Beowulf and Grendel are the protagonist of the scene which is the object of analysis of the poem extract. Apparently they seem to be given the same level of importance, but that’s not true. You can see it even from the number of lines devoted to Grendel: the narrator is carefully showing the listener all of the monster’s attitudes, motions and behavior.

The language used to have the audience follow the teed of the story resource to different stylistic choices: the fist of one is the use on an inversion in the original word order. The intention is to put the word creature into a central focus so that the listener may well understand the real protagonist of the narration.

Creature is an interesting semantic choice that is apparently contradictory with Grendel’s monstrous nature. The effect is paradoxically to involve a certain affection in the listener or reader indeed existence of which epic poetry is a narrative projection does not simply consists on good but for good to be recognize it must be set against evil.  This explains for the narrator to draw the attention mainly on the monster. the qualities and features the narrator focus the attention on are the typical ones of the predator: the first element the listener comes across in the scene is Grendel’s ability in having immediate reflex underlined and highlighted by the alliterative sound “s” in “struck and started” In addition, it must be said that alliteration is a condition sine qua non for the survival of Anglo-Saxon epic poetry: the means through which it can be undid own orally. It goes without saying that alliteration bines words together thus allowing the composer to remember it.. Grendel’s lack of hesitation is visible  and perceptible even from the word order that puts ”nor” together with “keep him waiting”.

The idea of the instinctive voracity is suggested by the line 3 where short verbs are used to convey the idea of Grendel’s speed attack. Not only is the nature of a monster predator suggested on the rational level it is also recreated on the sound level. Alliteration is insisted along the whole extract to reinforce the idea of a faithful creature that has no pitting because he acts on an instinctive principle which is the one of selvage animal. You can see it clearly at line 741 where, once more, alliteration recreates the famelic actions of a monster whose pleasure and fullness depends on the slaughter of the prey. “Blood” and “bone” are symbolic just opposed to visually suggest the result of a human being reduce to pieces.

Punctuation plays a relevant function to a suggestion the typical motion of predator’s attack reinforced by the labial sound of “b” that imply short brakes in the telling. The result is dramatic and significantly . You can see it at line 743 where the differencing line length underlines “utterly lifeless”. Again alliteration of the liquid sound and elliptical sentences bring to surface all the results of Grendel’s violence. Sineddoct of ”hand and food” makes almost visible the result of Grendel’s voracity.