Grendel Study Guide
English IV AP / Mrs. Ramos
Your semester exam will address our study of Grendel. Here are some concepts
addressed by the novel as a whole.
QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
- How does Grendel’s attitude toward the world change as the novel progresses?
- In what ways do the subcharacters (Hrothgar, Grendel’s mother, Shaper, Dragon, Wealtheow, Ork, Red Horse,
Hrothulf, Unferth) affect Grendel and his perception of the world?
- How can Grendel’s relationships with the subcharacters be characterized?
- What do the subcharacters represent / symbolize?
- Which philosophical theories are represented in Grendel and at what point in Grendel’s life does he
entertain them?
- How does the end of the novel manage to solidify our understanding of Grendel’s journey and, at the
same time, create doubt about it?
- In what ways does the structure of the novel impact the reader?
- What is Beowulf’s role in Grendel’s life?
- What does Grendel seem to be seeking?
THEMES
Remember that a theme is a lesson or truth about life that is demonstrated through a piece of literature. It is
always a statement, not an idea, a word, or a phrase.
- “Hopefulness” is not a theme, it is a topic or an idea.
- “Grendel loses all of his hopefulness” is not a theme because it is focused only on the novel, not on life in
general. It is a statement of characterization.
- “Hopefulness is crucial for a society’s success” is a theme because is makes a statement that can be read
as a life lesson we all must learn.
Because themes are pervasive in a text, they can usually be traced throughout it. An author consciously develops
a theme to help readers understand his/her purpose for writing the piece. In other words, you should be able to
outline the development of a theme as it grows in a piece of literature. This means that we can prove how the
theme is presented, changed, amended, and what our final understanding of the theme is at the end of the work.
Possible topics for a theme in Grendel include:
Art and society
Morality
Death
Life
The search for meaning
The role of fate
Self-destruction
The role of faith
Conformity
Identity
Humanity
Violence
It would be worthwhile to contemplate these topics and turn them into universal statements that are presented
in the novel and also universal to all human existence. For example, the topic “search for meaning” is presented in
the novel but a theme could be “The search for meaning in the world is often difficult.” Grendel is not successful
at discovering a code by which he can live or a principle for which he would die. “The search for meaning in the
world is often difficult” is a universal theme because most human beings will realize this truth as the live out their
lives.