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Beowulf character essay
Compare and contrast the character of Beowulf with other characters in the poem, "Beowulf
What is heroism to you paper
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Joseph Campbell once said, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” In the epic poem, Beowulf does just that. He shows his heroic character by risking his life a numerous of times in order to help others. Beowulf shows his commitment to other people throughout the text. By helping, protecting, and saving ordinary people, Beowulf transitions from a successful warrior to a true hero. Instead of drowning in fear, Beowulf pushes past all obstacles and becomes triumphant through the power he finds within himself. A hero must not count on others, but be able to trust themselves to succeed. Beowulf is a hero because he shows bravery, loyalty, and sacrifice in order to help others. Beowulf first shows bravery …show more content…
After Grendel is successfully defeated and destroyed, King Hrothgar has suspicion about the arrival of Grendel’s mother. Beowulf shows a great amount of loyalty to the people of Heorot when he decided to battle, yet another, beast who was destroying them. Grendel’s mother shows that she is more powerful and angry than Grendel was. The mother has a definite reason as to why she wants to destroy the people, especially Beowulf, and that is because they just killed her son. Beowulf, without hesitation, agrees to take on this new enemy, simply to save the people. He sacrifices himself, for the second time, in order for the citizens to be free and protected. Beowulf says, “I guarantee you: she will not get away,// not to dens under ground nor upland groves// nor the ocean floor”(97). He accepts Hrothgar's plea and is ready to defeat Grendel’s mother. Beowulf shows dedication and promise to Hrothgar and his people. He shows through his actions that he will not leave them if they are still suffering or in danger. He illustrates to them that he will do anything in his power to guarantee their safety. Beowulf’s loyalty shows his role as a hero and how he will never turn his back on the people that he is helping. When he battles Grendel’s mother, he gives all that he has in order to be successful again. After he defeats her, Beowulf says, “I have wrested the hilt// from the enemies' hand, avenged the evil// done to the Danes; it …show more content…
A hero must be able to sacrifice his life for the greater good of the world, which is just what Beowulf does when he fights the Dragon. After serving as a great King of the Geats for fifty years, Grendel gave his last heroic deed. He decided to fight the Dragon, who was terrorizing and harming his people. Although he was at an old age and not as strong or powerful as before, Beowulf wants to sacrifice himself for his people. Beowulf says, “Now I am old,// but as king of the people I shall pursue this fight// for the glory of winning…”(171). Beowulf makes clear that he needs to be the leader the people look up to and give his best effort to defeat the Dragon. Although it will be dangerous and put his life at risk, Beowulf jumps to any opportunity to defend his people whom he cares about tremendously. The greatest characteristic than a hero can portray is sacrifice. Heros give themselves in order to protect others. Beowulf's first instinct is to put himself in danger before another else, just like any hero would. Beowulf said, “This fight is not yours,// nor is is up to any man except me// to measure his strength against the monster…”(171). This act of sacrifice is crucial to the type of hero Beowulf is. The killing of the Dragon shows the power that Beowulf has a King. He sets out with a goal in his mind and he completed that goal for the people in his kingdom. He risked his life and dies as a hero. Although he was
Beowulf was a true hero, in the eyes of many, through said traits. He fought a number of battles and was triumphant in all, except his last battle. Beowulf possessed the skills and power necessary to kill Grendel, the monster who had been terrorizing the Danes for over a decade, with his bare hands. While fighting, Beowulf detached Grendel’s arm from his shoulder, which was later hung up as a trophy. Beowulf eventually put an end to Grendel’s life, and naturally, Grendel’s mother had pursued Beowulf. Although Grendel’s mother was an even deadlier monster than her son, Beowulf once again proved his abilities by slaying her, as well. He slashed her neck with a sword that carried unbearable weight. Afterwards, he carried her head with only his own arms, while it took the a...
A hero not only needs to be physically outstanding, but he also needs to have integrity, moral values and needs to act without thinking in his own benefit. Beowulf has many characteristics of a hero but he also has some defects that make me think that he wouldn’t be considered a hero in today´s world. A hero concept evolves with a culture, Beowulf has many things that the Anglo-Saxons viewed as heroism but he misses many things that are important for a modern hero.
