Frederick Len, Period 2, 2/14/23

 Modern Mythology 2023: Literacy & Learning

• Write about your thoughts regarding any of the fiction or nonfiction covered in class.

The most exciting fiction we have read thus far is Grendel, a reimagining of the Beowulf mythology through the eyes of its primary monster. Under the witty/bizarre writing comes a philosophical examination of existentialism, nihilism, and propaganda. (As it turns out, John Gardner wrote the character of Grendel as a stand-in for the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, one of the leading proponents of existential philosophy in the 20th century). The story sees Grendel constantly struggling with finding his purpose in life and what he truly desires. He contends with the humans, who threaten him yet give him meaning, and the dragon, who protects him yet undermines his identity.

• Reflect on any new information you have learned in English class by considering how that learning influences your critical perception.

Grendel was a surprisingly nuanced perspective to a classic and relatively simple myth that challenged my preconceived notions on the characters involved in the story, similar in some ways to the Norse Mythology Transformations but with much more polish and philosophical connotations. It has influenced my critical perception by forcing me to think more critically and not take information for granted. When told to differentiate between “legitimate violence” and “coercive repression,” many of us hadn’t even thought to critique the premise of this comparison. While the class struggled to answer the prompt, we soon learned that the question had been flawed from the start! Such learning experiences have been pivotal in improving my ability to perform critical analyses.

• How is what you’re learning applied to other classes/the world around you?

Although I have yet to apply mythology to my everyday life, the experiences I gained through analyzing these stories have allowed me to hone my ability to view a story from multiple perspectives. This skill is vital for navigating through online discourse on political topics. Critical examination of information on the internet has helped me avoid misinformation and combat my biases by seeing the issue through diverse lenses.