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Beowulf As A Hero

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The concept of hero is never outdated in literary. Every author has their own understanding of how a hero should be like, and all heroes live and behave differently according to the society they live in. The definition of hero is much broader than a man with superpower. In Beowulf and The Great Gatsby, both of the protagonist, Beowulf and Jay Gatsby are considered heroes in the story. Although both of them embody the values of their societies, Beowulf is a more successful hero because he truly reaches the expectations that his society has for a hero and embraces the reality, which leads him to sacrifices his life for a more worthy cause.
Beowulf successfully represents the crucial values of his society including strength, bravery, and …show more content…

Although he already become a highly regarded warrior, he does not become arrogant because of the honor and wealth he owns. Instead, he maintains his fine characteristics, remembers that he is always a servant that lives under his lord’s grace, and treats his lord with respect and gratitude. Overall, Beowulf is a the epitome of Anglo-Saxon warriors and society.
Similarly, Gatsby also vividly embodies the social values of America in the 1920s, which are filled with American Dream and materialism. Jay Gatsby was born into a poor family in Minnesota, and he spends his own life trying to get higher social status and greater wealth through his hard work and determination. Just as the perfect American Dream portrays, every man has the equal opportunity for success if he or she tries hard enough, so every common man can become a upper class billionaire, like Gatsby. Besides living out the American Dream that a lot of people in the society yearn for, Gatsby also reveals the high degree of materialism in the society. When Gatsby dies, and his friend Nick tries to get Gatsby’s friend to attend his funeral, none of his friends wants to accept the invitation. When one of these friend called Klipspringer calls, he simply refused to come to Gatsby’s funeral and says that “what [he] called up about was a pair of shoes [he] left [in Gatsby’s house]”

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