Isolation In 'Grendel' By John Gardner

In the novel, Grendel by John Gardner, Grendel, the protagonist, suffers the pain of isolation. He is ignored by many animals, too incompetent for him. He is considered an enemy by some animals such as the bull and humans. He is only accepted by his mother and his imaginary friends. Grendel finds ways to make light of this. He curiously observes everything and appreciates it for some time. Until he realizes it's a pattern, a chaotic repetition of itself. Grendel finds many truths from observing yet is conflicted when the Shaper comes along. The Shaper tells tales that are so convincing and draw in anyone listening, including Grendel. Although he knows that the Shaper is wrong, he can't resist the stories meaning. As he is ashamed of himself

He discovers this when he is stuck in a tree. He cannot escape from the hold it has on him and experiences excruciating pain. He screams and bellows for his mother, but she doesn't come to him. Soon a bull approaches him, in an attempt to defend his new-born calf that Grendel was venturing for. Grendel tries to scare away the bull by howling at the bull but it ignores Grendel and gets ready to charge. The first charge rips through Grendel's knee before the bull smashes it's head into the tree. Grendel realizes that the bull struck too low. After the second charge, which also tears through Grendel's knee, he notices a pattern going on. The bull is charging low and will always charge low because it attacks on blind instict. “He'd struck too low, and even in my terror I understood that he would always strike too low: he fought by instinct, blind mechanism ages old. He'd have fought the same way against an earthquake or an eagle: I had nothing to fear from his wrath but that twisting horn. The next time he charged I kept my eye on it, watched that horn with as much concentration as I'd have watched the rims of a crevasse I was leaping, and at hust the right instant I flinched. Nothing touched me but the breeze as the horn flipped past.”(Grendel