Bravery in Beowulf
Bravery is like a very trusted friend, it will never let you down. That statement holds true in the great epic of "Beowulf." "Beowulf" is the story of a great hero who comes to the aid of a troubled king. Beowulf hears that king Hrothgar is having trouble and immediately comes to help with no questions asked. he defeats the monster, Grendel, with his bare hands. Beowulf then defeats Grendel's mother along with a dragon until he is fatally injured. Bravery is a very admirable characteristic that few people possess.
First of all, Beowulf came to help Hrothgar on his own free will. Hearing of the troubles that Hrothgar was having with a monster terrorizing Herot, his mead hall, Beowulf bravely offered his help not knowing what he was up against. When he arrived, Beowulf did not ask the king for either money nor fame. The only favor that he asked of Hrothgar was that he and his men were to fight the monster, Grendel. Coming away from one's homeland to help get rid of a man-eating monster and asking for nothing in return takes much courage and is an extremely brave deed.
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.
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 even had to fight and kill these monsters in their homes where nobody had ever ventured. Successfully defeating Grendel's mother lead Beowulf into his third and final battle with the last monster.
society. In Beowulf, Beowulf shows extraordinary courage and strength that gives him special status. This notion is shown, when Beowulf fights Grendel and Grendel’s mother, but it is especially noticeable when he fights the dragon. When Beowulf fought Grendel others had the courage to attempt to fight him. The same is true with Grendel’s mother. When Beowulf goes to fight the Dragon, the other warriors cower away into the woods. Beowulf shows his courage by fighting the Dragon. Even when Beowulf is fighting the Dragon and realizes that his sword can do no damage he continues to fight. After Beowulf is on the verge of death he shows a combination of courage and strength by delivering the death blow to the Dragon, and not just laying down to die. Beowulf’s strength is shown when he is able to actually do battle with the Dragon; any normal man would have fallen to the dragon immediately.
to land he managed to kill nine sea monsters with his bare hands and still
Since the beginning of Beowulf, the character Beowulf shows courage in everything he does. This is proven when he battles Grendel, a descendant of Cain that haunts the halls of Herot. Beowulf being a mighty protector of men, holds the monster down until his life leaps out (Beowulf lines 472-475). As Beowulf battles Grendel, he is determined to
Beowulf is a hero that shows honor respect and courage. In lines 710-1007 is where the battle with Grendel happened. Thinking of the destruction that he will get, Grendel bursts into Heorot. Grendel tears the door from its hinges with his hands and quickly becomes a Geatish warrior while Beowulf carefully looks around. When Grendel reaches out to pick Beowulf up, he is surprised to find his arm gripped with a strength than he never knew could even happen. Confused and frightened Grendel doesn’t want to run back to the safety of the swamplands. He tries to escape, but Beowulf wrestles him down to the ground. The crash around the hall, making noise on the walls and smashing the mead-benches. Grendel begins to panic in pain and fear; the sound
A true modern hero is able to set aside fear and act on the matter at hand, which signifies the quality of courage. Being Courageous can set you apart from others, because you are willing to carry out actions that are beneficial for the greater good. Any one can say they are going to do something, but when the claim is backed with actions they truly display courage. Beowulf is the epitome of being courageous. He voluntarily
Bravery is a trait that every young boy wishes to have. It is a desire that is embedded into each human being. It is only whether or not he or she acts on this desire to be brave that matter s. Aristotle writes, “{Bravery} courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others.” When Beowulf heard of the atrocities that Grendle was committing to the people of Herot, it was bravery that brought him there as their savor, and without fear he would
Beowulf also shows courage in all of his battles. His intelligence is far above any others. He used the sword made by the giants to kill Grendel’s mother. In lines 210-222, it describes how he was quick and saw the sword “hammered by giants, strong and blessed with their magic…and struck with all the strength he had left, caught her in the neck and cut it through…”
Bravery today has changed from that of Anglo-Saxon times. In the poem, Beowulf uses his bare hands to defeat the evil, monstrous Grendel. He believes that it would be braver and mightier if he were to defeat Grendel without use of a weapon. “My lord Higlac/ Might thing less of me if I let my sword/ Go where my feet were afraid to, if I hid/ Behind some broad linen shield: my hands/ Alone shall fight for me, struggle for life/ Against the monster (15).” However, in modern times, bravery is associated and accompanied by weaponry.
Beowulf is a good example of a courageous and strong hero. He shows all of
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.
In the beginning of the novel, Beowulf takes interest in the plight of Hrothgar, King of Denmark, and wants to help him fight Grendel. Grendel is a large monster that has been harassing members in the mead-hall of the Heorot. Beowulf owes Hrothgar a favor, due to the fact that Hrothgar saved his father in years past. Hrothgar is honored to have Beowulf attempt to fight the swamp monster, and decides to hold a feast in his name. When Grendel shows up to the feast, Beowulf illustrates his bravery by fighting Grendel without any armor. When Beowulf wins the battle by ripping Grendel’s arm off, everyone in the mead-hall praises Beowulf for his acts of courage. In this scene, Beowulf proves that he is a hero by fighting off a monster that everyone else was afraid of. This made him look
Towards the end of Beowulf’s epic hero cycle and life as king, he had to take on one last monster, the Dragon. He commuted back to Geatland with his men. As he begins to fight the Dragon, his sword failed him, and Beowulf was left with no weapons. Then ten of the eleven men he brought fled in fear and Beowulf was left with only Wiglaf. They took on the Dragon together and successfully killed him only after being badly wounded in the neck. Beowulf then collapsed and passed on. This finished his cycle as hero and as
With a lack of courage, not many can accomplish much. As Beowulf travels, his courage not only grows but stands strong. In his journey to Hrothgar's kingdom, Beowulf is faced with many unbearable tasks many men wouldn't dare to go up against, but with Beowulf, he takes those tasks and runs with them. His fight with Grendal not only proves his courage but his strength as well. Beowulf, being a mortal man, takes Grendal by the hands and tears his hand from his body, leaving Grendal mortally wounded. When Grendal's mother attempts avenge for her son's death, she is rudely awakened. After her kill of Ashchere, she resorts back to her lair in Hell, but not for long. Beowulf goes looking after her and swims through the deep, dark, and miserable waters to Hell. He finds Grendal's mother there and kills her without any warning to her. His bravery saves his people back in his homeland as well. After gaining the throne, a terrible dragon starts to terrorize his home. Here he proves to his people that he is in fact a true hero. He, with the help of his dear kinsman, slays the dragon even after being wounded. His courage and strength truly proves him an epic hero.
The story of “Beowulf” begins at a time where a great hero is needed. This is where Beowulf’s character takes the initial place of an epic hero. In the first story of “Beowulf,” Beowulf takes on the responsibility of destroying the great threat, Grendel. This immediately shows the courage, honor and bravery of Beowulf. When Beowulf sailed to the Danes to kill Grendel, he was not searching for money, he was simply putting the Geats lives before his own. Beowulf was not yet
Beowulf’s first accomplishment as an epic hero was his battle with Grendel. Grendel was a huge beast, a descendent of Cain, who ruthlessly murdered innocent Danes because he felt pity for himself. Upon hearing of the Dane’s problem, Beowulf set off to help the Danish without having been called upon. Even though Beowulf had men backing him, He drew battle with Grendel alone and without armor or weapons. Yet, Beowulf emerged victorious with the arm of Grendel as his trophy. Beowulf then went on to kill Grendel’s vengeful mother and a huge fire-breathing dragon who thought it had been done wrong by the Geats. Alas, the killing of the dragon would be Beowulf’s last great battle for the dragon took Beowulf’s life in the struggle for his own.