The First Chapter of Grendel

From the very first sentence of Grendel by John Gardner, the reader observes that Grendel can speak. Grendel is not the savage monster that only wants to kill Hrothgar's retainers, thanes and people, but he is capable of speech. From this, the reader can infer that with coherent speech, Grendel is also capable of cognitive thinking. This holds true later on as he thinks to himself about how springtime has come, and even contemplates his existence. Another thing that we know from reading the first chapter of Grendel is that his bloodlust is virtually uncontrollable. Grendel swims to the surface of the haunted mere "as mechanical as anything else" (pg. 9) and makes his way to Heorot, to sate his appetite and anger, all the while having his "fists clenched at [his] lack of will". This fact shines a new light on Grendel within the Beowulf epic. In the epic poem, the poet describes Grendel as a mindless beast that rampages through Heorot to eat Hrothgar's people. However, within just the first chapter, we can see that Grendel cannot control this bloodlust, almost as if it were a part of the curse cast upon the offspring of Cain. The reader can infer that Grendel's hunger for blood is as ancient as the curse placed upon him, and cannot be denied by him, which drives him to kill. Finally, one last thing that we know from the first chapter is that, while Grendel cannot control his thirst for blood, it is almost as if he enjoys it. As he describes his sally into Heorot, he satirises the reactions of the people. For example, Grendel admires the "old Shaper", who is probably a musician, because he can jump "out the back window with his harp at a single bound, though as blind as a bat." (pg. 12). Another example is the way he ridicules the drunken warriors who blow out the lights and cover up the fires, because he can see in the dark as if it were day. Grendel even laughs aloud at the antics of the thanes as they shout "their meady, outrageous boasts, their heavy swords aswirl like eagles' wings." (pg. 12). Thus, from just the first chapter, the reader can infer that Grendel is capable of speech and cognitive thinking, which also means he is basically human except in appearance. He also cannot control his bloodlust, but at the same time, enjoys it as almost like a hobby. Or a late night comedy show that doubles as a "all you can eat" buffet.

Grendel's Mother and the Hydra of Hercules

As Seamus Heaney says in the introduction of Beowulf, Grendel and his mother are “figures who do the devil’s work...who call up and show off Beowulf’s physical might and his superb gifts as a warrior.  They are the right enemies for a young glory-hunter.” Thus, Grendel's mother is an obstacle, for Beowulf to overcome and show off his strength and his natural talent for battle. An example of this in other stories is the hydra from one of Hercules' adventures. The hydra, also known as the Lernean hydra, had nine heads, and of the nine, eight were mortal and the ninth was immortal. The hydra was an obstacle that brought out the quick thinking and immense strength of Hercules. Like Beowulf, Hercules was gifted with superhuman strength, and Hercules used this to his advantage as he grappled with the hydra, armed with nothing but a club and his bare hands. While Grendel and his mother are examples of monsters, or obstacles, that are placed in the hero's way to display the hero's traits and talents, the Lernean hydra serves this purpose in Hercules' adventures to show his quick thinking and how he uses his strength in handling the monster. Grendel's mother presents a tough battle that Beowulf "barely survived the battle under water" (page 115 line 1655), and only by using his God-given gift of strength as well as some quick observations, Beowulf just managed to use the giant blade to slay Grendel's mother. Hercules, on the other hand, confronts the venom-spitting Lernean hydra by smashing the mortal heads in with his club. However, for every head that was destroyed, two more would grow in their place. Hercules and his nephew Iolaus, used some quick thinking and burned the stumps of the heads to prevent the heads from growing back. Eventually, Hercules cut off the immortal head and buried it on the side of a road with an enormous rock on top of it, to prevent it from growing back into another hydra. Without Hercules' inhuman strength, he would not have been able to hold the hydra's heads still to smash them, or even put the heavy rock on top of the immortal head to prevent it from growing again. Thus, Grendel's mother and the Lernean hydra are similar monsters that display the respective hero's traits and talents as a warrior.

Just as an aside, while Grendel's mother and the hydra are similar, Beowulf and Hercules are quite similar heroes as well. While Beowulf does receive some "magical boons" to fight Grendel and his mother, the weapons become useless under the supreme protection of Grendel's skin. With the exception of the giant's blade and Beowulf's chainmail shirt, there weren't really any other boons given to Beowulf to defeat Grendel and his mother. Hercules also did not receive any magical instruments to defeat the hydra, relying only on his nephew, his strength and his quick thinking.

Grendel in Beowulf

Grendel, as portrayed in the epic poem Beowulf, is an evil, destructive and bloodthirsty entity, and the Beowulf poet uses a wide variety of descriptive vocabulary and poetic devices to show the reader Grendel’s monstrous nature.

