A central assumption made about Beowulf is the monstrous nature of Grendel. This conception is so deeply rooted that modern translators often strain over words that in other contexts clearly describe men, glossing them to fit their understanding of Grendel. An example of this is given by O'Keefe:

The word *aglaeca* is an instance of an unfortunate glossing which seriously affects the interpretation of the text. Thw word is used twenty times in Beowulf, chiefly, as Klaeber notes, for Grendel and the dragon. Yet *aglaeca* is also used for Beowulf and Sigemund.
Klaeber's solution to the problem of one word's describing two sets of characters is to gloss *aglaeca* as "wretch, monster, demon, fiend" when it refers to Grendel and the dragon and as "warrior, hero" when it refers to Beowulf and Sigemund. Building such a distinction
into the glossing of the word completely ignores the possibility that the poet has deliberately chosen to use the same word to describe two sets of characters; as Dobbie notes in his edition of Beowulf, in the historical period of Old English the word need have been no more specific that "formidable [one]. (Katherine O'Brien O'Keefe, "Beowulf,
Lines 702b-836: Transformations and the Limits of the Human," in Texas Studies in Literature and Language. 23 [1981]: pp. 484-485.

O'Keefe goes on to deal with Grendel as a monster undergoing a transformation to a likeness of a man. However, the Beowulf poet who had such rich Scandinavian source materials available to him more than likely intended to depict a man undergoing a transformation to a monstrous likeness: such a motif was readily available in the *baresark*, the berserker encountered so frequently in the Old Norse sagas. Upon examining the character of Grendel, clear parallels to these fearsome warriors become
evident.

As has been discussed above, the primary characteristics of the berserk are:

(1) association with animals, including shape-shifting abilities;
(2) terrifying appearance;
(3) immunity to weapons via spells or the wearing of (magically) protective
animal skins;
(4) berserker rage, including turning purple in the face, loss of human
reason, acquisition of enormous strength and animal behavior (killing
and howling), followed by profound bodily weakness and disability;
(5) rejection by the community due to excesses of violence.

It can be demonstrated that Grendel, rather than being an inhuman monster, exhibits thecharacteristics of the human berserk.

Grendel's approaches to Heorot occur at night, in a misty, dark landscape as suggestive of dreams as of nighttime. In lines 702b-714, Grendel undergoes a transformation (O'Keefe, p. 487). Initially, he is described as *scri(dh)an sceadu-genga*, a gliding shadow-walker: he seems almost to be an incorporeal spirit. As Grendel draws closer to the hall, and to the impending battle with Beowulf, he "solidifies," becoming a *mansca(dh)a*, an evil-doer (l. 712) who *gongan* (l. 711 and *wod* (l. 714), moving as a corporeal being. This progession brings to mind the *hamingja* or *fylgja*, the symbolic animal shape or spirit which the berserker possessed. Bodvar Bjarki fought for King Hrolf in bear-form, sending forth his spirit while his body remained motionless in camp. Landnamabok tells of two "shapestrong" men, Storolf and Dufthak, who have quarreled over grazing rights:

One evening about sunset a man with the gift of second sight
saw a great bear go out from Hval and a bull from Dufthak's farm,
and they mey ay Storolfvellr and fought furiously, and the bear
had the best of it.

This was another instance when the spirit form is seen as a bear, and in
this case, the other as a bull. That these apparitions partake of an
incorporeal nature is clear, beause it requires a man with "second sight" to
perceive them. And yet, at some point they have taken on form and substance
for:

In the morning a hollow could be seen in the place where they
had met, as though the earth had been turned over, and this is
now called Oldugrof (Hilda R. Ellis-Davidson, "Shape Changing
in the Old Norse Sagas" in Animals in Folklore. eds. J.R. Porter
and W.M.S. Russell. Totowa, NJ: Rowman and Littlefield. 1978).

The terror associated with Grendel is also due to his horrifying appearance. He is called *(th)yrse* (l. 426) and *eoten* (l. 761) for he is a giant in size. From his eyes comes a horrible light, like a flame (*him of eagumstod ligge gelicost leoht unfaegr*, ll. 726b-727). Grendel's hand is like some animal's paw, having claws instead of finger-nails [*foran aeghwyle waes steda naegla gehwylc style gelicost, hae(th)enes handsporu hilderinces egl unheoru*, ll. 984b-987a]. Although Grendel's visage is never described, when Beowulf returns from the mere with Grendel's severed head:

*(Th)a waes be feaxe on flet boren
Grendles heafod, (th)aer guman druncon,
egeslic for eorlum ond (th)aere idese mid,
wlite-seon wraetlice weras on sawon*.
(ll. 1647-1650)
(Then by the hair, over the floor, woas borne
Grendel's head; there men drank,
it was fearful for the earls and their queen with them,
a terrible sight the men looked upon.)

Grendel's head is a terrible sight, and frightening to the people of Heorot even in death.

