Sam Ng, Period 2, 3/6/23

Sam Ng

Period 2

3/6/23

Literacy & Learning

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

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

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

Currently, we are reading Grendel. Prior to this, we read Beowulf. I didn’t pay much attention to Beowulf, maybe because I don’t relate to him. I don’t possess superhuman strength, nor am I slightly courageous. Sure, I completed all the readings and challenged myself to make deep, thoughtful connections. Despite this, I didn’t have a strong connection to Beowulf, his character, or his journey. 

Grendel is different. Perhaps, because we are all monsters to some extent, whether it be in our own lives or in others’. Right away, I was intrigued by the author’s background. John Gardner was an American novelist during the age of nonconformity. He is best known for his work, Grendel, a retelling of Beowulf from the monster’s point of view. It is well-known that Grendel is a descendant of Cain, who in the story of Cain and Abel, committed fratricide. Gardner, similarly, accidentally killed his younger brother Gilbert with a cultipacker on their family farm. Our class discussion on Grendel’s character being a fictional representation of Gardner was really enlightening and eye opening. I believe that Gardner definitely feels trapped because even though he is respected by the public, he is anguished by the inner turmoil and childhood trauma.

In addition to analyzing the text from the author’s background, it’s also important to acknowledge the historical context. Grendel was written during the age of nonconformity. This followed a period of conformity, in which people strongly adhered to gender roles and believed in living the “standard” American dream: getting a home, raising children, retiring peacefully, etc. In the 1960s, the younger generation rebelled against the standard way of life through protesting and changing their lifestyle, with the rise of hippies, for example. Having a monster as the protagonist of a story is definitely one of the many ways society challenged conventional life. Overall, I’ve learned that there are lots of different approaches to analyzing something. Our duty as readers is to dig past the surface level words to look for deeper meanings and ask questions.

Just as Gardner was generally seen as a person who “has it all,” in the increasingly interconnected world, it is often easy to overlook the hidden struggles in people’s lives. Social media, by design, is meant to show a curation of all our happiest moments. In doing so, everyone is hurt. People on the receiving end may conclude that their lives are simply terrible because everyone else’s is so splendid and perfect. People on the sharing end may feel drained when they’re doing mundane, menial tasks and as a result, crave to keep up the facade of a busy, engaging lifestyle to their audience. I am 100% more wary of what I see versus what the truth is now.