Beowulf is very faithful to the kingdom in which he works with and serves. He says to Hrothgar, “If there is any favour I can perform / beyond deeds of arms I have done already, / anything that would merit your affections more, / I shall act, my lord, with alacrity” (1822-1825). Even if he is home, all the way across the seas, he would drop whatever he was doing and come to help Denmark defeat its evil that comes to that land. He shows his undying dedication to helping the king and the kingdom that he lives in. Beowulf then tries to defeat this dragon, that is, his final battle. He has been in “retirement” and has not fought in quite some time, but he still is being depended on by his kingdom to fight off this evil. Sadly, he does die, but he was so dedicated, brave, and strong enough to fight off this dragon to make sure all is safe. It was, “that final day was the first time / when Beowulf fought and fate denied him / glory in battle” (2573-2575). Each characteristic has a special part of an epic hero, but faithfulness can really set the tone for a hero's life.
In my opinion Beowulf is can be considered a hero. Beowulf can be considered a hero because of the characteristics he displays that resemble heroes. He displays all of the characteristics that heroes have. Throughout the story Beowulf stays true to himself and is morals showing that he is a hero. Beowulf is a hero due to his courage, loyalty, and justice.
To be considered an ideal hero, you must be willing to risk everything to succeed. A hero is one who would give his own life to save another; one who is fearless in the face of death. In the epic poem Beowulf, our hero thrives on the opportunity to prove his worth. He is young and strong and is driven to make a name for himself. The author describes Beowulf’s exceptional ability and warrior character long before he is named in the poem: "Great among Geats, this man was more mighty than any then living" (Damrosch 913). Shortly after Beowulf arrives in Denmark, Wulfgar, one of King Hrothgar’s men, explains to the King why he must meet with the men that have come to slay the beast. ”Far-sailing Geats have come to our kingdom across the wide water. These warriors call their leader Beowulf and bid me bring their plea to our prince, if it pleases him to allow them entrance and offer them audience. I implore you t...
the story of Beowolf protecting good is when the king is speaking of him. He
In Beowulf, the protagonist Beowulf is shown as a hero with extrodinary strength. This is not what makes him a hero. By definition, a hero is a man of exceptional quality. However this term does not do Beowulf justice. His self-imposed purpose in life is to help others, and eventually sacrifices his own life in doing so. Beowulf’s battle with the dragon serves as a critique of the notion that Beowulf is a hero. The Dragon section displays many of Beowulf’s heoric characteristics. Beowulf establishes himself as a hero by fighting the dragon, exemplifing strength and courage when fighting the dragon, and sacrificing himself so that others can live.
Fear is a painful emotion excited by the expectation of evil. In “Beowulf”, translated by Charles W. Kennedy, fear is not an option, or emotion, nor does it even exist for the hero. The hero, Beowulf, is also given strength equivalent to thirty men. These things are demonstrated in the tale of the most celebrated hero of Anglo-Saxon times, Beowulf. A man, of which people loved and respected throughout the entire region where he lived. He made the people feel that they had someone to rely on through times in which failure seemed unavoidable. Beowulf, from the epic poem “Beowulf”, is an extremely courageous hero and confronts his many difficult battles without fear.
When the story begins, Beowulf has gone to the land of the Danes to kill Grendel for the people, not for the glory. Beowulf brings his own hand picked, group of soldiers with him throughout his battles, and refuses to allow help from others. Beowulf also tells the readers he will not use weapons unless necessary. Before the battle against Grendel, a Denmark officer states, “A chosen warrior who bravely does battle with the creature haunting our people, who survives that horror unhurt, and goes home bearing our love” (ln. 210). Also, when Beowulf’s men abandon him in the battle against the dragon, he does not choose to run in fear, but to continue fighting. In this moment much like in his past, Beowulf shows how honorable he really
When people sacrifice themselves, this shows heroism because they are looking out for the other people and being selfless. Standing up for what the person believes is right and having good morals is also important to being a hero. This would include the hero going as far as sacrificing themselves to protect others, because they believe that it is right to help and protect others. Heroes also show great leadership and courage. Lines 630-647 from “Beowulf” shows Beowulf’s leadership, courage, and bravery about the battle with the dragon. Beowulf is sacrificing himself and knows he might not survive the battle, but still tries. This makes Beowulf a hero because of his sacrifice in the
Beowulf shows physical strength in the story by defeating Grendel. In line 219 of Grendel’s mother, it tells how Beowulf killed her. “…cut it through, broke bones and all.” His strength is also told in line 213 of how he “lifted the sword that was so massive that no ordinary man could lift.” Beowulf’s determination, or his will to win, was throughout the story, even up until his death. A quote that describes this is, “…he cut the beast in half, slit it apart. It fell…”(line 185). He shows courage along with his cousin, Wiglaf, when they defeat the fire dragon. In line 189 it says, “…their courage had killed it, two noble cousins had joined in the dragon’s death.”