Another characteristic Grendel shares with the berserk is his
immunity to weapons. When Beowulf's men try to come to their leader's aid
as he grapples with Grendel, they find their swords to be useless:
*Hie (th)aet ne wiston (th)a hie gewin drugon
heard-hicgende hilde-mecgas
ond on healfa gehwone heawan (th)ohton,
sawle secan: (th)one syn-sca(dh)an
aenig ofer eor(th)an irenna cyst,
gu(dh)-billa nan gretan nolde,
ac he sige-waepnum forsworen hadfde,
ecga gehwylcre*. (ll. 798-805a)

(They did not know when they entered the fight;
hard-minded men, battle-warriors
on every side, they meant to hew him,
to seek his soul: by none of the best iron
in the world, by no war sword
could the evil-doer be touched,
the victory weapons he made useluess by a spell,
every sword-edge.")

Even when Beowulf has torn Grendel's arm from its socket, the arm retains
Grendel's weapon immunity:

*... Aeghwylc gecwae(dh)
(th)aet him heardra nan hrinan wolde
iren are-god (th)aet (dh)aes ahlaecan
blodge beadu-folme onberan wolde*
(ll. 987b-990)
(... Each one said
that no hard thing would touch it,
no good iron of old times would harm
the bloody battle-hand of the enemy.)

Grendel, in his atatcks, exhibits the characteristics of berserkergang. He is swollen with rage [(dh)a he gebolgen waes*, l. 723b], angry [*yrre-mod*, l. 726a], an angry spirit [*gaest yrre*, l. 2073b], like the berserk whose face swelled and changed in color, and was taken in
hot-headedness and great rage. As he makes his final foray upon Heorot,

Grendel is represnted as a thinking being (O'Keefe, p. 487) [*mynte*, l. 712 and *gesohte*, l. 717], but as the rage comes upon him he seemingly loses his human reason to purely animal behavior. Like a ravening wolf or man-eating bear, Grendel feeds upon human flesh:

*Ne (th)aet se aglaeca yldan (th)ohte,
ac he gefeng hra(dh)e forman si(dh)e
slaepende rinc, slat unwearnum
bat banlocan, blod edrum dranc,
synsnaedum swealh; sona haefde
unlyfigendes eal gefeormod,
fet ond folma*. (ll. 739-745a)
(Nor did the combatant think to delay
but he quickly caught the first time
a sleeping man, greedily tore him,
bit the joint, drank the blood streams,
swallowed huge morsels; he immediately ate
the dead man all up
feet and hands.)

Once the fight with Beowulf has begun, Grendel continues his animal behavior, howling in berserk fashion:

*... Sweg up astag
niwe geneahhe; Nor(dh)-Denum stod
atelic egesa, anra gehwylcum
(th)ara (th)e of wealle wop gehyrdon,
gryre-leo(dh) galan Godes andsacan
sige-leasne sang, sar wanigean
helle haefton*. (ll. 782b-788a)
(... The sound rose up
very strange; The North Danes endured
dreadful terror, each one
there on the wall heard the weeping,
the terrible song sung by God's adversary,
a victory-less song, bewailing the wounds
of hell's captive.)

During the battle, Grendel possesses great strength. While he is not yet so stromg as Beowulf, who "has the strength of thirty men in his hand grip," Grendel is yet powerful enough to carry fifteen men away at once:

*(Th)onne he Hro(dh)gares heor(dh)-geneatas
sloh on sweofote slaepende fraet
folces Denigea fyftyne men,
and o(dh)er swylc ut offerede
la(dh)licu lac. (ll. 1580-1584a)
(Then Hrothgar's hearth companions
he slew in their beds, ate them sleeping,
of the Danish people fifteen men,
another fifteen likewise he carried off-
a hateful gift.)

Beowulf himslef is aware of the enormous might of Grendel, which was nearly as great as his own:

*Ic hine ne mihte (th)a Metod nolde,
ganges getwaeman, no ic him (th)aes georne aetfealh,
feorh-geni(dh)lan: waes to fore-mihtig
feond on fe(th)e*. (ll. 967-970a)
(I could not keep him, the Creator did not wish it,
from an early departure, not firmly enough
did I welcome him: too powerful was
the foe in his going.)

Grendel's strength is shown more dramatically as he enters Heorot. He merely seems to touch the hall door, which bursts under the strength of his hands:

* ... Duru sona onarn
fyrbendum faest, sythdthan he hire folmum aethran;
onbraed tha bealohydig dtha he gebolgen waes,
recedes muthan. (ll. 721b-724a)
(... The door immediately sprang open
tho fastened with forged bands when he touched it with his hands
driven by evil desire swollen with anger,
he tore open the hall's mouth.)

