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Broekman, Arianne (2019)

Can Women Be Monsters? An Onomastic and Feminist Approach to Grendel’s Mother’s Namelessness

Bachelor thesis | Engelse taal en cultuur (BA)
After the Danes have been terrorized by the monster Grendel for over a decade, Beowulf finally restores peace by slaughtering Grendel. The Danes are overjoyed and party in their mead hall. However, the mother of Grendel, as could be expected, is less than thrilled that her son has been killed and she takes revenge by killing one Dane. Many debates surround this mother: is she really a woman? Is she an actual monster or does she resemble humans in some way? But one question of particular interest has not been answered yet: the question of why Grendel’s mother does not have a name. This thesis aims to explore possible answers to that question.
Author
Broekman, Arianne
Faculty
Faculty of Humanities
Specialisation
Philology
Supervisors
Murchison, Krista
ECTS Credits
10
Language
en