During the semester, the class read a unit about heroes. “Beowulf” is an epic poem about a hero. “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is a medieval romance poem about a hero as well. The two poems show comparison between characters who are arrogant and loyal. First, Beowulf and the Green Knight are both arrogant. Beowulf is overly confident because he never lost a battle. Beowulf said, “In endless battles, I am old now, but I will fight and seek fame still. If the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me” (42). Even though he is old, he knows that a creature or human cannot beat him. The Green Knight is imperious because he knows none of King Arthur’s court will take him on. He said, “You haven’t a man that could match me, your might is so feeble. And so I ask of this court is a Christmas game” (179). The Green Knight makes a deal to give away his axe, but he knows no one will take on the challenge. Beowulf and the Green Knight are both cocky because they know people fear them. …show more content…
All Beowulf’s soldiers left Beowulf suffering, but Wiglaf. Wiglaf said, “Now, be strong and brave, my noble king, protecting life and fame together. My sword will fight at your side” (44). He is loyal to Beowulf because he knows Beowulf cannot lose a battle. Sir Gawain volunteers for the task, so King Arthur will not have to sacrifice himself. Sir Gawain said, “I myself am the weakest, of course, and in wit the most feeble” (181). Sir Gawain is the weakest yet, he determines to save his king’s life. During the crucial times, Sir Gawain and Wiglaf remains loyal to save their king’s
Although arguably different at first glance, the conflict in Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight would be the strong internal conflict that the protagonists experience throughout the entirety of each narrative. Beowulf simply disregards all advice presented to him in hopes of swaying his egotistical nature, which in turn results in his demise. Sir Gawain, on the other hand, dishonors the code of chivalry and Camelot by showcasing the true coward that lay beneath his facade. Synonymous in general, the internal conflicts the protagonists experience result in divergent resolutions and emotions for each
Of the many characteristics of a hero, being better than the ordinary man is the trait most easily found when studying a character. Beowulf exhibits almost god-like strength throughout his quest. For example, “He twisted in pain, / And the bleeding sinews deep in his shoulder/ Snapped, muscle and bone split and broke.” (Beowulf 815-818). His strength is once again demonstrated in his fight with Grendel’s mother. After he realizes hand-to-hand combat is futile, Beowulf swings a sword “so massive that no ordinary man could lift/ It’s carved and decorated length.” (Beowulf 1560-1561). Yet another example of Beowulf’s strength is his presentation of Grendel’s head to the Danes. After slicing off Grendel’s head in one blow, Beowulf orders his men to carry the head back to Herot. However, the head of the monster was “too heavy for fewer than four of them to handle” (Beowulf 1636-1637). After arriving in Herot, Beowulf “carried that terrible trophy by the hair,/ Brought it straight to where the Danes sat” (Beowulf 1647-1648). The second trait that demonstrates that Beowulf is better than the ordinary man is his incredible honor. When preparing for his fight with Grendel, Beowulf decides not to use ...
Then the Danes decide to go back to Herot and while they are sleeping, Grendel’s mother
King Arthur and Beowulf are both Heroes that stories originated in the England area. They were written at different times, by a different era of people, but some of the core ethics are present in both stories. Both heroes were admired because they saved a whole group of people. King Arthur and Beowulf were also leaders, Beowulf was king of the Geats, and Arthur was the king of England. This is interesting because this means that they were both well known even before they had stories written about them, and they both possess qualities that can be found in leaders. While Arthur is a romance hero and Beowulf is an epic hero, the use of a magical weapon is seen in both stories which is generally a characteristic in the romance stories. "Then he saw, hanging on the wall, a heavy sword, hammered by the giants, strong and blessed with their magic, " 242-244 Beowulf. Arthur's magical weapon is Excalibur, which is pretty much well known to anyone that has heard of his story. I also felt that fate had a role in both of the stories. In Arthur's dream he had a premonition about what was going to happen to his people, "Below him, many fathoms deep, was a dark well, an in the water swam serpents, dragons, and wild beasts. Suddenly the scaffold tilted and Arthur was flung into the water, where all the creatures struggled towards and began tearing him from limb to limb." Malory 194. The beasts and dragons were the two armies and when someone drew their sword Arthur, who was connected to his people was thrown in.
Heroes come in many forms. The construction of "the heroic" has taken many forms, yet traits such as: courage, honor, and loyalty, reappear as themes throughout the "hero" personality. The characters of Beowulf and Sir Gawain each represent a version of a hero, yet each comes across quite differently in their story. A hero can be said to truly win if he remains constant to his noble values when put in any situation that crosses his way. When measured by that criterion, Sir Gawain stands out above Beowulf as a true hero, due to his command of both personal and spiritual power through the use of thought, as well as valiant deeds.
What is a hero? Merriam Webster defines a hero as being a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities. What are those noble qualities? They are bravery, selflessness, and strength. Two heroes, Beowulf and Sir Gawain, exemplify these traits while the "hero" Arcita fails to do so.