The Beowulf poet uses many poetic devices to bring across Grendel’s evil traits, which the reader was also able to infer Grendel’s destructive nature. Throughout the poem, particularly the scenes before and during Beowulf’s fateful encounter with Grendel, the poet uses kennings to bring Grendel’s evil nature to the fore. For example, the poet uses the phrase “The bane of the race of men” (713) to show how Grendel was plaguing King Hrothgar and the Danes. Another example when the poet describes Grendel as “The dread of the land” (761), further emphasizing how the people regard Grendel. While some may argue that the poet’s views may not be the people’s views, King Hrothgar says that “with all the grief Grendel has caused” and the destruction and “havoc” that he had “wreaked upon us in Heorot,” (474 to 475) it shows that King Hrothgar, speaking on behalf of the Danes, hates Grendel as much as the poet. With the use of kennings, the Beowulf poet brings out Grendel’s evil nature and it shows both in the way the poet uses the kennings, supported with the people’s reactions towards Grendel.

The Beowulf poet brings out the bloodthirsty nature of Grendel using alliteration and accentual meter. For example, Grendel strikes "suddenly" in the mead-hall, and then he “maul[s] a man” asleep on the bench, and “bit[es]" into his "bone-lappings, bolt[ing] down his blood” (743). The poet uses alliteration to powerfully accentuate and bring forth the murderous nature of Grendel. With the alliteration in “mauled a man”, it provides vivid imagery of a man getting completely lacerated, but it also uses accentual meter to give this poem the familiar rhythm that can be seen in modern rhyming poems. In the line “bit into his bone-lappings”, the poet uses the kenning “bone-lappings” to, most likely, substitute bone marrow. The alliteration combined with the accentual meter gives the reader a feeling of inexorable horror, as Grendel continues to tear the poor man to pieces, quickly finishing his appetizer and looking for the next meal. The accentual meter is heavy on "bit" and "bone-lappings", which combines with the alliteration and kenning to produce a very graphic image. With the alliteration, accentuated words, and diction, the poet gives the reader a better image than just the words alone.

The Beowulf poet also describes Grendel physically, as well as his destructive nature. An example of his destructive nature is in Grendel's "loathsome tread" and a "baleful light, flame more than light" that "flared from his eyes" (726). The poet uses the word baleful, which means menacing, and coupled with the fiery description of Grendel’s eyes, it gives the reader a feeling that Grendel is out for blood and destruction. The description of Grendel’s arm may also serve as a point of reference to the rest of his body. The limb is covered with “nail[s]", "scale[s]", and "spike[s]" that are like "barbed steel” (983-986). From this description, the reader may infer that the rest of Grendel is just as scaly and spiky as his arm, and just as hard as “barbed steel”. With this physical description, it pins a shape to Grendel, even though it is out on a limb (get it? based off a limb?)

Beowulf and Poetic Devices

One verse in the epic poem Beowulf that poetic devices helped me understand the meaning is on page 41, line 607 to 609, "Then the grey-haired treasure-giver was glad; / far-famed in battle, the prince of Bright-Danes and keeper of his people counted on Beowulf," These couple lines in the poem was after a long dialogue between Beowulf himself and one of King Hrothgar's thanes Unferth. Thus, it was a bit disorienting to hear "the grey-haired treasure-giver", but the key is the word "treasure-giver". When Beowulf first proposed his plan to King Hrothgar, Hrothgar agreed and promised compensation in the form of riches. Therefore, the word "treasure-giver" is a kenning of the word king. In addition, the word king gives an impression of wealth and riches, therefore the word "treasure-giver" could only refer to King Hrothgar. The kenning poetic device helped me decipher who the "grey-haired treasure-giver" was. From understanding the kenning, it allowed me gain a better understanding of what was going on in the poem. In addition, while the alliteration may not actually help me understand the meaning of the poem, it helped me understand why the poet picked certain words over others, and it also explains why the poet used the kenning "treasure-giver" to create alliteration with "grey-haired".

