I Woke From My Dream

Hrothgar, the king of the Danes is faced with the issue of a horrible monster, Grendel tearing apart his soldiers and causing bloodshed. This is where Beowulf comes along, he is prepared with his men to defeat this monster and when the time comes Beowulf is more than ready to face him. Beowulf

Even though Beowulf knows that he could lose his life, he is concerned about what will happen to his people should he die. Beowulf makes Hrothgar promise him that if he dies he, Hrothgar, will look after his warriors and make sure no harm comes of them. Lastly, Beowulf is offered a position of leadership by Hrothgar for his courageous efforts at saving his people. "In all things you are even-tempered, prudent, and resolute. So I stand firm by the promise of friendship we exchanged before. Forever you will be your people's mainstay and your own warriors' helping hand" (Heaney 1705-1708). Beowulf's ability to protect his people without any care of losing his own life made him a true hero and also gave him the qualities of a great leader.

Beowulf first task on his path to gain glory is to defeat the merciless monster Grendel, who haunts Heorot for twelve long winters. If he wins this battle, he does not only gain glory and respect for himself, but also for his king and clan. He exhibits all the great qualities of a person and has a lot of esteem and admiration for his king Hygelac. One of the ways we can show Beowulf’s loyalty to Hygelac is when Beowulf explains to Hrothgar how he was going to fight Grendel “I have heard moreover that

“If this combat kills me, take care /of my young company, my comrades in arms. /And be sure also, my beloved Hrothgar, /to send Hygelac the treasures I have received.” (lns. 1480-1483) This quote shows that Beowulf thinks first of his people, then of his possessions. The quote starts with Beowulf facing the fact that he may not come back from this fight alive, revealing that although he has superhuman strength, he is still human and can die. The very next thing Beowulf says of Hrothgar is a request to keep the young men that came to fight with him safe should he not survive. This shows Beowulf’s compassion towards his fellow warriors and that they are his main concern. Lastly he makes sure that Hrothgar knows what to do with Beowulf’s earthly possessions. By requesting that his possessions be given to his king Beowulf shows his selflessness and loyalty to his people.

Beowulf is full of a strong sense of the inevitable doom that no one can control. It is shown by when

Beowulf’s responsibility differs from a warrior to a king. As a young fighter he has responsibility to his Geatish king as well as to Hrothgar. His king, Hyglac, relies on Beowulf to represent him and

Throughout Beowulf’s life, Beowulf protects his kinships and nurtures his kinsman. Defeating Grendel without the use of swords and shields greatly increased Beowulf’s fame and reputation as a warrior, far and wide across the world. Hrothgar was fairly impressed by Beowulf’s strength, matured mind, and strong speech. Beowulf’s potential to be a king is first revealed in the poem when Hrothgar as a king advices Beowulf, “If it should come to pass / that Hrethel’s descendant dies beneath a spear, / if deadly battle or the sword blade or disease / fells the prince who guards your people/ and you are still alive, then I firmly believe / the seafaring Geats won’t find a man /worthier of acclaim as their king and defender / than you, if only you would undertake the lordship of your homeland”.

After the first victory, Beowulf’s “comrades willingly go with him because of their confidence in his ability to lead them and to achieve their objectives” (Loughman). Beowulf becomes a role model not only for his thanes, but for the Danes of Heorot as well. Following defeat of Grendel’s mother, Hrothgar gives a sermon before the celebration honoring Beowulf begins. Hrothgar says “Beowulf, my friend, your fame has gone far and wide, you are known everywhere….forever you will be your people’s mainstay and your own warriors’ helping hand” (McArthur). King Hrothgar informs Beowulf of his significance to the Danes and how he serves as the backbone of his group of warriors.

In the beginning of the book Beowulf is described as the greatest hero of the world. Beowulf comes to hear about the destruction Grendel has caused and travels to the land of the Danes to try and help Hrothgar defeat Grendel. He brought to sea with him 14 brave warriors and voyaged to Hrothgar’s kingdom. As they exit the boat the mounted guard asks what Beowulf and his warriors are doing, Beowulf responds in a long message about what they are doing there and who they are going to save. The mounted guard responds “I believe your words, I trust in your friendship. Go forward, weapons and armor and all, on into Denmark. I’ll guide you myself and my men will guard your ship, keep it safe here on our shores” (Raffel 15). Beowulf gives off the feeling to people that do not even know him that he is a great hero and that he can be trusted.

Beowulf sees the need of taking risks when he must help his friend across the sea in bringing peace to his land. Hrothgar’s kingdom, Denmark, is being terrorized by the vicious, bloody thirsty demons, Grendel and his mother. Sailing across the sea, putting his own life at risk for others is an immense risk that can certainly lead to Beowulf’s demise. The Geats, who idolize Beowulf, see this risk but can comprehend that Beowulf must go as it is the only way to save the Danes “Would sail across the sea to

Beowulf is an incredible, and at times unbelievable, hero who can and will attempt to defeat anyone to keep others safe. This will eventually lead to his death as he successfully defeats the Dragon. But as ruling king at the time his subsequent death leaves his people in a worse predicament than before. Now, without a just ruler, the kingdom will possibly undergo uncertainty and chaos as no heir to the throne is

He always explains his death wishes before going into battle and requests to have any assets delivered to his people. “And if death does take me, send the hammered mail of my armor to Higlac...”. Beowulf is a hero in the eyes of his fellow men through his amazing physical strength. He fought in numerous battles and returned victorious from all of them but his last. He understands that fate will work its magic no matter what, and he could be killed at any point in his life. He faces that reality by showing no fear and preparing for a positive or a fatal outcome.

Beowulf was a good king. He wasn’t greedy or mean or selfish, he put his people first. And it’s evident in the fact that he went to fight the dragon himself, when he could’ve got some other “hero” to do it. “...he saw nothing to fear, thought nothing of the beast’s claws,

It was hard to find a seat in the hall, most of them were already taken. After wandering around looking for a place to rest my feet for what felt like hours, I found one single chair in the center of the room. That was when the bell rang, and each guest was presented with the largest plate of food anyone had ever seen. As I sat there eating I watched the soon to be King and Queen. They both seemed nervous, and were bitter toward one another. They did not share a look of love, but rather a look of brokenness. The brokenness faded and was replaced with excitement once the crown was brought out on the white satin pillow. That is when weird things began to happen.

At 12:00 pm I went down to see a huge animal fight . But when I got there, there were only a snake and a crow fighting. I ran over there and cut the head off the snake. In return the crow flew me all the way home. When I got there, the parrot gave me a very small package. The crow said “don’t open it yet.” When I was going to my father's I opened the package and a giant castle popped out of it. The castle was called McClellan's castle. In there were some giants and two lovely maids. But the giants thought they were the king. But I walked over there and said “I’m the king and you will obey what I say, got it.” “Yes master.” whispered the giants. After two years of living at the castle I got really bored. So I had the best idea. “I’m going to