In investigating his own nature, the monster in the story destroys himself. He realizes that the universe is determined, accidental, and so he loses faith in his own importance. With time, he becomes a beast, a "brute existent," until eventually his soul has wholly left him. He does not die for love or for passion or for freedom. His spirit dies instead simply, hopelessly, mired in boredom and indignation, without courage or

After his visit to the dragon, Grendel finds a more solid shield, nihilism: the belief that nothing has meaning; that life is a long series of accidents and is in itself an accident. As a philosophy, nihilism is complete. It provides an answer to every metaphysical, "why?" Whatever the concern, a nihilist can conclusively state, "There is no way to truly know, but it does not matter anyway." As a system of values for a living being, however, nihilism leaves much to be desired. It destroys the self, quickly and totally, with a single fall of a cynical whip. Grendel is utterly unhappy, because his life is empty and devoid of meaning. Notice that he projects this meaningless onto the thanes. He ridicules their actions and their passions, rendering them absurd in the reader's eyes. In truth, Grendel has a certai

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, Grendel Beowulf, answer grendel's, outside factors, meaning life,