Incoming Sophomore CP 121/129
Summer Reading Requirements 2015
There is one reading requirements for incoming sophomores taking the CP level course: Grendel
by John Gardner. In the following document, there are reading guides and various activities.
Please read all directions carefully.
All work will be handed in on Friday, August 28, 2015. All work must be typed using Times
New Roman text, 12 pt. font and double spacing. A heading should appear at the top of the first
page and be formatted as indicated below. A title should follow, centered on the next line and
contain the information necessary to determine which activity follows.
Student first and last name
Instructor’s Name
British Literature CP
28 August 2015
Grendel is the monster in the eighth century epic, Beowulf. It is one of the oldest pieces of
writing we have in the British tradition and is the first piece of literature we will read in class. In
the novel, Grendel, John Gardner retells the story of the classic tale from the monster’s point of
view, addressing such ideas as the struggle between good and evil, the clash between order and
disorder, the hero’s sacrifice, the achievement of immortality, and the importance of art.
Your required work (to be handed into me) should include the following:
Reading Guide
Project with explanation attached to it
Reading Guide: Please answer the questions below, as they will be helpful in our class
discussion and your preparation for your objective test at the start of the school year.
Chapter 1: Aries, the Ram
1. Identify the phrases that Grendel uses to describe himself. What do these phrases reveal
about him?
2. Describe Grendel’s relationship with his mother.
3. According to Grendel, what is man?
Chapter 2: Taurus, the Bull
4. Explain the significance of the incident in which Grendel gets his foot caught in the tree
roots.
5. How does Grendel’s first meeting with men affect him? Why does he fear them more
than he fears the bull?
6. How does Grendel’s experience with man impact his relationship with his mother?
7. What does Grendel mean when he says, “The world is all pointless accident”?
Chapter 3: Gemini, the Twins
8. What does Grendel learn about Hrothgar?
9. What shocks Grendel about men’s behavior towards nature and towards each other?
10. What is Grendel’s attitude toward poetry?
11. What happens to Grendel at the end of the chapter? Why?
12. What instances of twins do you find?
Chapter 4: Cancer, the Crab
13. What does Grendel say about mortality? How can this be?
14. Why does Hrothgar build Heorot, the Hall of Hart?
15. What is the power of the “projected possible”?
16. What impact does the story of Cain and Abel have on Grendel?
17. What is Grendel’s “conversion”?
18. What is the “presence” Grendel feels in the darkness?
Chapter 5: Leo, the Lion
19. Why does Grendel visit the dragon?
20. How is the dragon different from man and from Grendel?
21. What does the dragon say about man?
22. How does the dragon explain the role of the Shaper?
23. What is the dragon’s advice?
24. Explain how the dragon differentiates between “Importance” and “Expression.”
25. How does Grendel “improve” men?
Chapter 6: Virgo, the Harvest Virgin
26. Explain why the dragon’s charm is a curse.
27. What happens to Grendel as a result of his attack on Heorot?
28. What is the impact of the Shaper’s song on Grendel?
29. What is Grendel’s attitude towards the men in the mead hall?
30. How does Grendel shake Unferth?
31. What is Unferth’s attitude towards heroes?
Chapter 7: Libra, the Balance
32. Who provides the balance in this chapter? How?
33. Why does Grendel not destroy all of Hart and Hrothgar?
34. Find connections/parallels between Wealtheow and Grendel’s mother—between
Wealtheow and the Shaper.
35. What happens to Unferth?
36. Why does Grendel not kill Wealtheow?
37. What does Gendel mean by “Balance is everything”?
Chapter 8: Scorpio, the Scorpion
38. How is Hrothulf like a scorpion?
39. Explain Hrothgar’s dream.
40. What role does Red Horse have in this chapter?
41. What becomes apparent about man in this chapter?
Chapter 9: Sagittarius, the Archer
42. What is Grendel’s opinion of religion?
43. What is Ork’s opinioin of the nature of evil?
44. What is it about the fourth priest that disgusts Grendel?
Chapter 10: Capricorn, the Goat
45. What is wrong with the Shaper?
46. What does Grendel mean by “Tedium is the worst pain”?
47. How does Grendel feel about the goat? Why?
48. How has Grendel’s mother changed?
Chapter 11: Aquarius, the water bearer
49. What impact do the strangers have on Grendel?
50. To what does Grendel compare the strangers? Why might this be foreshadowing or
symbolism?
51. How does Grendel divide the world?
52. What happens when Unferth challenges Beowulf about Breca?
53. Why does Grendel go to hear the boasting? What does he notice about the Danes’
reaction to the Geats?
54. What does Grendel decide to do about Beowulf?
Chapter 12: Pisces, the Fish
55. How and why is Grendel defeated?
56. What is the role of illusion and words in Grendel’s death?
57. What are Grendel’s last words? What do they mean?
Project:
Grendel, “intelligent, isolated, [and] rebuffed… long[s] for the noble and beautiful poetry of men
but [is doomed] by fate to a life of violence” (Griffith). Just as John Gardner humanizes the
monster, Grendel, your assignment is to humanize a “monster” in your own life. The first thing
you must do is to identify the “monster” in your life. This may be procrastination, anxiety, or a
specific fear you have. Then, decide how you are going to make this monster into a physical
form. You may use any medium, including original drawing or painting, an original poem, clay,
play-doh. Additionally, you may create a collage. If you choose to do a collage, you must
completely cover a piece of 11x 17 ½ (one half of a full piece of posterboard) posterboard with
pictures that represent not only the traits of your monster, but also present them in an organized
manner. Accompanying your monster must be an explanatory paragraph that details the choice
of representation you have made for your monster.
Exam:
During the first week of school, you will also have an objective test that will cover the novel.