Mommy Dearest - Haley Aguilar

 Grendel and his mother’s relationship is clearly one of staggering co-dependence. Early in the novel, the audience is able to see Grendel’s childlike love and dependence for his mom. When he is stuck in the tree with the bull charging at him his first instinct is to call out to his mother he sobs “Mama! Waa! Waa!” (Gardner 18). His innocence is shattered when she doesn’t come immediately to his aid and his perception of his mother begins to change. Because he is telling his story from a narrator’s perspective the audience is able to see how he perceived his own actions and describes his progression from child to adolescent to young adult. Grendel is an intelligent being telling a story with hindsight which as the saying goes is 20/20. He looks back at times of vulnerability, both physical and emotional and adds a tone of insincerity to every emotion and compromising position he finds himself in. this is a way of preserving his image to the outside world because no revered monster shows a weakness of any kind.

   The way that Grendel describes his mother even when remembering a time that he loved her with his whole heart, is demeaning.  He describes her in a way that if it was applied to humans, even in a textual form would receive heavy backlash, but because she is a monster people pose no argument. Describing monsters can go multiple ways, they can be outstandingly beautiful and charming or they can be disgusting and vile and either way, it is accepted that they are a monster. Considering this, why did Grendel’s mother have to be made into a horrendous, dirty being when in the original Beowulf poem, she is not described in such awful ways? It is easier to hate a monster that is perceived to be the very definition of the word in appearance rather than just another average looking creature who falls into the category because of their actions.

  How much of this is actually Grendel compared to the influence of the author and his misogynistic views? Because of the 1970s influence, it is easy to assume that Gardner had his own set of views that influenced Grendel’s perspectives. His demeaning views of women could have been passed from himself to his monster. It is easy for influence to creep into writing, especially when the influence is so predominant in that culture.

  Grendel and his mother have a desperate connection that is facing the precipice of disaster due to his mother's lack of speech but undying want for her and Grendel to be together. It is her sense of loyalty that ensures that Grendel keeps coming back despite his growing hatred for his mother. He sees her as not a monster, rather as a disgusting being that he feels responsible for which is illuminated in the way that he describes her as a childlike creature, he sees her for all of her weaknesses. What began as idle indifference is slowly becoming silent hatred because Grendel feels like his mom is an anchor that reminds him of the worst parts of himself.