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.