Grendel: A Child Like Everyone Else [Grendel, by John Gardner]

Grendel's childhood can be looked upon as being a small part in a lone monsters life, or an experience which everyone on the face of the Earth sometime or another encounters. As a young lad, Grendel feels as if he is alone and by himself. He also feels that the only person he has to turn to is his mother, or parent; even then, there is a good amount of animosity. If anything, Grendel can …

…relating to Grendel, I don't look at him in retrospect the same as I did while reading Beowulf. If one thing can be considered normal about Grendel, then it is his childhood. He was born with the same mind as a human being would, but it would be the years of isolation, banishment and condemnation that would lead to his dislike of Hrothgar's people. Even then, he gives valid reasons for the way he thinks.