Every epic hero acquires certain heroic characteristics. The poem, “Beowulf, is about the most heroic man of the Anglo-Saxon period. Beowulf is a warrior from Geatland that comes to help Hrothgar, the king of Danes, defeat the monster Grendel who has been killing men in their kingdom. Beowulf defeats the unstoppable beast, Grendel. Then Grendel’s mother comes to try to avenge Grendel’s death, and Beowulf slaughters her in her underwater lair. After 50 peaceful years of ruling the Geats, Beowulf in his old age fights his last battle with a dragon. He defeats the dragon, with help from Wiglaf, but dies as a result. The main character, Beowulf exemplifies many characteristics that an epic hero possesses. Beowulf’s characteristics include …show more content…
He came to Hrothgar to offer his service because Hrothgar provided help to Beowulf's father. It is loyalty and appreciation that leads Beowulf to the Danish kingdom to help out. Hrothgar welcomes Beowulf, saying, "Beowulf, you've come to us in friendship, and because of the reception your father found at court" (Beowulf 39). Because of Hrothgar's intervention, there was peace between the Geats and the Danes, therefore ensuring the loyalty of Beowulf's family. Beowulf’s sense of loyalty is recognized when he speaks to Wealtheow, Hrothgar's queen, about his motives for coming to the court. “I had a fixed purpose when I put to sea. As I sat in the boat with my band of men, I meant to perform to the uttermost what your people wanted or perish in the attempt, in the fiend's clutches. And I shall fulfill that purpose, prove myself with a proud deed or meet my death here in the mead-hall” (Beowulf 632-638). Beowulf shows that his loyalty is with the king and the Danes, and he is willing to die in the process of trying to save them. "I have heard moreover that the monster scorns in his reckless way to use weapons; therefore, to heighten Hygelac's fame and gladden his heart, I hereby renounce sword and the shelter of the broad shield, the heavy war-board: hand-to-hand is how it will be, a life-and-death fight with the fiend" (Beowulf 433-440). Beowulf makes his fight with Grendel more than a simple fight that he can slay him
He lets his faith of the lord take over his battle. Beowulf says “I am in no way weaker than Grendel. For this reason will I not give his life to the sleep of death with a sword He has no skill with a sword mighty though he may be in his horrific feats. We shall make war without weapons. Let the wise God, the holy Lord, decree success on whichever side seems right to Him” What Beowulf is explaining in this quote is that there’s no reason why they should both use swords or weapons, When they both are as just weak, & they both don’t have many skills he point out that he wants the lord to make that big decision to decide on who gets to stay alive. This part of the quote gives an example of a metaphor “I am in no way weaker than Grendel” Beowulf is comparing him and Grendel being both as weak without using like or
Beowulf accomplished what may be the most difficult of all challenges in today’s times, he was able to aid other countries in times of need and respectfully communicate with them as well. After hearing word of Grendel’s attack, Beowulf decided to sail to Denmark and help defend Hrothgar’s people. In doing so, Hrothgar praised Beowulf and vowed to him that there was to always be an alliance between the Geats and the Danes from that day, forward. Beowulf was also idolized for the great amount of riches he brought to his people. After defeating Grendel, Hrothgar indulged Beowulf in a tremendous amount of riches. Instead of keeping the generous reward for himself, he took the riches home and gave them over to his king, Higlac, in hopes that the gifts would benefit his people. Beowulf was designated the king of the Geats for 50 winters, and always went to great lengths to protect his people. When dangerous situations arose, he stepped up to the plate and defended his people, no matter what the cost. In his old age, Beowulf made the ultimate sacrifice. He battled the dragon, and eventually met face-to-face with death. As a leader, Beowulf sacrificed his life in protection of his people; his heroic sacrifice is the ultimate demonstration of how an epic hero defends their people and serves as a positive influence in their culture.
Epic battles, terrifying monsters, extraordinary strength, and great leadership; these characteristics and encounters are what make up the epic hero that is Beowulf. The heroism exemplified by Beowulf is defined by many different qualities. Beowulf is truly a hero because he is willing to put himself at great risk for the greater good.
Beowulf first task on his path to gain glory is to defeat the merciless monster Grendel, who haunts Heorot for twelve long winters. If he wins this battle, he does not only gain glory and respect for himself, but also for his king and clan. He exhibits all the great qualities of a person and has a lot of esteem and admiration for his king Hygelac. One of the ways we can show Beowulf’s loyalty to Hygelac is when Beowulf explains to Hrothgar how he was going to fight Grendel “I have heard moreover that
Every epic hero possesses certain heroic characteristics. The epic poem Beowulf describes the most heroic man of the Anglo-Saxon times. Beowulf is the hero. He shows that he is a great man by always putting other things before his own needs. He is important and needed by his people and is known by many as a strong, courageous and a helpful person. He shows all of the qualities and traits that a true hero possesses.
