Grendel (1971) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

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Summary edit see section history

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Characters/People edit see section history

• Grendel: The first and most terrifying monster in English literature
• Hrothgar: King of the Danes
• Hrothulf: The Queen's Nephew
• Mama: Grendel's somewhat delusional mother
• Beowulf: A mechanical-like person who destroys Grendel, although he is never refered to by this name.

Quotes edit see section history

• “There is no sound on earth but the whispering snowfall”

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• I understood that the world was nothing: a mechanical chaos of casual, brute enmity on which we stupidly impose our hopes and fears.

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• And I, Grendel, was the dark side, he said in effect. The terrible race God cursed.

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• That is their happiness: they see all life without observing it. They’re buried in it like crabs in mud.

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• There is no limit to desire but desire’s needs. (Grendel’s law.)

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• “Except in the life of a hero, the whole world’s meaningless. The hero sees values beyond what’s possible. That’s the nature of a hero. It kills him, of course, ultimately. But it makes the whole struggle of humanity worthwhile.”

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• I had become something, as if born again. I had hung between possibilities before, between the cold truths I knew and the heart-sucking conjuring tricks of the Shaper; now that was passed: I was Grendel, Ruiner of Meadhalls, Wrecker of Kings!

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• “The world resists me and I resist the world,” I said. “That’s all there is. The mountains are what I define them as.”

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• “My advice to you, my violent friend, is to seek out gold and sit on it.”

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• I discovered that the dragon had put a charm on me: no weapon could cut me.

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• I go up—as mechanical as anything else—fists clenched against my lack of will, my belly growling, mindless as wind, for blood.

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First Sentence edit see section history

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• Art as Falsehood: Describe this theme.
• The Power of Stories
• The Pain of Isolation
• The Seasons
• The Zodiac
• Machinery
• The Bull
• The Corpse
• Hart

Series & Lists edit see section history

Preceded by Three Hearts and Three Lions, and followed by The Iron Dragon's Daughter.

Preceded by The Compleat Werewolf, and followed by The Exorcist.

Preceded by Shade's Children, and followed by The House of the Spirits.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. John Champlin Gardner (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Awards edit see section history

• Mythopoeic Fantasy Award (Finalist, 1972, Finalist)

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
• Dewey: 813.54

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Literature & Fiction › Authors, A-Z › ( G ) › Gardner, John
• Books › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Fantasy › Epic
• Books › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Fantasy › Historical
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Contemporary
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Literary

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Books That Influenced This Book edit see section history