Utilitarianism, a type of consequentialism, suggest that the consequences of one’s conducts is the basis for the received moral judgment. Although traced back to the followers of the greek philosopher Epicurus, utilitarianism did not adhere to tradition until the late eighteenth century. By approaching both Grendel’s ethical conclusions with an utilitarian mindset and by depicting a society where normative views are solely dependent upon the righteousness of the acts’ consequences, John Gardner utilizes utilitarianism to portray Grendel as a non-evil brute existent. John Gardner utilizes utilitarian ideology to outline Grendel’s ethical conclusions. Grendel states, “It wasn’t because he threw the battle-ax that I turned on Hrothgar.