The epic poem Beowulf describes the most heroic man of the Anglo-Saxon times. The hero, Beowulf, is a seemingly invincible person with all the extraordinary traits required of an Anglo Saxon hero. He is able to use his super-human physical strength and courage to put his people before himself. He encounters many monsters and horrible beasts, but he never fears the threat of death. His leadership skills are outstanding and he is even able to boast about all his achievements. Beowulf is the ultimate epic hero who risks his life countless times for glory which to him meant eternal life.
Throughout the story, Beowulf displays many attributes of a hero. In the story Beowulf shows many characteristics of hero such as strength, courage, and intelligence. In the story, Beowulf displays these qualities of a hero in battles that he is involved in during the story. The battles Beowulf is involved in is how Beowulf earns his fame and gains these characteristics. In the story, Beowulf fights and defeats monsters around the different kingdoms in the story protecting the other humans in the story which leads to him being king.
“The whole earth is the tomb of heroic men and their story is not given only on stone over their clay but abides everywhere without visible symbol woven into the stuff of other men’s lives,” said Perculus (PR). You’re born, you live a little, and then you die. There is no simpler way to sum up life. Often times this is done through oral tales, paintings, and various other ways. For those whose lives were truly something great, something memorable, their stories are transcripted into writings. Whether these are simple biographies or symbolic fictional works, stories are often based on someone greater than the writer. These “epic heros” are protagonists that fulfill their potential of greatness through using their bravery, strength and
When discussing epic heroes, some of the more prominent ones that come to mind are Beowulf (from Beowulf), Hektor (from The Iliad), and Achilleus (also from The Iliad). These are all characters from literature who have displayed a multitude of the characteristics embodied in epic heroes. Each one of these literary figures has exhibited necessary traits needed to be considered an epic hero. Whether those traits are some of the common ones such as strength, honor, loyalty, perseverance, and bravery, or some of their own such as pride, intelligence, and morality. Whatever the case, these three have undergone difficulties and shown ties to the values held by their cultures within how they deal with issues. In this essay, I will attempt to
All people need someone to look up to, someone who motivates them, makes them feel safe, and can be their hero. The same was true for the people of sixth-century Scandinavia (Raffel “About Beowulf,” 39). They were a bellicose group of people because they were constantly trying to defend themselves from the unknown dangers that approached them, and they needed an epic hero to save them.
Beowulf is the epitome of the honorable warrior, the Anglo-Saxons looked so fondly at. In his fight with Grendel, Beowulf foregoes any weaponry outside of his fists. This is because Beowulf believed it was dishonorable to give himself an advantage. Grendel fought without sword and shield, so Beowulf thought he must as well.
What makes a hero To most of society, a hero is one who is courageous, honest and acquires worthy qualities. Knowing what qualities specify under being a hero can be debatable. People see advocates as heroes, they are able to support a cause using their own platform for people who are not able to. To most, people who are courageous and brave are heroes, especially when describing an epic hero.
Social psychologist and author Scott Allison says “People tend to believe that heroes posses many or all of The Great Eight traits of heros: smart, strong, caring, reliable, resilient, selfless, charismatic, and inspiring. There's so many heros how could they not be complex? The complexity of heroes evolved around their characteristics. Beowulf shows bravery and that he is strong when he kills monsters to protect his people , which also so loyalty because he is standing by his people and protecting them when he fights off mounters. When Beowulf is dying he makes Wiglaf in charge of his people Beowulf shows loyalty because he is still taking care if his people while dying, reliability because when he did this it proves that his people
Beowulf was not written. Each character is fighting for what they want in the story. Beowulf fights to protect others, and for the glory and honor. Grendel fights because of his jealousy of humans when
The Old English poem “Beowulf” explains the heroic deeds, characteristics, and life struggles of a superhuman warrior. He presents his heroic deeds by defeating many creatures such as sea monsters and dragons. For example, if a creature is lurking in the shadows of the Geats’ kingdom, Beowulf will find a way to destroy the beast. However, he would also kill a creature within another kingdom. The poem characterized Beowulf as bold, caring, and confident. He stated, “… no weapons, therefore, for either this night: unarmed he shall face me if face me he dares. And the Divine Lord in His wisdom grants the glory of victory to whichever side He sees fit (Beowulf 683-687).”