Part 1 of Essay
John Gardner introduces the reader of Grendel to an intimate side of Unferth unseen in the epic poem Beowulf. In Grendel we behold what a pathetic, sniveling wimp Unferth has become. In Beowulf all that we see is a jealous bastard. Why did Gardner make the character of Unferth so different from the original depiction? ....

Part 2 of Essay
.... the cave Unferth begs Grendel to take his life but Grendel gives him fate worse than death. Grendel leaves him alive and impotent. Unferth knows that he cannot kill Grendel yet he cannot be a martyr to Herot either. All during the first year of Grendel's siege, the smell of apples fresh in the air, Unferth tries to be the Grendel's martyr. Oh the heroic Unferth who died trying to save the people of Herot. Unfortunately he never got to die, not even dressed up as a goat, a pig or an elderly women. This contin ....