While it is supposedly physically impossible for Grendel to experience the berserker's typical post-frenzy physical weakness since he has received his mortal wound, the Beowulf poet ironically describes Grendel as "war-weary" [*gu(dh)-werigne*, l. 1586a] and "lying at rest" [*on raeste*, l. 1585b] as a berserk would normally do after a battle, even though Grendel is said to be dead of the wounds he received at Beowulf's hands. It is interesting to note in this context that Beowulf, having just dispatched Grendel's mother, does not take his war-trophy from her body: rather, it is Grendel's head that he severs. This is an odd action, for
Hrothgar and the Danes have celebrated Beowulf's victory over Grendel already with feasting and gift-giving. There seems no call to bring back further proof of the Geat's victory over Grendel. Furthermore, when Beowulf cuts off Grendel's head, blood flows forth in great enough quantity to stain the waters of the lake:

*Sona (th)aet gesawon snottre ceorlas
(th)a (dh)e mid Hro(dh)gare on holm wliton,
(th)aet waes y(dh)-geblond eal gemenged,
brim blode fah*. (ll. 1591-1594a)
(Immediately it was seen by the wise earls
who were with Hrothgar that the waves
were all tainted and roiled:
blood stained the water.)

More than a full day has passed since he has fled from Heorot, yet Grendel's supposedly lifeless body pours forth blood when it is decapitated. One is forced to wonder if Grendel was in fact dead, or merely in a death-like slumber, experiencing the weakness that follows the berserkergang.

Another discrepancy here harks back to Grendel's weapon immunity. While Grendel is fighting Beowulf, he is proof against steel (ll. 798-805), and even the next morning his severed hand retains this resistance (ll. 987-990), yet Beowulf is easily able to lop Grendel's head off as he lies *on raest*. This seems to suggest that Grendel's magical protection existed before he became *gu(dh)-werigne*, and extended even top his hand after it was severed from his body, but once he reached his lair and let his rage fall from him, so too ended the weapons immunity. Beowulf would have had a very good reason to cleave Grendel's head, if his enemy were yet alive and merely experiencing the normal infirmity that follows berserkergang, and it would not be unreasonable to expect this to result in a copiuos flow of blood.

Again, in the sagas, it is a standard practice to dispatch the berserk while he lies helpless after his fit, and this would seem to be Beowulf's course of action as well. Grendel is also easily identified with the berserk as "a predatory brawler and kller who disrupts the peace of the community repeatedly;" as a man separated from society by his excesses of violence. Certainly Grendel does not fulfil the role of a loyal retainer to Hrothgar, and is in fact
actually at war with the king:

*... (th)aette Grendel wan
hwile wi(dh) Hro(th)gar hete-ni(dh)as waeg
fyrene ond faeh(dh)e fela missera
singale saece*. (ll. 151b-154a)
(... Grendel had fought
a long time with Hrothgar, driven by hate,
crimes and feud for many a season
he carried out.)

The laws of Ine and Alfred suggest that Grendel's trespasses against Hrothgar were compounded by his murders in the hall. Not only does Grendel decimate Hrothgar's retainers, but violence in the hall seems to have been regarded as high treason, an offence against the king's peace, in Anglo-Saxon society:

If anyone fights in the king's house, he shall forfeit all his property,
and it shall be for the king to decide whether he shall be put to death
or not (Law of Ine 6. from F. L. Attenborough, trans. The Laws of the
Earliest English Kings. Cambridge: University Press. 1922).

If anyone fights or draws his weapon in the king's hall, it shall be for the king to decide whether he shall be put tod eath or permitted to live, in case the king is willing to forgive him (Law of Alfred 7, Ibid.).

The violent nature of Grendel's nighttime raids is vividly described by the poet (ll. 120b-125, 134b-137, 739-745a). Each time Grendel has found men in the hall, he has murdered them, up to thirty men at a time (ll. 122b-123a, 1580-1584a). It is not enough that Grendel slays his victims: he dismembers and devours them as well (ll. 739-745a), thus Grendel might well
be described as a far worse butcher than the bersarks disparaged by Saxo Grammaticus. Like Saxo's berserks, Grendel pillages Heorot, byt Grendel's booty is not in wealth or in goods, but rather iks a commodity specifically forbideen by Hrothgar --- the lives of men (ll. 71b-73).

Thus it may be seen that the Beowulf poet's depiction of Grendel coincides closely with the characteristics of the berserk: Grendel seems to possess a spirit form; he undergoes transformation during his attacks on Heorot; Grendel's appearance is horrifying; Grendel seems to have shapeshifting abilities, being described with words commonly used for men in
one place, yet possessing an animal-like claw during his attacks; Grendel possesses the berserker's famed weapons immunity; during his attacks, Grendel shows the signs of the berserker rage, including swelling and rage; after battle, Grendel falls into an extreme exhaustion or war-weariness; and finally, Grendel is set apart from the society of the Danes by his violence against that society. Grendel is a complex character, one with many facets. Seking to understand the Scandinavian motifs such as that of the berserker which inform some of these facets is a necessary and invaluable quest, for it sheds light on the character, and helps in deriving further meaning from the poem.