“They watch on, evil, incredibly stupid, enjoying my destruction” (Page 174). In the novel Grendel by John Gardner, the main character, Grendel, acts as a monster who is jeopardizing the King Hrothgar’s town. The novel is told by Grendel himself. With Grendel as the narrator, the audience is able to understand his thoughts and the events that he goes through. By Gardner choosing to have Grendel narrate the story, the reader is able to see into his life, grasp his thoughts and feelings, and understand why he turned into the monster he is. As Grendel tells the story, the audience is able to see the events that he takes place in and understand why he makes the choices that he does. Grendel telling the story firsthand lets the reader follow his life from childhood, to when he becomes a monster. Grendel evolves greatly through the story as his opinions on certain things change. He acquires a more advanced way of narrating and writing through the novel. He also includes things like the thoughts of other characters, for example, when he's comparing humans to animals saying the deer “sees all life without observing it” (Page 8). His narration changes the storyline and the view of things from that of Beowulf. If the novel were to be told by another character, the reader would not get a clear …show more content…
In Grendel, unlike in Beowulf, Grendel isn't just viewed as a monster that most everyone knew of him as. In Beowulf, he is the antagonist, seen as demonic and evil, differing from Grendel where he is the narrator and is seen as kind-hearted and curious. Grendel feels like an outcast in society. As a lonely child in the story, he says “why can't I have someone to talk to? (Page 53). At moments like this, the audience is able to have sympathy for him. Grendel's title as a monster affects the way that the story is told because he feels misunderstood and just wants to be