Question

a man would roar, \ill steal their gold and burn their meadhall!\ shaking his sword as if the tip were afire, and a man with eyes like two pins would say, \do it now, cowface! i think youre not even the man your father was!\ the people would laugh. i would back away into the darkness, furious at my stupid need to spy on them, and i would glide to the next camp of men, and id hear the same.
--grendel,
john gardner
how is grendel characterized in this passage?
○ grendel is jealous of the humans wealth.
○ grendel is critical of himself but unable to contain his curiosity.
○ grendel is violent and aggressive toward the humans.

Explanation:

• For the first option, the passage doesn't show Grendel being jealous of human wealth; it focuses on his self - criticism and curiosity.
• For the second option, from the passage, Grendel is “furious at my stupid need to spy on them” which shows self - criticism, and he keeps moving to the next camp to spy, showing he can't contain his curiosity.
• For the third option, Grendel is spying on humans, not being violent or aggressive toward them in this passage.

Answer:

B. Grendel is critical of himself but unable to contain his curiosity.