Grendel's Exposure To Pisces, Empiricism

Troy Capalbo

Ms. McClelland

Honors English IV

February 5, 2018

Chapter Twelve: Grendel’s Exposure to Pisces, Empiricism, and Isolationism

“Poor Grendel’s had an accident… so may you all” (174) were the last words uttered by Grendel, a monster with human-like traits, before he passes away following his fateful battle with Beowulf, a strong warrior from The Land of the Geats. The novel Grendel by John Gardner is inspired by epic Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, and is told through the perspective of Grendel, on his journey through life and his discovery of his purpose through the events he lives through. In this chapter, Grendel fights Beowulf, and meets his ultimate fate, freeing him from the endless, mechanical cycle in which he finds himself trapped.

One characteristic of Pisces is portrayed by Grendel in this chapter when Grendel is on the brink of death. As Grendel is dying, he mutters out to the animals around him, “Poor Grendel’s had an accident… so may you all” (174). This shows that Grendel is feeling self-pity and sensitivity, two of the major characteristics of Pisces. He uses the word “accident” in an attempt to not lose his dignity and to say Beowulf is lucky. Grendel also shows more traits by seeing Beowulf during the battle as if he had wings. He says “...out of his shoulders come terrible fiery wings. I jerk my head, trying to draw out the illusion.” (169) This event shows that Grendel has become very imaginative and creative in his mind, another facet of Grendel’s discovery of Pisces. One final major trait of the Pisces is their impressionability. While Beowulf and Grendel are fighting, Beowulf whispers into Grendel’s ear, driving Grendel crazy with his language and speech. Beowulf proclaims, “And now something worse. He’s whispering - spilling words like showers of sleet, his mouth three inches from my ear” (169). “His syllables lick at me, chilly fire.” (170). In chapter twelve Grendel experiences new feelings and thoughts because of the symbol of Pisces in this chapter; Beowulf. Because of him, Grendel begins to show Pisces characteristics in his own notions and actions, which help bring

One theory of Empiricism is that the origin of all knowledge comes from sense experience. In this chapter, there are so many senses and examples of deep imagery that show Beowulf is gaining knowledge of his surroundings first hand, with his own senses. Grendel says at one point in the novel that he “...sucks hot, slippery blood…” (168) from one of Beowulf's thanes, and that the “...napkins were sopping, and the dark floor steamed” (168). This intense imagery shows that Grendel picks up on more of his surroundings since he first emerged that dark cave, and he is learning through experiences such as these. Another aspect of Empiricism is that those who rely on sense experience have lesser skills when it comes to caution, as they have not experienced anything to make them be cautious yet. This can be seen when Grendel grabs Beowulf in the mead hall, thinking it will be just another human he can kill with ease. To his surprise, Beowulf has a grip so hard that Grendel voices, “Nowhere… have I encountered a grip like his”(168). Grendel’s lack of caution eventually leads to his death, and he is not cautious because he relies on sense experience, and he has never had a human battle him like Beowulf has, and he is not expecting it. A final aspect in this chapter that shows Grendel’s growth towards Empiricism is the conversation he has with Beowulf during their