Question

read the excerpt from grendel. i was safe in my tree, and the men who fought were nothing to me, except of course that they talked in something akin to my language, which meant that we were, incredibly, related. i was sickened, if only at the waste of it: all they killed—cows, horses, men—they left to rot or burn. i sacked all i could and tried to store it, but my mother would growl and make faces because of the stink. how is grendel characterized in this excerpt? he is weak and easily disgusted by dead animals. he is careful and respectful of animal life. he is cruel and disobedient to his mother’s wishes. he is considerate and mindful of the fighting men.

Explanation:

To determine Grendel's characterization, analyze the excerpt:

• "I was sickened, if only at the waste of it: all they killed—cows, horses, men—they left to rot or burn" shows he dislikes the waste of life, implying respect for animal (and human) life.
• "I sacked all I could and tried to store it" shows carefulness in not letting the killed beings go to waste.
• The other options are incorrect: he is not weak (he tries to store the killed things), not cruel (he dislikes waste), and while his mother growls, there's no indication he disobeys her wishes out of disobedience (more about his own sense of not wasting life). So "He is careful and respectful of animal life" fits.

Answer:

B. He is careful and respectful of animal life