Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas
explored in a literary work.
Art as Falsehood
Throughout the novel, Grendel remains painfully stranded
between what he knows to be true and what he wishes were true. From
an intellectual standpoint, Grendel understands the world as a brute, mechanical
place that follows no meaningful pattern or universal laws. He knows
that all the beautiful concepts of which the Shaper sings—heroism,
religion, love, beauty, and so on—are merely human projections on
the universe’s chaos, attempts to shape the world that exists in
reality into one that the humans would like to see. The Shaper,
for example, tells the Danes stories of their heritage so that the
Danes learn to see themselves within a certain moral context. Upon
hearing glorious tales of Scyld Shefing, the founder of Hrothgar’s
line, the Danes begin to see themselves as inheritors of a proud
tradition and consequently feel a need to adhere to the strict moral
and ethical code that the Shaper has established. The Shaper, in
this manner, gives history meaning, cleaning up its messy ambiguities
and producing explicit, rigid moral systems in its place. This clear,
knowable vision of the world comforts the Danes, who are agreeable
to the idea of a world in which kings are kings, warriors are warriors,
and virgins are virgins.
Grendel, however, knows that the version of history the
epics set forth is essentially a lie, as he has witnessed with his
own eyes the truly barbaric evolution of the Danes. Despite his
unflagging belief in rational thinking, Grendel still finds himself
yearning for the emotional and spiritual fulfillment that the Shaper’s
beautiful fictions provide. When Grendel first hears the Shaper’s
song, he is so overcome that he bursts into tears and momentarily
loses the ability to speak. Time and again, Grendel’s intellect
is overcome by the emotional response he has to the Shaper’s art.
At times, Grendel is even willing to accept the role of the scorned,
evil adversary in order to be granted a place in the Shaper’s world.
The Power of Stories
The power of the Shaper’s art and imagination turns Grendel’s world
upside down, causing Grendel to desire what he knows to be illusory.
Grendel finds the epic poems so stirring that he wants to be a part
of them, even if it means he must be forever trapped in the role of
the villain. On a linguistic level, Grendel is also affected by
the narrative he hears the Shaper reciting. When Grendel decides
to begin a war with Hrothgar, he triumphantly refers to himself
as “Grendel, Ruiner of Meadhalls, Wrecker of Kings!” Even when Grendel
glorifies himself, he resorts to the language of the original Anglo-Saxon
poet of Beowulf, who often refers to characters
by such strings of descriptive titles. Perhaps more poignant, when Grendel
is chased out of Hart while attempting to join the humans, he expresses
his frustration with a stream of human swearwords. Grendel then
bitterly observes, “We, the accursed, [do not] even have words for
swearing in!” Part of Grendel’s frustration with his state is that
he must rely on the language of the humans in order to relate his
tale.
Grendel is affected not only by stories he hears, but
also by stories that exist outside his own experience. Because the
events of the epic poem Beowulf predetermine the
events of the novel Grendel, the earlier poem has
incredible power over the world of the novel. In Grendel, the
plotline of Beowulf operates like the hand of fate: before
we read the first page of the novel, we know that Grendel must necessarily
encounter Beowulf and die at Beowulf’s hands, for the event is already
recorded in the earlier poem. Indeed, Anglo-Saxon culture viewed
fate as an immensely powerful force, one that was wholly inescapable.
This overarching pattern and plan governing the novel contradicts
Grendel’s basic assertion that the world is meaningless and follows
no set order.
The Pain of Isolation
Grendel’s relationship with humans is defined by his intellectual interest
in their philosophies, but it is also characterized by his emotional
response to the concept of community. Grendel lives in a world in
which his attempts at communication are continually frustrated.
The animals that surround him are dumb and undignified. His mother
not only lacks the capacity for language, but is also dominated
by emotional instinct; indeed, we sense that even if she could speak,
she would likely be an unworthy conversational partner for the intelligent,
inquisitive Grendel. Grendel, then, often finds himself talking
to the sky, or the air, and never hears a response. He is largely
trapped in a state of one-way communication, an extended interior
monologue.
Grendel’s most painful rebuffing comes from the humans,
who resemble Grendel in many ways. Grendel and the humans share
a common language, but the humans’ disgust for and fear of Grendel preclude
any actual meaningful exchange. Grendel’s pain is all the more acute
because he is brought so close to mankind and yet always kept at
an unbreachable distance. The Shaper’s tale of Cain and Abel—the
two sons of Adam and Eve who are the ancestors of Grendel and humankind,
respectively—further underscores Grendel’s tragic status. Grendel
and humankind share a common heritage, but this heritage keeps them
forever locked in enmity as opposed to bringing them closer. Grendel
is just one in a long line of literary monsters whose inner lives
resemble those of humans but whose outer appearances keep them from
enjoying the comforts of civilization and companionship.
