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Post by patricktbutenhoff on Sept 3, 2013 21:19:46 GMT
A major issue preventing Grendel's friendship with the humans is his inability to communicate with them. Humans attack the monster, not knowing what he wants but assuming that he means harm. Gardner writes, "I sank to my knees, crying, ‘Friend! Friend!' They hacked at me, yipping like dogs" (52). Without reliable communication, the men force Grendel to fight them. The irony of the situation is that Grendel is speaking English, begging for peace, while the men interpret it as a ferocious roar and attack Grendel. However, Grendel can understand the humans' speech perfectly clearly. What does this say about how our expectations affect how we listen to others, and what is Gardner saying about how people communicate? Also, what does the humans' unmerited attack on Grendel imply about human nature?
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Post by danyhong55 on Sept 3, 2013 22:09:43 GMT
I think that Gardner is making the point that humans have a tendency to rush actions without much thought in the world. Clearly, Unferth is able to decipher Grendel's speech during their first encounter: "I said, pretending to be much impressed./ His Eyebrows shot up. He'd understood me; no doubt of it now. 'You can talk!' he said" (83). Perhaps Grendel has a harsh accent that makes his speech difficult to understand, or perhaps his words are garbled and hidden in his growls, but he is understandable. The first humans didn't take the time to listen to what Grendel had to say; "'Pig!' I tried to yell. It scared them./They all began shouting at each other... The king snatched an ax from the man beside him and, without any warning, he hurled it at me" (27). This shoot first, ask questions later attitude landed them in a world of hurt. Next time the humans should try to figure out the situation before they start a twelve year war.
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shanejohnson
New Member
"Kindness is the only investment that never fails." - Thoreau
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Post by shanejohnson on Sept 4, 2013 10:02:51 GMT
I think it is interesting to compare Grendel's own nature to that of the humans when thinking about this. Note much of Grendel's existence had been spent observing, so when he recalls first encountering the humans he recalls, "The sounds were foreign at first, but when I calmed myself, concentrating, I found I understood them: it was my own language, but spoken in a strange way..." (23). In contrast, the humans at first discuss the foreign shape that is Grendel in the tree, but once their projected 'understandings' (i.e. fungus or spirit) are negated they immediately spring into violence at that which they do not understand. While both Grendel and the humans display violent tendencies, I think the contexts through which they act upon these are very different.
Grendel seems to have a more innate urge to try to understand the world around him than the humans do, which I find one of the most interesting things about his character.
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