The Dark Knight Essay Reflection

Today in class I wrote an essay on the monstrous nature of the Joker from The Dark Knight directed by Christopher Nolan. I thought with my preparation, it was a relatively good essay, but due to my previous failure at an essay, I didn't know what to think of my work. I thought it was pretty good in the sense that I linked all my points to the term "forfeited humanity" which was the main point of my essay. The Joker was someone who had abdicated his humanity by destroying the pillars that support society, like the late Commissioner Loeb. Thus he fits into Stephen Asma's definition of monster, as proposed in his book On Monsters. Another thing is the Joker fits into the category of societal monster, which basically terrorises society and destroys it. In this case, the Joker is destroying society to prove that everyone is messed up as he is, especially when society is ruled by nothing. Finally, the Joker is a monster because he is awakening something that should be left alone, which is the chaos-infested society that comes with an anarchic outlook. The Joker doesn't fit under Edith Hamilton's definition of monster, as put forth in her book Mythology, because the Joker isn't simply an obstacle for the hero to overcome and attain glory. Batman does not gain anything from defeating the Joker. Joseph Campbell's definition of monster also does not fit the Joker because, as Campbell says in The Power of Myth, the monster is also a "dragon" the hero must defeat to obtain the "dragon's hoard". But again, Batman does not gain anything by defeating the Joker, besides a transformation of consciousness. Thus, the Joker only fits into Asma's definition of monster, which is "someone who, by their own horrific actions, abdicated their humanity."

From the research process and watching the film, I have come to learn a lot about archetypes, the true themes and meanings at work behind the film, and perhaps most of all, the true intentions and nature of the Joker. I also learned more about the term monster and now I know what the term actually means, which will help me judge if the person is actually a monster or not. In addition, I have learned the value of perspectives, and that looking at something in a different perspective can sometimes completely change the entire situation. Thus, to be able to have a valid solution to a problem or dilemma, I learned that you must take into account the many different perspectives. In this case, the two main perspectives was that of the Joker, who claims he is not a monster, and my claim that he is a monster. If I could do the essay again, I think I would link my points to some kind of outside connection that was related to the Joker in some way, for example, a different monster in a different movie that was similar to the Joker. It was truly an eye-opening experience for me, and I will never look at the Joker in the same way ever again.

Good, Evil...and Chaos?

The most outstanding quotation that characterised the Joker's monstrous nature is when he is in the interrogation room with Batman and he says, "See I'm not a monster, I'm just ahead of the curve." Perhaps the most terrifying thing about what he says is that he doesn't think he is a monster. While, perhaps psychologically, his way of thinking makes sense, my interpretation is the Joker thinks that he is an example of humanity in a world that is ruled by chaos and anarchy, where morals and ethical codes have no power. In the scene where he is burning his share of the money as a pyre for the accountant Lau, he says that he doesn't want fame, power or money, he just wants to show that deep down inside everyone is just as mad as he is. His argument is that while people claim that they will never do what the Joker claims they will under any circumstance, that is only because they are in a structured society that doesn't need them to do that. But once people are faced with death, that will all change and everyone will adopt the Joker's anarchistic outlook to avoid death. Thus, there is the Joker's philosophy that he is "just ahead of the curve" and that he is exhibiting these behaviours earlier than others. Therefore, one can infer that the Joker considers himself as a superhuman, or a human with an increased capability in something, and not as a monster. He thinks of himself as an "evolved human" in a particular set of circumstances. This is, in essence, why this quote shows that the Joker has a monstrous nature: he thinks his actions are justified and that he is not a monster as society thinks he is, but he is just a manifestation of what humanity will become after he has destroyed society. This quotation also shows the monstrous nature of the Joker because he doesn't consider himself as a societal monster. I think that the Joker considers himself as a saviour that intends to bring his own definition of "peace" to the world by destroying society to start from scratch: starting a world ruled by anarchy and chaos.

Related to that is how Harvey Dent, the "white knight" of Gotham City, fell from his position of good. Harvey Dent, in a sense, became the Joker's first convert. The Joker tells Dent in the hospital: "Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I’m an agent of chaos. Oh and you know the thing about chaos, it’s fair." After getting his face burned off and his fiance killed because of police officials that the Joker bribed to capture him and Rachel Dawes, Dent is filled with a strong hunger for vengeance and revenge, and the Joker plays on this to make Dent see his twisted philosophy. My interpretation is that he considers chaos as a just force, and what is ironic is that Dent, the "white knight" and attorney, agrees to join the Joker in his mission to spread chaos and destroy society. In addition, when the Joker said to "upset the established order", I think he means to tell Dent to do things in a way that followed no specific pattern or "honour code", but to do things almost randomly and chaotically. This may have led to Two-Face's adoption of leaving his victim's fate to the flip of a coin.

I think the Joker is a monster because he doesn't consider himself a monster, but almost a "hero" that has the ability to bring "peace" to the world, letting chaos and anarchy rule. I believe that he thinks he is an "evolved human" who exhibits certain traits that everyone will show once he has destroyed society, and the reason why he wants to destroy society is because he wants to bring about his definition of "peace", which is a society ruled by chaos. The Joker is an agent of chaos, and he works unpredictably, which "upset(s) the established order, and everything becomes chaos". Therefore, the Joker is a monster of chaos.