How we cite our quotes: (Page) Vintage Books, 1989
Quote #7
She whimpered, scratched at the nipple I had not sucked in years. She was pitiful, foul, her smile a jagged white tear in the firelight: waste. (55)
Grendel has some seriously conflicted feelings about his next of kin, but as the story goes on, it's fairly clear that he wastes no tears on his Mama. Take a look at the strength of those adjectives. He's not merely bothered by her difference; he's downright disgusted.
Quote #8
I no longer remember exactly what he sang. I know only that it had a strange effect on me: it no longer filled me with doubt and distress, loneliness and shame. It enraged me. (77)
The Shaper's song has always made Grendel feel a bit funny inside, but after the visit to the dragon, it's like he's just had all the hope sucked out of him. Now he just feels rage at the Shaper, the symbol of all of Grendel's problems.
Quote #9
He lives on, bitter, feebly challenging my midnight raids from time to time (three times this summer), crazy with shame that he alone is always spared, and furiously jealous of the dead. (90)
Grendel hasn't cornered the market on hatred in this narrative—remember that we also have Unferth. Unferth has committed the major faux pas of killing his own brothers, and while he is somehow considered one of the best of the warriors in the meadhall, his peeps take every opportunity to make jokes at his expense. What he really needs is a solid heroic deed to bring him back into the fold (killing Grendel—or being killed by Grendel—would do), but Grendel won't play that game. And once he realizes that the monster won't even do him the favor of eating him, Unferth takes a turn for the worse. We guess you could say that Grendel is Unferth's "dragon" experience.