ng out, “Mercy! Peace!” The Harper broke off, the people screamed. Drunken men rushed me with battle-axes. I sank to my knees, crying, “Friend! Friend!” They hacked at me, yipping like dogs. I held up the body for protection.” In the end man was too afraid of Grendel to befriend him, so they tried killing him and would have succeeded if Grendel gave them the chance. So now Grendel, not getting any answers from his mother or man he is forced to go to the last source of help that can possible help him, the dragon.The Dragon wasn’t much help to Grendel either; he just pushed Grendel further to the idea of existentialism. He said that the stories the shaper told, who Grendel grew to like and believe, where pure illusion. The shaper only knew of the past and present, and the Dragon saw that nothing would come of it in the future. The only thing the Dragon did for Grendel was show him what he meant to men. The dragon tells Grendel that he stimulates the humans and inspires their poetry and art. He is telling Grendel that he is evil and they are “good”, but they are “good” because of you. Grendel’s evil motivates the fearful people to work, to strive, to think, and to overcome their problems. “You are mankind, or man’s condition: inseparable as the mountain climber to the mountain. If you withdraw, you’ll instantly be replaced.” The dragon is saying that even if Grendel decides to change his course in life and never kill another man, nothing will change. Man will be forced to find another monster to wage war against, for good can not exist without some evil. The Dragon gives one final piece of advice to Grendel, “Seek out gold and sit on it.” That in sense was the only way Grendel was going to find meaning according to the Dragon. Yet, the dragon leaves Grendel more now confused than ever.As the novel develops Grendel tries to u...