During the Middle Ages, both “Beowulf” and “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” were epic stories that were chanted aloud to the public. Each story told about epic heroes who went on a long journey to face or conqueror someone or something. “Beowulf” is a poem about a young man, Beowulf, who slays a monster and his mother with his bare hands to protect the people he loves. As the years go by Beowulf becomes king and a dragon begins to stir. In response to this, Beowulf fights the dragon with a sword and one loyal companion. Beowulf’s life comes to end, but so does the dragons. From this epic poem you can see that good does triumph over evil, but sometimes it comes at a cost. Along with “Beowulf”, “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” was another popular poem. This poem was about a squire, Sir Gawain, who chooses to take on a game proposed by the Green Knight instead of his uncle, King Arthur. He took on the game because he believed King Arthur’s life was more valuable than his own and that King Arthur should not risk his own life. As a result, Sir Gawain became a knight because of his loyalty and bravery. Both Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’s and Beowulf’s characters share the same quality of courage, the desire to protect people and the involvement of supernatural beings.
They both show there braveness in there stories. The difference in their braveness is that beowulf had no idea what he was going and getting into, and Gawain knew exactly what he was getting himself into. They also both show strength in their storys but different types of strength. Gawain cuts off the green knights head with one swing of the green knights axe and that shows he has strength but not compared to beowulf who ripped off Grendals arm with his bare hands and defeated the monster without using a weapon. So they both are strong and have strength but beowulf strength compared to gawain is out compared. Then there is Gawain who is chivalrous because he is honorable to his king by taking the challenge and risking his life for his king compared to beowulf who is cocky and goes around bragging about himself and thats not chivalrous. Then there is Beowulfs last trait which is leadership which he shows buy leading his men and watching out for them compared to gawain which shows little bit of leadership when takes the offer from the green knight to the king and shows that he can do it and to not disappoint the king. Gawain also shows leadership when a year and a day later he goes to the green knight to get his head chopped off. That shows it because he is taking responsibility for his actions by following through with the deal that the green knight made with him. So like I said in the first paragraph, beowulf and Gawain are alike in some ways but different in other ways.
...ash between good and evil. Beowulf is a representation of a Godly figure, possibly Christ, whereas his enemies represent figures of darkness, possibly Satan. Due to his battle with Grendel, Beowulf realises the true abilities of Gods power and develops into a more Saint like character who is more concerned with giving help rather than Gaining fame. He seeks Gods guidance, but looks to pagan ideals when he deems so. Although he never completely takes complete advantage of Gods power, he does earn the fame and glory that he fought bravely for.
The Green Knight takes a blow from an ax at the hand of Sir Gawain, and in one year and one day, the Green Knight is to reciprocate the action to Sir Gawain. While Sir Gawain was heroic in his deed, Beowulf shows a certain selflessness in his bouts makes him a better hero than Sir Gawain. Sir Gawain was heroic in seeking out the Green Knight to finish the challenge that was brought to King Arthur’s men. “Said Gawain, ‘Strike once more; /I shall neither flinch nor flee; /But if my head falls to the floor /There is no mending me!’” (lns.
Though Sir Gawain is brave, Beowulf seems more naturally heroic. He goes to the land of the Danes of his own volition. His king does not order him to go. He tells his king that he wishes to go help the Danes defeat Grendel, because he believes he can and should. His people support him because they know what a great warrior and leader he is. He also wants to help King Hrothgar because his father was in debt to Hrothgar and he wants to pay that debt. He wants to honor his father and his father’s word. Beowulf holds himself to a code of honor when he does not have to do so. He risks his life for a country he is not a part of.
First off, Beowulf rightfully earned the title of bravery, although his boasting may seem unheroic. Beowulf’s boasting and arrogance leads to his death when he goes to fight the dragon. “I’ve never known fear, as a youth I fought 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.” (42) Beowulf feels he is still young and strong so he goes to fight the dragon. Another arrogant character is the Green Knight, for challenging King Author. “You have nothing but beardless babes about this bench!” (179) shows he feels the king and his court are weak. The hero’s arrogance is meant to show all hero’s have moral have moral blemishes.
The three heroes discussed here, Beowulf, Sir Gawain and King Arthur, are heroes for different reasons. Beowulf, our earliest hero, is brave but his motivation is different than then other two. To Sir Gawain personal honor and valor is what is important. King Arthur, Sir Gawain's uncle, is naturally the quintessential king of the medieval period. Though all men to a certain extent share the same qualities, some are more pronounced than in the others. It is important to see how these qualities are central to their respective stories and how it helps (or hinders) them in their journeys.
In conclusion many poems have different types of people or thing that can harm their society. This goes for heroes and villains. With Grendel in Beowulf he just wanted to want by the human society. They exiled him by the way he looks. With Sir Gawain in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight he wanted to show his society braver, representation, chivalry, and nobility. Both Grendel and Sir Gawain societies mean a lot to them and represents them in a major way.
This essay is the comparison between Beowulf and a modern day hero. I consider any American soldier to be my modern day hero. In this essay I will explain in three paragraphs of how my modern day hero is like Beowulf. With in these three paragraphs I will go over how they are both fighting for a good cause, how they are both rewarded for what they do, and how they are both treated with much respect.