Beowulf: Epic hero or not?
There are an ample amount of qualities that one could stigmatize with an epic hero. Four of which are the most predominate; strong, ethical, and quest and glorified. The main protagonist within the story Beowulf is faced with three relentless foes of which no other human dares to go against. His battle versus Grendel, who was known as “mankind’s enemy” (L.79), he demonstrates his strength in a number of ways. “That shepherd of evil, guardian of crime, knew at once that nowhere on earth had he met a man whose hands were harder;” (L.273-275) The monster Grendel was mortified at the fact a human could be so strong as to seized his claws.
Beowulf is considered a mythic hero because there are three types of passages in “ The Hero with a Thousand Faces”. The first type is the separation, which is where the hero decides to go on an adventure to do good things and save lives. An example of this is when Beowulf hears about grendel and decides himself to go and make a difference and defeat Grendel. The second type is initiation, which is the hero actually doing the things that
What would you truly call an epic hero? Do you think Beowulf is in epic hero, or maybe he’s not an epic hero to you? Threw this paper I will give you examples of why Beowulf would be considered an epic here in my standards. If you don’t think my opinion isn’t strong enough well that’s you. Let’s start out what’s an epic hero?
Heroes have always been a part of the human caricature. Although, these heroes have not always been categorized in a similar way. Ideas about heroism changed from the Anglo-Saxon period through the Middle English period by the hero becoming a man with characteristics other than being brave. First, as the reader can view in Beowulf, a hero is someone that is a well-spoken, stronger-than-life, and an invulnerable man.
To be considered an epic hero, one must not only exhibit acts of courage but also perform acts of being superhuman. Beowulf, known for his great feats of strength, is considered to be one of the greatest epic heros of all time. He posses all the qualifications necessary for him to be categorized as being an epic hero. What does it take to be an Epic hero? It's a name given to few.
In short, Beowulf was an epic hero because he confronted supernatural beings, held a personal power power, and presented the glorification of the heroic ideal. First of all, in the story, Beowulf was depicted as the final hope of humanity, who stood against any beings that harm the peace and harmony of his people. Grendel, a murderous creature banished by God, was wiping out Herot before Beowulf came upon and stopped
In the epic poem “Beowulf” the character Beowulf is the foundation for all of our modern heroes, but was he really a great hero? A hero is classified as a person who is admired for their bravery, achievements, or nobility. Although Beowulf displays all these qualities, there are several reasons he is not a hero, mainly him being egotistical and arrogant. This is why Beowulf is not a heroic person. Beowulf is often caught bragging about himself and his great accomplishments.
The Webster's definition of a hero is “A person who is admired for great or brave acts or fine qualities”, this also happens to be one of the qualifications of being an epic hero. There are many things that can be used to compare and contrast Beowulf as an epic hero and a modern day hero, but you’ll find that the human idea of a hero was primarily the same in 700 CE as it is now although the job descriptions of hero’s have changed. In today’s time a person is usually considered a hero if they help the public good, like a police officer, soldier, firefighter and so on. In Beowulf’s time a person was considered a hero if they were a great warrior. When looking at the characteristics of what makes Beowulf an epic hero and the characteristics
Madisyn Ortolano Mr. Richards English IV January 31, 2023 Beowulf Paper Beowulf is an epic hero in many ways. He fights monsters and dragons, but he believes in a fair fight, he is a demi-god, he has to fight alone, he has a magical weapon, and he is introduced in the middle of turmoil. Beowulf possesses all the characteristics and more which makes him an epic hero. Now let's dive into reason one.
A hero does not fight for fame and glory but for the greater good. A hero is someone who goes through adversity to help others in desperate times. A hero fights evil, and defends people. Beowulf should be considered a hero because he is a strong, brave warrior who defended his people and slayed evil monsters. Beowulf proves himself to be a strong, brave warrior by killing Grendel the monster.
Throughout the poem Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney, the main protagonist, Beowulf, embodies the heroism, courage, and cleverness of a great epic hero in his battling against Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon. Similar to profound figures like Odysseus, Hercules, and Aeneas, Beowulf demonstrates characteristics of bravery and virtue during his adventures in liberating Heorot from Grendel and slaying the dragon to protect Geatland. By examining Beowulf’s valor, nobility, and ultimate sacrifice when facing his opponents, one can argue that Beowulf’s character is the quintessential epic hero, embarking on perilous quests for the betterment of mankind. After learning about the terror Heorot was facing from Grendel, Beowulf voyaged with his men to Hrothgar’s kingdom, vowing to face Grendel and allowing God to decide who will be victorious in battle.
I am old, now, but I will fight again, seek fame still, if the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me” (2511-2515). In conclusion, Beowulf is an epic hero. Although he made risky decisions, he did them for his people. He possessed the qualities of a hero; bravery, loyalty and fearlessness.
Beowulf was a heroic figure in the epic poem “Beowulf”, but was he an Ideal epic hero? He slayed both Grendel and his mother, but was he lucky or powerful? There is evidence that he is an ideal hero: he willingly was ready to fight whatever was scaring the Danes, killing Grendel and his mother, and returning to give all he just earned to his king. There is also reasons he's not: his courage and pride has flaws and he got lucky in the fight against Grendel's mother.
Given this evidence, it is clear that Beowulf deserves to be labeled as an epic hero. He consistently and evidently displayed multiple characteristics of an epic hero. Beowulf was always on a quest, continously risked his life for glory and the greater good of society, and had superior intelligence, strength, and courage which were the three most crucial reasons that created him to be
After our class discussion comparing the heroic qualities of Bilbo, Beowulf, and Thorin, it made me to wonder—what about Wiglaf? Is he as much of a hero as the others? I began my research by checking out books from the library, Heroic Poetry in the Anglo-Saxon Period and A Beowulf Handbook, in search of a better understanding of what it means to be a hero in the Anglo-Saxon period, and to question if the lack of archetypical heroic qualities makes a character even more of hero. I was additionally interested to see comparisons of unlikely heroes in Tolkien’s writings to those in Anglo-Saxon poetry. Within my paper, I will explain why I perceive the theme of Beowulf is people, regardless of their status, have the ability to be a hero; they must decide.
Everybody likes rooting for a hero. And throughout the evolution of storytelling, from stories written in stone to those in tablets, heroes have always played a huge role in the stories we tell. As literature evolved, and more legends and tales began to appear in different cultures, the idea of a traditional epic hero was established. Stories like "The Epic of Gilgamesh," and "The Odyssey," set the mold for this type of heroes, an influence that can clearly be seen when analyzing literature. In fact, most of these characters, regardless of the time and place they were created in, shared similar characteristics to the two kings.