Wouldn’t it be great to be a hero? Someone others can look up to and always remember? In the epic poem of Beowulf, this hero does unimaginable things for the love of his people and the protection of others. Beowulf is an epic hero for many reasons. Three of Beowulf's most epic heroic traits are his strength, noble honor and birth, and the ability to rule justly, as a king should.
In the beginning of the story, a mythical monster named Grendel who is attacking King Hrothgar’s mead hall Herot. When Beowulf hears of this tragedy, he volunteers to go and fight the mythical beast. The author wrote, “So Beowulf chose the mightiest men he could find the bravest and the best of the Geats, fourteen In all.” Once Beowulf arrives, he is given a feast and then decides to stay in Herot overnight to confront Grendel. Grendel then arrives and kills one of the Geats before Beowulf can get into the battle. Beowulf then goes hand-to-hand against Grendel and ends up tearing off Grendel’s shoulder. Grendel then retreats to his lair to die. This is only a mere example of why Beowulf is a hero.
A hero is someone that helps others no matter what the situation. There are many qualities that a hero must posses such as bravery, courage, strength, intelligence and honor. These qualities alone are not enough to make a hero. They must also be pure at heart, fight for the good of mankind and only fight when it is to protect the people and not out of revenge. Beowulf is everything a hero should be, but contains a few qualities that a hero should not posses. When Beowulf sailed with his men to Herot he had one goal, to rid the hall of Grendal. Beowulf was under no obligation to destroy Grendal and never asked for anything in return for his services. A true hero would never ask for money or anything of value. He put his life at risk to save the people of Herot, who he didn’t even know, out of his own good nature Great strength has been a trait that has been identified with heroes in many stories and legends. Than he saw hanging on the wall, a heavy Sword, hammered by giants, strong And blessed with their magic, the best of all weapons But so massive that no ordinary man could lift... (II. 1557-1560) Beowulf possessed great strength that separated him from other men. Being able to use a sword that no ordinary man was able to carry gives the feeling that Beowulf is something more than a human being. It makes him special and causes him to stand out from all other men. Fame is something that makes a hero more noted. Beowulfs popularity had spread all over the world. He never let this go to his head and he never thought that he was better than everyone else because of it. “Your fame is everywhere, my friend,/Reaches to the ends of the earth, and you hold it in your heart wisely...” (II.1704-1706). A hero should not be foolish or full of himself. Unferth said: You’re Beowulf, are you- the same Boastful fool who fought a swimming Match with Brecca, both of you daring and young and proud,exploring the deepest Seas, risking your lives for no reason But the danger? (II. 506-511) A hero should not have to prove to himself or to anyone else that he is brave, fearless or courageous. If he is pure a heart and his intentions are good then he can be considered a true hero.
Beowulf was brave in that he fought many battles for the good of others. In the epic poem, Beowulf fights the monster Grendel, saves his mother and loses his life while fighting the dragon. Next, Beowulf decides to fight Grendel with his bare hands. He could have easily obtained some kind of weapon to fight with. Beowulf was the first warrior ever to have enough sheer bravery to go up against such a monster with neither help nor weapon or shield to aid him. He was a warrior that believed somewhat in fate and in God. Believing that God made the decisions and was in control, Beowulf trusted that his life was in good hands. Defeating Grendel with his bare hands, Beowulf not only proved his bravery but also his loyalty. Defeating Grendel weaponless was another display of magnificent bravery. He kept coming back and defeated Grendel 's mother along with a fire-breathing dragon until he was fatally injured and killed. Bravery should not only apply to warriors but also to everyday people. Beowulf fights Grendel, saves his mother and loses his life while fighting the dragon. After defeating Grendel, Beowulf came back twice in order to kill Grendel 's mother and a fire-breathing dragon. Although during his bout with the dragon, Beowulf was fatally injured. As his services were needed, he always prevailed; Beowulf 's bravery never tired. He