Philosophy in John Gardner’s Grendel

John gardner’s grendel is a celebrated example of the ontologicalpostmodernist fiction. along with a discovery of self with which grendel thenarrator of the novel is concerned, grand narratives such as philosophy arequestioned. grendel denies the external objective reality and generouslyallows the legitimacy of fantastic and non-realistic methods by using “lifeaffirmingfabulous art” as its major technique. art becomes the central issuerelated to the question of ontology; it is both presented as the only mediatorgiving meaning to the futility of life or yet another grand illusion.philosophical questions are elaborated in the novel through the seminaltechnique of the amalgamation of a medieval setting with modern concerns(the rewriting of an old english epic). the paper is an attempt to shed somelight on the philosophical turn of john gardner’s novel which, it is argued, isits central postmodern aspect.