what are some of the character traits of the hero, beowulf, and the villans, grendel and his mother and how do each character's traits affect the...

First off, the character Beowulf is known for his
exceeding bravery.  This is evident because upon first hearing that Grendel is attacking
Hrothgar's mead hall, Herot, Beowulf immediately sets out to go and defeat Grendel even
though Grendel has killed everyone else who has come to try to kill him.  Additionally,
Beowulf determines that when he fights Grendel he won't use a sword but rather will get
the job done with his bare hands.  He asks himself the retorical question  which loosely
paraprased goes something like this: should I send my sword somewhere where I'm afraid
to go?

Beowulf's bravery, however, can also be viewed in
another life: that is that he's too overconfident.

Grendel
has more striking character trait that shines though and that is his bitterness towards
humankind and their special relationship with God.  Apparently Grendel is upset that God
has cursed his ancestors and now he must live a miserable existance.  (Go
figure!)

Grendel's mother has a similar type of
feature to her son: she's out to get revenge.  Beowulf kills her son, and like any
mother, she's out to get revenge for her son's death.  She wants a life for a
life.