Grendel | Essays and Criticism

  • Grendel from a Feminist Perspective

    In the following essay, the author reads Grendel from a feminist perspective, demonstrating the importance of language and gender to the text.

  • John Gardner's Grendel and the Interpretation of Modern Fables

    In the following excerpt, Merrill argues that many of the critics who see Grendel as an absurdist novel with the monster as hero are supporting an interpretation that is contrary to the author's intentions. Instead, the critic suggests, Gardner meant to present the character of Grendel as a negative example: the creature's "nihilistic rationalism is what Gardner wants to caution us against."

  • The Twelve Chapters of Grendel

    In the following excerpt, Stromme examines how Gardner uses each chapter of Grendel to illustrate a different philosophical principle. The critic suggests that the circular nature of the novel's astrological motif is mirrored in Grendel's philosophical experience, as he travels from believing that only he exists to accepting that all external things he experiences also exist.