![]() ![]() ![]() Gardner also develops the theme of heroism as another moral force that enables society to advance by elevating Unferth, a minor character in the original poem, to a major character and foil for Grendel. Such is the power of art, Gardner seems to be saying, that even a monster can be affected by it. As a would-be artist, Grendel strives, however comically, to escape from his baseness. ![]() In Gardner's version, however, Grendel becomes a three-dimensional character with, in Howell's words, "a sense of humor and a gift for language." Grendel even has a weakness for poetry. A relatively minor character in Beowulf, Grendel is a symbol for "darkness, chaos, and death," according to critic John M. As a professor of English specializing in medieval literature, Gardner had been teaching Beowulf, the source of inspiration for Grendel, for many years at various colleges. The novel was praised as a literary tour de force and named a book of the year by Time Newsweek magazines. ![]() Completed in 1970 and published the following year, Grendel was the first of John Gardner's novels to bring him not just critical but popular success. ![]()
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