Nowadays many people believe that Beowulf and Forrest Gump are similar because they both considered as heroes of the time in which they lived. First of all, Beowulf considered as a hero because he is capable of sacrificing himself and courage in the name of justice. He is brave, and at the same time, a decent hero. There is no reason to doubt his merits. Forrest Gump is also considered as a hero because he thinks about faith, love, honesty, patriotism. He is a kind person who remained faithful to his family, friends, and his country. He is a man who always carries God in his soul, and lives according to the laws of Christian love to God and to the nearest ones. Both Beowulf and Forrest Gump do things that other people consider impossible. Beowulf and Forrest Gump can be compared as heroes representing their time period and cultures. “Beowulf” is a medieval heroic epic. The poem originated on the basis of ancient traditions related to pagan times. The poem represent an early example of precisely moral heroism, but not the one that is caused by the desire for fame and power. The main character of the poem, Beowulf, is capable of sacrificing himself and courage in the name of justice. He is a true hero by honoring his country and exerting his power and strength to protect others. His courage is shown by not hesitating to risk his own life to pursue the Dane’s enemies. By being self-assured, Beowulf is able to successfully defeat the fiends, Grendel and his infamous mother. At the time Beowulf is planning to pursue the vindictive dragon, the epic poem states, “I’ve never known fear, as a youth I fought in endless battles. I am old now, but I will fight again, seek fame still, If the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me.” (ll. 2511-2515). He feels no fear, is confident in fighting the dragon alone, and has no qualms in risking his life to save others. He declares his bravery by saying, “When he comes to me I mean to stand, not run from his shooting flames, stand till fate decides which of us wins... No one else could do what I mean to, here, no man but me could hope to defeat this monster.” (ll. 2525-2534) In his actions, Beowulf’s bravery is clearly shown throughout the poem. As king, Beowulf is the
Beowulf was recognized as a hero in his own country for the countless battles he had. Now, Beowulf has been a great King to us and once he had heard of the attacks to his kingdom by a fire breathing dragon he knows that he must go to battle with this creature to save his people. Instead of sending warriors to battle for him because he’s older he decides he must go and fight the dragon himself. He knows it’s the only way to save his people from this dragon. He also realizes that it is his time to go and that the only noble way to die is in an epic battle. The only way he can have true honor is in combat. When they gather on the mountain with his men he tells them that he must go and defeat this dragon on his own for his people and that the gold that the dragon protects will be left for his people. He went to battle knowing that he will probably die going against this fire breathing dragon. He went anyways because he knew that it would save his people. He would leave everything he owns for his warriors and his people. Beowulf took on that dragon for a chance that we would save his kingdom from this horrifying creature. Beowulf is a true hero because he
Beowulf is an ancient English poem that tells the tale of a young, brave warrior and the victories he obtains throughout his lifetime, up until his death. He is widely regarded as a hero throughout the lands and honorably puts his life on the line multiple times. Throughout the poem, Beowulf’s reasoning for being a hero changes. He begins his journey wanting to be a protector of people, a savior of humankind, but as the poem progresses, there is a distinct change in motivation for Beowulf, becoming more about craving glory and victory over his opponent as opposed to out of pure kindness. Beowulf conveys through this change that while it is worthwhile risking his life and being a hero in order to save his people and carry out his family
Not only is Beowulf honorable and well respected, he is brave as well. His courage is shown by not hesitating to risk his own life to pursue the Dane’s enemies. By being self-assured, Beowulf is able to successfully defeat the fiends, Grendel and his infamous mother. At the time Beowulf is planning to pursue the vindictive dragon, the epic poem states, “I’ve never known fear, as a youth I fought in endless battles. I am old now, but I will fight again, seek fame still, If the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me.”(ll. 2511-2515). He feels no fear, is confident in fighting the dragon alone, and has no qualms in risking his life to save others. He declares his bravery by saying, “When he comes to me I mean to stand, not run from his shooting flames, stand till fate decides which of us wins... No one else could do what I mean to, here, no man but me could hope to defeat this monster.”(ll. 2525-2534). In his actions, Beowulf’s bravery is clearly shown throughout the poem.
The storyline of Beowulf illustrates the epic battle between good and evil, and demonstrates to the readers that external war is not the only conflict hero’s face. Beowulf struggles a lot with his pride. Beowulf’s biggest internal battle was experienced when he was preparing to fight the dragon. He decided to go into battle, ignoring the fact that he had aged, but his pride, and warrior code wouldn’t let him run. What makes matters worse, he decided to go into the battle alone. His hero pride overcame the actions a normal king would’ve taken. The hero ideology at the time was strictly against a warrior running from a battle, and if Beowulf had done so, he would’ve been persecuted by society, as well as his own conscience.
_Beowulf_ is an epic poem that, above all, gives us a vision of a time long ago; a time when the most important traits to have were courage and integrity. The only thing that could give such fame to somebody was heroic deeds and family lineage. Beowulf, as the example of pagan heroes, exhibited his desire to accumulate fame and fortune; the only way to do so was to avenge the death of others. This theme of retribution that is present throughout the whole poem seems to enrich the identities of its characters.
“Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow.”- Mary Anne Radmacher. Beowulf is a epic poem that shares the journey of an epic hero named Beowulf who shows us he has plenty of courage and selflessness throughout the story. Beowulf portrays his perseverance when we are introduced to a monster that goes by the name of Grendel. He defeats the monster and proves that he is capable of being a hero that the people need. Beowulf is a virtuous man and virtue was very important in Anglo-Saxon culture. He shows four traits through the course of the poem which can be seen as Loyalty, Strength, Bravery, and Friendship. Beowulf constantly portrays these four traits as we read more of the poem, and it shows why he is a hero that his people relied on.
The last battle that Beowulf partook in was perhaps the most heroic of all. Although the battle ended his life, it proved that of all the men in the story, Beowulf was the only true Anglo-Saxon hero. All of his troops proved to be fickle. They abandoned him in a time when they were needed the most. Though his men lived, they lived as cowards, yielding to the dragon apprehended by all the Geats. Never the less, Beowulf’s strength of heart and mind gave him the will to fight the dragon, although none of his men were there to help him. In this part of the tale, Beowulf was older and his physical strength had dwindled. But despite this, his tremendous heroism remained. He fought the dragon to his death and died with a pride, gallantry and chivalry that no man at the time had
Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight are tales about two brave heros. While both Beowulf and Sir Gawain are heros in their own stories, both men are portrayed differently. In each story, both heroes possess similar traits such as courage, loyalty and honor. A hero may be unchanging to his values when a situation crosses his path. However, when it comes to comparing these two great men, I would consider Sir Gawain the true hero.
“In my youth I engaged in many wars”, Beowulf boasts to his warriors, which is certainly true. Throughout his life, he faces many deadly foes, all of which he handily defeats, save one. His story focuses on the most challenging, as well as morally significant of foes, Grendel and the dragon. These creatures reveal much about society as well as Christian virtue at the time. Even after Grendel and the dragon are defeated physically, the two monsters pose a new threat to the hero on a higher plane. Beowulf is not only at risk of losing his life, but his humanity, virtue, and even spirituality.
The portrayal of bravery as a heroic quality in Beowulf differs from that of Dan Evans’ in numerous ways. Being the traditional, valiant hero, Beowulf’s bravery is unmatched among the thanes of Heorot and he leaps at the chance to slay the terrible monster Grendel. Described as a “brave thane of the Geats” (Beowulf 2), Beowulf’s strength and daring spirit is demonstrated with his admirable feats of bravery, including “[destroying] five a family of giants” and “[slaying] monsters on the waves” (372). Beowulf’s daring exploits leads him to challenge Grendel in single combat in order to slay the terrorizing beast. He expresses his courage and confidence through his boast, stating that he considered himself “[…] no less brave than Grendel himself/
Narrating the legendary acts of numerous heros, epic poems traditionally focus on defining their heroes through heroic traits such as courage, honor, and bravery. These epic poems portray heroic events and recount the way in which a hero achieves honor and recognition from the people. The epic poem, Beowulf, tells of a courageous and brave man, also named Beowulf, as he ventures out to gain glory by defeating the fiendish monsters terrorizing the Kingdom of the Danes. Though the epic poem Beowulf upholds and delivers the importance of all heroic traits, the virtue of loyalty is proven to be valued above all others as illustrated through Beowulf’s commitment to Hrothgar’s kingdom and through the passing of the Geat crown
Beowulf’s last test of courage comes in his old age when his people are threatened by a “mighty” dragon. Beowulf felt as if something he had done had caused the irascible beast to wreck havoc on his people, “killing and destroying” them and their homes with its “molten” breath. Knowing what had to be done, Beowulf bravely faced the dragon, while all of his people, except for one, fled in fear. His last battle, which ended in death, displayed Beowulf’s unwavering courage, the type that every hero should possess.
Beowulf is like every classic hero: born from noble birth, with great strength, who is usually adored by many. When it comes to Beowulf, we have two versions each a little bit different, one is the classic epic poem Beowulf, and then the movie, a more modern version of him. While discussing the poem and watching the movie you can automatically see that there is several differences and similarities. Everyone sees some differences compared to other but there is always differences and hopefully after this essay you will walk away with a more clear understanding of the epic poem and movie Beowulf. And see all of the character changes and development.
During the Anglo Saxon era the epic poem, Beowulf, displayed many themes. Beowulf and the Anglo Saxon culture are alike in multiple ways, one of them is being loyal through hardships. “In Anglo-Saxon culture and literatures, the characteristics of a hero are to be bold, strong, fearless, loyal and showing indifference to pain” (Lam). Beowulf showed all of these amazing qualities throughout the poem. There was never an instance where he wanted to give up and let his people down. He The most compelling of these themes is, Beowulf and the three battles he fought. Beowulf fought in unarmed combat with the dreaded Grendel, defeated the monster’s mother and then lived to courageously battle the dragon that finally defeated him in the end.
In Beowulf the classic epic, Beowulf, the hero of the epic, and other major characters reflect heroic ideals and beliefs of courage, generosity, unquestioning loyalty and devotion. Courage is most evident throughout Beowulf Beowulf does not back down from any challenge that stands in his way whether it be Grendel, Grendel’s mother, or the dragon. His bravery is most evident in his preparation for his fight with Grendel, Beowulf, “took off his shirt of armour, the helmet from his head, handed his embellished sword, best of irons to an attendant,…” He chose to bravely fight his foe, man to beast without weaponery for he knew it would be “cowardly” to defeat Grendel with a sword and armor when Grendel himself had none. Even in his