# Quote — John Gardner, Grendel

> He closed his eyes, still smiling. "Pick an apocalypse, any apocalypse. A sea of black oil and dead things. No wind. No light. Nothing stirring, not even an ant, a spider. A silent universe. Such is the end of the flicker of time, the brief hot fuse of events and ideas set off, accidentally, and snuffed out, accidentally, by man. Not a real ending of course, nor even a beginning. Mere ripple in Time's stream."

- Author: [John Gardner](https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner.md)
- Book: [Grendel](https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner/grendel.md)
- Source: [Wikiquote](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Grendel#Chapter_Five) ([CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/))
- Quote page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner/grendel/he-closed-his

## More from this book

> "Poor Grendel's had an accident," I whisper. ''"So may you all."

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner/grendel/poor-grendels-had.md)

> Grendel, Grendel! You make the world by whispers, second by second. Are you blind to that? Whether you make it a grave or garden of roses is not the point. Feel the wall: is it not hard? He smashes me against it. Hard, yes! Observe the hardness, write it down in careful runes. Now, sing of walls! Sing!

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner/grendel/grendel-grendel-you.md)

> Terrible, he whispers. Terrible. He laughs and lets out fire.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/john-gardner/grendel/terrible-he-whispers.md)