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Metaphor
Explanation and Analysis—Stalactites of the Heart:
In Chapter 9, Grendel observes some priests sacrificing a calf to pagan gods. Grendel is rater disgusted by these proceedings, thinking that the grisly dismemberment is only "showmanship." Grendel believes that no human actually believes in such ritualistic practices. Humans, instead, are much more simple, desiring only power. He describes this deep-seated desire using a bodily metaphor:
There is no conviction in the old priests’ songs; there is only showmanship. No one in the kingdom is convinced that the gods have life in them. The weak observe the rituals—take their hats off, put them on again, raise their arms, lower their arms, moan, intone, press their palms together—but no one harbors unreasonable expectations. The strong—old Hrothgar, Unferth—ignore the images. The will to power resides among the stalactites of the heart.
Grendel claims that humanity's power-hungry nature goes as deep as "the stalactites of the heart." This metaphor refers evocatively to the deepest, most central core of human nature. Grendel depicts the heartstrings as stony, rigid structures, unchanging over time: the "will to power" is embedded in stone. This metaphor is perhaps most striking due to the fact that Grendel himself grew up among stalactites in the cave with his mother. Grendel uses a highly personal image of the emotional core of his own life, the cave, in order to describe humans' violent nature. Here we see perhaps the most profound example in the novel of Grendel's cunning perception of human life; only from his unique perspective, as a monster from an unchanging cave, can he perceive humans' will to power.
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