Suggestions
Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.Please wait while we process your payment
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
Please wait while we process your payment
By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.
Don’t have an account? Subscribe now
Create Your Account
Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial
Already have an account? Log in
Your Email
Choose Your Plan
Individual
Group Discount
Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!
Purchasing SparkNotes PLUS for a group?
Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more!
Price
$24.99 $18.74 /subscription + tax
Subtotal $37.48 + tax
Save 25% on 2-49 accounts
Save 30% on 50-99 accounts
Want 100 or more? Contact us for a customized plan.
Your Plan
Payment Details
Payment Summary
SparkNotes Plus
You'll be billed after your free trial ends.
7-Day Free Trial
Not Applicable
Renews October 9, 2023 October 2, 2023
Discounts (applied to next billing)
DUE NOW
US $0.00
SNPLUSROCKS20 | 20% Discount
This is not a valid promo code.
Discount Code (one code per order)
SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan - Group Discount
Qty: 00
SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.
Choose Your Plan
For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more!
You’ve successfully purchased a group discount. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. You'll also receive an email with the link.
Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership.
Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Continue to start your free trial.
Please wait while we process your payment
Your PLUS subscription has expired
Please wait while we process your payment
Please wait while we process your payment
How is Grendel structured? How does this structure relate to the themes of the novel as a whole?
Grendel views the seasons as static because they endlessly repeat themselves in a fashion he sees as mechanical. Other characters in the novel, however, focus on the seasonal cycle’s ability to renew itself constantly, thereby continually providing liberation, release, and the possibility of rebirth. Throughout
Grendel is a work of fiction based on another work of fiction. What is the nature of this relationship, and how does it affect the meaning of Grendel?
Why is Grendel attracted to the words of the Shaper? Why is he attracted to the words of the dragon?
The dragon and the Shaper represent two opposing elements of Grendel’s personality. The dragon speaks to Grendel’s rational, intellectual side. Though the dragon has, by virtue of his incredible power, a rare insight into the true nature of the world, the basic premise he relays to Grendel is inarguable and understandable even to a “creature of the Dark Ages” such as Grendel. The dragon shows how, against the awesome scope of the entire universe, man and his little world have as much overall impact as a swirl of dust. This assertion supports the vague feelings of futility and helplessness that Grendel has already been experiencing. Moreover, this eminently rational outlook also helps Grendel feel superior to the humans, who make him feel excluded and monstrous. Despite the dragon’s teachings, Grendel cannot shake the feeling that something meaningful will come of all his questioning and seemingly pointless suffering. The dragon, meanwhile, keeps trying to get Grendel to resist those feelings, to accept that they are irrational.
The Shaper, on the other hand, feeds these emotional, spiritual yearnings. The Shaper provides Grendel—and the Danes—with models of the world where things happen for definite reasons, and where people ultimately get what they deserve. This concept of a highly ordered, morally coherent world is incredibly seductive to Grendel, because believing in such a world would help alleviate his feelings of isolation and emptiness. However, Grendel’s rational side, as fostered by the dragon, prevents Grendel from being able to wholeheartedly accept the Shaper’s beautiful words. Grendel has seen enough of the Danes’ true history to realize that the Shaper’s moral systems are specious. Grendel’s emotional and rational sides appear irreconcilable, and indeed, he remains precariously poised between the two positions for most of the novel.
Please wait while we process your payment