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Novel Essay

LaFontaine

Amber Period 4 10/23/11

Society has always been a place for conformation. Growing up in todays society, there is pressure coming in a person at all times from several different directions. Everyone says, be yourself, but by doing this, youre conforming to what other people want you to be. In Grendel by John Gardner, the creature by the name of Grendel kills the people of Hrothgar. Not only does he kill them, but he also rips them apart and smashes their bones. Grendel is pressured by his mother to be a son whom she can still smother but he obviously does not want that. He never really shows affection for her. He only wants her when he needs her. Like when he was stuck in the tree. This affects the way he acts because he has anger that is bottled up and not one person he can talk to and because of this he turns to the dragon. The dragon also pressures him, to be the monster that he is. The dragon persuades Grendel to believe that it is Grendels duty to the human race to kill them. By doing this they can continue live and be stronger. He is convinced that Grendel is the thing above everything else that drives the humans to poetry, science, religion, all that makes them what they are for as long as they last. (Grendel, pg 73) After the dragon says this to Grendel, Grendels still not quite sure he believes the dragon, but deep down, something clicked inside him. Perhaps it was the spell the dragon cast over Grendel making it so no human weapon could harm him that caused Grendel to snap. But is Grendel really a monster? Or is he simply the victim of hate and lack of nurturing? Whether someone is good or bad or victim or monster is all a matter of someones viewpoint. Today, society has an impact on how people are viewed. The people of the world will never know if Casey Anthony killed her daughter or not yet people still view her as evil. She was voted most hated person in America because of acts she was not convicted of. She relates similarly to Grendel. Casey Anthony and Grendel are comparable because they are viewed similarly. Grendel is viewed by the humans, a creature; a mere monster that has no feelings. The people of Hrothgar cannot fully comprehend that Grendel is a creature of feelings just as they are. Once they have the image of Grendel in their minds, it will never change. Grendel will always be a monster no matter how hard he tries to fit in with humans. Likewise, the image people have of Casey Anthony has been morphed by society. Society has formed an image of her and although she has been cleared and the verdict was not guilty, the image in societys head will not change. Casey Anthony will remain a monster as long as she continues to show herself in society.

Yet society has always been this way. It has not changed over the years as many things do. Society has always shaped the way people view things as well as how they view other people. In the ages of Grendel, certain members of society, like Hrothgar, had the belief that Grendel was a monster after their first encounter with him. When the small group first comes across Grendel in the tree, they are not sure what to make of him. They think he is some sort of spirit who is killing the tree. Then all of a sudden he tries to talk and they are startled and all because the king, Hrothgar, takes a swing at Grendel, all of his people do as well. (Grendel, pg 26) And now today, society is the same way. As soon as a large group of people start to like or dislike something, it seems like everyone starts to like it. People like to fit in with society and feel apart of something, or otherwise be mocked for being different, so they conform. Grendel is not only mocked, but also feared. Because he is so different, he is mocked which makes him go into frenzies and kill. If he were not mocked he may not be so enraged to go on rampages and kill so many people at once. Because of his rampages all humans in and around the kingdom fear him. Only the strangers that come to visit do not fear him but Grendel oddly enough, fears them. He is afraid of what he does not know. He is especially afraid of the strangers leader. Beowulf is someone whom does not show fear like all the other people Grendel has encountered and this frightens Grendel. But his fear will not stop him from going to Herot to explore and eat them as well as the people of Hrothgar. Grendel is a monster. No matter how bad readers feel for him because of his life, where his mother was unstable and never talked to him, and where he felt he had to kill. He not only killed people but he ripped them apart and drank their blood and smashed their bones. He even went as far as snatching playing children. Children slide down the hills on shaped boards, sending their happy cries through drifted stillness. As twilight deepens, their mothers call them in. A few feign deafness. A shadow looms over them (mine) and theyre gone forever. (Grendel, pg 142) It seems as though he has no heart or soul. And although Beowulf was a bit extensive with his killing of Grendel that is what some heroes do. In todays society, people still go a little to far. There have been cases where people in the army have been overly aggressive but they are praised for it and sometimes their emotions get the better of them. With Beowulf, he was trying to show off for his followers. And all people have a mixture of good and bad in them. Clearly Beowulf is good for killing Grendel for the Danes but he also seemed a bit extreme with smashing Grendels head into a wall and basically torturing him. And Grendel obviously is bad because of all the innocent people he has killed but he can also be good. He thought about not killing them but because he thought it was bettering them, he continued.

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