Beowulf Vs. Martin Luther King: Anglo-Saxon Hero

When we think of a hero various different people may pop into our heads. For me, my go-to hero is always Martin Luther King Jr., being I know an immense amount about him and know for sure he is a true, outstanding hero. When confronted with heros from Anglo-Saxon epics and medieval romance literature, it was interesting the see just how our perspective of what makes a hero has evolve to. Talking even from Anglo-Saxon to medieval romances alone, the hero has done a great deal of evolving. In Anglo-Saxon culture and literature, to be a hero was to be a warrior. They had to be courageous, strong, and intelligent. They were looked up to for staying true to their word and fighting to the death for their people. If you were not up for this challenge

Behaviour that’s admired is the path to power among people everywhere.” Beowulf vaunts himself as a great warrior and backs up his words by defeating Grendel; he is thus celebrated and received as a hero. Unferth, on the other hand, proves an empty chatterer, unwilling to fight. Though such verbal elements as boasts and stories are crucial to the warrior culture, heroes are, above all, defined by action as Beowulf proves himself. Whether he is fighting sea monsters, Grendel's mother, or a terrible fire-breathing dragon, Beowulf shows that his strength and courage are what make him a true Anglo-Saxon hero. Although Beowulf is definitely a hero, it seems as it may have been easier to be a hero in his time before medieval romance. Perhaps there weren’t as many prerequisites and requirements that were later packed on quite heavily as we will

Supposing that these Anglo-Saxon heroes become too popular and ordinary it was likely they had to dig deeper for a true, genuine hero. A recognizable medieval romance hero is King Arthur. Many different aspects go into why he is considered such a noble hero. For starters, his birth was shrouded in mystery. He started out as a young man of no wealth and no recognition. This all changes as he pulls Excalibur from the stone, as seen to be an impossible task that only the rightful king of Britain could obtain. Some characteristic traits that differ from the Anglo-Saxon hero to the medieval romance one are ones such as idolizing chivalry, idolizing the noble knight-hero, women are idolized and held in high regard by the hero, and over quest involves love. The new brinings of love and idolizing women may just be what brought upon this literature’s name being medieval “romance”. Suddenly chivalry is introduced and admired among all and greatly looked for in a hero. This chivalry includes honor, respect, loyalty, gentlemanly behaviors, and selfless acts. Of course this should have and still should be prevalent in men but that is another story! King Arthur displays this chivalry by undoubtedly staying loyal to his women, although she may not be remaining as loyal. Even after he discovers his wife’s dishonesty he remains a gentleman. This is the kind of man the people wanted to admire and let reign