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The Dragon
The Shaper is an old, blind man who comes to Hrothgar offering to sing for money. He is the character through whom the novel most deeply explores ideas about language, art, and beauty. His skillful songs inspire Hrothgar’s men to greatness and propagate ideas of heroism, justice, and religion. He also inspires Hrothgar to construct his great meadhall, Hart. For Grendel, the Shaper has the unique ability to shape and change the world, creating a sense of order, meaning, and beauty out of a chaotic universe. Grendel is fascinated and enticed by the beauty of the Shaper’s art, but he is also enraged by it, since he knows that it false and full of lies. However, underlying Grendel’s dislike of the Shaper is at least some jealousy, as Grendel wishes he could be a part of the community that is unified by the Shaper’s stories. The dragon sees the shaper’s songs as simply illusion, a tool that helps the humans deal with an irrational universe. While this may be true, the Shaper does possess real power and is able to make things actually happen in the real world (such as the construction of Hart).
The Shaper Quotes in Grendel
The Grendel quotes below are all either spoken by The Shaper or refer to The Shaper. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
So he sang—or intoned, with the harp behind him—twisting together like sailors’ ropes the bits and pieces of the best old songs. The people were hushed. Even the surrounding hills were hushed, as if brought low by language.
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Chapter 4
Quotes
It was a cold-blooded lie that a god had lovingly made the world and set out the sun and moon as lights to land-dwellers, that brothers had fought, that one of the races was saved, the other cursed. Yet he, the old Shaper, might make it true, by the sweetness of his harp, his cunning trickery. It came to me with a fierce jolt that I wanted it. As they did too, though vicious animals, cunning, cracked with theories. I wanted it, yes! Even if I must be the outcast, cursed by the rules of his hideous fable.
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The Shaper Quotes in Grendel
The Grendel quotes below are all either spoken by The Shaper or refer to The Shaper. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
So he sang—or intoned, with the harp behind him—twisting together like sailors’ ropes the bits and pieces of the best old songs. The people were hushed. Even the surrounding hills were hushed, as if brought low by language.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4
Quotes
It was a cold-blooded lie that a god had lovingly made the world and set out the sun and moon as lights to land-dwellers, that brothers had fought, that one of the races was saved, the other cursed. Yet he, the old Shaper, might make it true, by the sweetness of his harp, his cunning trickery. It came to me with a fierce jolt that I wanted it. As they did too, though vicious animals, cunning, cracked with theories. I wanted it, yes! Even if I must be the outcast, cursed by the rules of his hideous fable.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
