Accidents In Beowulf, And The Metamorphosis

One of the most famous historical texts in literature is the tragic play, Oedipus Rex. The main character, Oedipus, ironically kills his own father without knowing it. He cursed the man who did the killing, without knowing it was himself. This curse lead to his downfall; showing how downfalls are caused by accidents. This goes with the three books, Grendel, Beowulf, and the novella, the Metamorphosis. Grendel, Gregor, and Grendel’s mother are all mechanical creatures. However, each ends up having an accident, which leads to their death. Thus, these books suggest that downfalls are often accidental. To begin, in the book Grendel, the main character Grendel starts off mechanical. Grendel is a monster who is often found near the Dane’s Mead Hall on the hill. Practically every day for the past twelve years Grendel has a same perfunctory routine of killing men; which was very sadistic of him. Then one day, Grendel has an accident. A warrior named Beowulf and Grendel are battling

Grendel’s mother never did much. Often, she would sleep in her marsh den and hug her son when he returned home. For twelve years she would hunt, sleep, and sit all day. However, after Grendel’s accident this triggers her into becoming more monstrous than she had ever been. The narrator explains, “Then suddenly, the vehement mother avenged her son and wreaked destruction; death had robbed her” (Heaney 145). This quote is showing when Grendel’s mother stopped being mechanical. Her anger got the best of her, causing her to lose her mind and wreak havoc on Beowulf. Grendel’s accident causes her to lash out and viciously attack Beowulf. Instead of just sitting in her den she is searching for revenge, breaking out of her mechanical ways; which was the cause of her death. Grendel’s mother had a downfall caused by her son’s accident, showing accidents cause