit. A few nights later, Grendel raided Hart again. Need help on characters in John Gardner's Grendel? Check out our detailed character descriptions. A chest filled with gold. E. A summary of Chapter 3 in John Gardner's Grendel. The best study guide to Grendel on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes. Grendel’s narration starts to alternate with dramatic scenes of dialogue. The ethical code of ancient Scandinavian society valued strong warrior-kings who could protect their people from outside threats (primarily, other warrior-kings and their armies). Then a fierce evil demon suffered distress, long in torment, who dwelt in darkness. Only the priests were upset, and the icons were rebuilt. But his words are also an incantation. He was called Wiglaf, son of Weohstan, A valued shied-warrior, and man of the Scylfings, A kinsman of Aelfhere. About Beowulf. Years later, Beowulf deals with a dragon who is devastating his kingdom and dies while he and his thane, Wiglaf, are slaying the dragon. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides that feature detailed. Near the end of the poem the poet reveals that, because of an ancient spell, Beowulf would have been condemned to. Just as important is the way that the young warrior (not much more than 20 years of age) carries himself; the Geat has the bearing of a noble leader, a champion, perhaps a prince. A herald named Wulfgar, who is renowned for his wisdom, stops Beowulf and asks him to state his business with Hrothgar. Our cover-to-cover analysis of many popular classic and contemporary titles examines critical components of your text including: notes on authors, background, themes, quotes, characters, and discussion questions to help you study. Quiz. He spies Grendel's corpse lying in a corner. Chapter 2. Read Beowulf here, with side-by-side No Fear translations into modern English. Wears it as a bib. To Eastern Danes had the valiant Geat his vaunt made good, all their sorrow and ills assuaged, their bale of battle borne so long, and all the dole they erst endured pain a-plenty. Hrothulf, Hrothgar's 14-year-old nephew, comes to live at the meadhall after his father dies. It begins in the palace of the Duchess, a young widow and the ruler of the Italian town of Amalfi. Here, “bone-house,” meaning “body,” is an example of a “kenning. Summary. Hrothgar The aging king of the Danes welcomes Beowulf's assistance in facing the menace of Grendel. Plot Summary. Chapter 3. What happened in Beowulf vs Grendel? King Hrothgar, the ruler of the Danes, is troubled by the rampages of a demon named Grendel. Why is the use of grotesque, exaggerated humor appropriate in the novel?Beowulf’s second combat is with Grendel’s mother. 3-17. 4. Grendel recognizes the great power that comes with such a skill. I hurl a skull-size stone at him. A man-eating monster descended from the Biblical Cain. Grendel’s Mother. Analysis. The poem’s narrator has access to the interior thoughts and feelings of all the characters, even the dragon. Beowulf seizes the huge sword and swings it in a powerful arc. Full Book Summary. Grendel’s mother’s decapitated head and the hilt of a melted sword. Hrothgar tries to attribute the boy’s malaise to the trauma of losing his father, but he also suspects that. Wulfgar, impressed with the group’s. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. Important Quotes Explained. There is no conviction in the old priests’ songs; there is only showmanship. Yon battle-king, said he, far o’er the swan-road he fain would seek, the noble monarch who needed men!Summary. I no longer remember exactly what he sang. Grendel’s mother. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. Though he has many animal attributes and a grotesque, monstrous appearance, he seems to be guided by vaguely human emotions and impulses, and he shows more of an interior life than one might expect. Grendel is a deep thinker and a sensitive feeler, and he describes his state of adult existential anxiety with self-deprecating humor, poetry, and, at times, a violent rage that befits one of mythology’s most dreadful monsters. Though laughing, Grendel felt empty and imagined himself going on killing without difficulty indefinitely. 99/month or $24. Grendel is a novel by John Gardner that was first published in 1971. It was a cold-blooded lie that a god had lovingly made the world and set out the sun and moon as lights to land-dwellers, that brothers had fought, that one of the races was saved, the other cursed. Grendel is a beast whose sole priority is to destroy mankind. Wiglaf, one of Beowulf’s kinsmen and thanes, is the only warrior brave enough to help the hero in his fight against the dragon. Chapter 1. He recalls once having destroyed the images of the gods. Summary. 5 of 5. Get access to this full Study Guide and much more! 6,350+ In-Depth Study Guides. 3 of 5. The strange stirrings in the winter air in this chapter, however, suggest that we are moving into a new phase of the novel. Summary. Grendel observes Hrothgar, noting how drastically his face has changed over the years. Trace Gardner’s use of “cartoon” imagery throughout Grendel. Four chooses small, fast trainees like Tris, Christina, and Will, while Eric chooses the bigger. In the climactic battle with Grendel, Beowulf appears to sprout wings and speak fire, prompting comparisons to the dragon. Two middle-aged women, Mrs. More a palace, Heorot is decorated with gold and fine tapestries. The humans’ religion is another example of their systems of theories and beliefs. A furious dragon seeking revenge for treasure stolen from him. 4. Wit Summary. Do you want to know more about the characters in John Gardner's novel Grendel, a retelling of the Beowulf epic from the monster's perspective? In this webpage, you will find detailed analysis of Grendel, his mother, the dragon, and other important figures in the story.