Comparing Innocence in Grendel, Neil Young and Portrait of a Lady Essay

Fall from Innocence in Grendel, Neil Young and Portrait of a Lady      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to the Bible, God created man pure and innocent, oblivious to good and evil. The serpent of evil lured them to the tree of knowledge, however, and its fruit proved too much of a temptation. With a bite, their "eyes... were opened," and the course of their lives, and the lives of mankind, were changed (Gen. 6-7, 22). Whether or not one accepts the Christian concept of creation, countless works of art are patterned on this account of the "fall from innocence." The novel Grendel by John Gardner shows us a side of the "beast" the epic Beowulf never considered - the child-like innocence before the brutality. The song "Country Girl" by Neil Young is a subtle commentary on the effect the sexual revolution had upon one woman. In addition, The Portrait of a Lady, a film by Jane Campion, an adaptation of Henry James's novel, shows the downward spiral of a headstrong American girl in the late 1800's. These three distinct pieces cut a swath through the art world, repre senting an established author, a modern musician, and a feminist filmmaker, yet central to their relevance is one theme: the fall from innocence.    Innocence? In Grendel? Grendel is a monster, right? Wrong, in the eyes of John Gardner. Taking the role of the Shaper, Gardner makes us see Grendel as an ostracized person, one so lonely he "relishes the thought of acceptance," even though the idiocy of their society repulses him at times (Milosh 221). He is just a naà ¯ve teenager, searching for his role in life.    In The Portrait of a Lady (POAL), Isabel is searching as well, traveling where her caprice leads her. "You're drifting off to some great mistake," her friend Henriett... ...    Gardner, John. Grendel. Vintage Books, 1989.    Kneubuhl, James P. Written interview. 12 April 1998.    Milosh, Joseph. "John Gardner's 'Grendel': Sources and Analogues." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Research, 1979. 221-222.    Portrait of a Lady, The. Dir. Jane Campion. Gramercy, 1996.    The portrait of a lady production notes. [Online] Available http://www.hollywood.com/movies/portrait/text/1.html, April 13, 1998.    Strehle, Susan. "John Gardner's Novels: Affirmation and the Alien." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Research, 1979. 218 -219.    Travirca, Chet. Written interview. 12 April 1998.    Young, Neil. "Country Girl." Perf. Young, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash. Dà ©jà   vu. Atlantic, 1970. Comparing Innocence in Grendel, Neil Young and Portrait of a Lady Essay Fall from Innocence in Grendel, Neil Young and Portrait of a Lady      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to the Bible, God created man pure and innocent, oblivious to good and evil. The serpent of evil lured them to the tree of knowledge, however, and its fruit proved too much of a temptation. With a bite, their "eyes... were opened," and the course of their lives, and the lives of mankind, were changed (Gen. 6-7, 22). Whether or not one accepts the Christian concept of creation, countless works of art are patterned on this account of the "fall from innocence." The novel Grendel by John Gardner shows us a side of the "beast" the epic Beowulf never considered - the child-like innocence before the brutality. The song "Country Girl" by Neil Young is a subtle commentary on the effect the sexual revolution had upon one woman. In addition, The Portrait of a Lady, a film by Jane Campion, an adaptation of Henry James's novel, shows the downward spiral of a headstrong American girl in the late 1800's. These three distinct pieces cut a swath through the art world, repre senting an established author, a modern musician, and a feminist filmmaker, yet central to their relevance is one theme: the fall from innocence.    Innocence? In Grendel? Grendel is a monster, right? Wrong, in the eyes of John Gardner. Taking the role of the Shaper, Gardner makes us see Grendel as an ostracized person, one so lonely he "relishes the thought of acceptance," even though the idiocy of their society repulses him at times (Milosh 221). He is just a naà ¯ve teenager, searching for his role in life.    In The Portrait of a Lady (POAL), Isabel is searching as well, traveling where her caprice leads her. "You're drifting off to some great mistake," her friend Henriett... ...    Gardner, John. Grendel. Vintage Books, 1989.    Kneubuhl, James P. Written interview. 12 April 1998.    Milosh, Joseph. "John Gardner's 'Grendel': Sources and Analogues." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Research, 1979. 221-222.    Portrait of a Lady, The. Dir. Jane Campion. Gramercy, 1996.    The portrait of a lady production notes. [Online] Available http://www.hollywood.com/movies/portrait/text/1.html, April 13, 1998.    Strehle, Susan. "John Gardner's Novels: Affirmation and the Alien." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Dedria Bryfonski. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Research, 1979. 218 -219.    Travirca, Chet. Written interview. 12 April 1998.    Young, Neil. "Country Girl." Perf. Young, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash. Dà ©jà   vu. Atlantic, 1970.