Note to Mr. Dvorak!

Hello Mr. D,

Elaine here. I don't know if you've noticed, but the dates for the blogs are wrong. For one thing, I did not write this and the last one on Saturday; the timing for this blogger is off.

One other thing. The blog starts at the bottom of the page, so please scroll up to look at the blogs in order.

Have a great weekend!

Elaine Tweto

The Feminine Influence

Grendel is very confused when it comes to women. He is enchanted, at first, with Wealtheow, disgusted in his mother, full of admiration for the woman whom the Shaper sings for - amidst the chaos and murder, the women create a balance. Though Grendel critisizes the women and claims he could eat them (not his mother), he avoids it for they would not make a difference. However, after he decides not to kill Wealtheow, Grendel is confused by what not killing her meant.

Thus, women in the story create balance. They are peace, peace that Grendel would not kill.

The Role of Women in Anglo-Saxon Culture

Because women could not fight, they were given lesser roles in society. They gained respect by becoming wives, mothers, and peace-keepers.

While men were fighting over land and seeking vengeance for their brothers, the women maintained the household. When the men came back, the women were there to bring comfort and peace. Women were used as objects of peace. When one warring leader did not want conflict with another leader, one of the leaders would give the other his beautiful sister or daughter. This would form familial connections, giving the men a reason not to attack eachother. However, peace would not last long, for hatred was more powerful than family ties.

Men viewed women as possessions, and the more beauty and connections one had, the more valuable she was. Wealtheow was definitely a prized possession for her beauty and motherly qualities.

The Shaper's Love

"The Shaper would tip his whitened head, blind eyes staring at the floor whenever the lady spoke, and from time to time, when he sang of heroes, of ship-backs broken, there was no mistaking that he sang the song for her. Nothing came of it. She would leave the hall on her husband's arm: the Sahper would bow politely as she passed" (Grendel 144).

Grendel's admiration for this red-headed woman was because of her loyalty, her "soul of fidelity, decorum" (Grendel 144). Though she quite possibly loved the Shaper, as she is anxious and silent from something like grief when he dies, she was not disloyal to her husband. Grendel respects the woman's truthfulness.

In contrast to Wealtheow, who is a lie, an illusion representing underlying conflict, the red-headed woman is truth. She does not do anything to compromise her position as a faithful wife.

Wealtheow

Grendel, narrator of the story, first mentions Wealtheow when "determining how much is queen and how much queenly radiation [of Queen Wealtheow]" (Grendel 94). He laughs and then thinks to himself "Time-Space cross-section: Wealtheow" (Grendel 94).

Some translations of the name "Wealtheow" give it the definition "foreign slave," which she was, for her brother, Hygmod, married her off to Hrothgar in order to avoid the extermination of his people and himself. Thus, Wealtheow was to live as a slave catering to Hrothgar and the Danes, though she did not belong with them.

Grendel admires Wealtheow when he first sees her. She is beautiful, and had the ability to change Hrothgar's mind about attacking Hygmod. Her beauty stops Grendel from attacking Herot, but eventually Grendel decides to kill her, for she is a lie, like the Shaper. After Grendel realizes that killing her would get him no where, just as not killing her would, he decides not to kill her. Seeing her naked, Grendel becomes disenchanted with her, and instead begins to scorn Wealtheow.

Wealtheow's role in Anglo-Saxon culture appears to act as hostess to guests and soldiers alike. She "pores the wine" to the men and is the peace-keeper when things start heating up. Of course, the novel reflects this aspect when Wealtheow is given to Hrothgar, keeping the peace between the Danes and Helmlings.

Grendel's Mother

The first "woman," if one could call her that, is Grendel's mother. Grendel describes her as a "fat, foul bulk rollin gover, restless again - molested by nightmares, old memories" (Grendel 9). She cannot speak, as Grendel can, having long forgotten the ancient language of Cain. She is a monster, of course, like Grendel.

Although she is a monster and doesn't seem to have human-like intelligence, Grendel's mother has motherly intuitive nonetheless. This instinct appears many times, including when Grendel gets caught between two tree roots and men attack him and before Grendel meets his death in battle with Beowulf. During the first event, Grendle's mother charged the men, scared them off, and ultimately saved Grendel from death by spears. Before Beowulf and Grendel meet, Grendel's mother paces nervously around the cave, anticipating that something will happen to her son.

Grendel almost views his mother as a teenager would. He finds her somewhat pathetic and unintelligent. He disobeys her [understood rule] to not venture past the snake pool. He needs her most when he's in trouble.

The Beginning

Hello Mr. Dvorak,

Our project is to a) chart the appearances of women in Grendel b) note how women are portrayed in the novel c) show how The Feminine exerts an influence on the novel d) explain the role of women in Anglo-Saxon culture and e) discover if the novel reflects these in any way.

Each of our blogs will be an account of sitings of women in Grendel. We shall cover each of the items above after the account.

Bonjourno,

Elaine Tweto and Nina Lee