The Epic Of Beowulf By William Shakespeare

Taylor DavisKathleen Orfanedes8 Feb. 2018Is Beowulf a Hero? I would consider a hero as someone who being very brave, loyal, one who never gives up, and one who protects or saves others. I believe Beowulf has all of these traits. Beowulf is a hero because he fought off a lot of people for a town of people he did not even know and had never even met. He even came across the seas for them. He is very loyal because he was willing to risk his life for Hrothgar’s people day in and day out. Due to Beowulf’s loyalty, super strength and bravery to come fight off people, many people would say he was a hero. Beowulf is loyal because he did not even hesitate to go fight a huge monster that nobody thought he had a chance against. He went across the sea to a new country and knew nobody there and went to go save all of their lives just

Beowulf is an ancient English poem that tells the tale of a young, brave warrior and the victories he obtains throughout his lifetime, up until his death. He is widely regarded as a hero throughout the lands and honorably puts his life on the line multiple times. Throughout the poem, Beowulf’s reasoning for being a hero changes. He begins his journey wanting to be a protector of people, a savior of humankind, but as the poem progresses, there is a distinct change in motivation for Beowulf, becoming more about craving glory and victory over his opponent as opposed to out of pure kindness. Beowulf conveys through this change that while it is worthwhile risking his life and being a hero in order to save his people and carry out his family

Beowulf is from a time where heros never die. They would live on through stories. There would be amazing tales, poems recited, and songs sung about what the hero had done. To be a hero you had to follow the Anglo-Saxon codes. Which meant showing respect to those who had raised you and in turn helping them when they are in need. It means proving yourself and doing what was expected of you, even when it is something like dieing for your people. To live on through stories, Beowulf fought because of his duty, for glory, and as a sacrifice.

Heroism is something that cannot be altered throughout one single story. Being a hero in one piece and not being a hero in the other is . In the poem, Beowulf is a true hero and upholds all heroic values when fighting for his town. He goes to defeat Grendel’s mother well prepared with armor and weapons to help kill her. When he enters her dark lair, she is waiting for him. He luckily has a sword to stab her with, but it breaks while attempting to do so. Grendel’s mother instead stabs him, but his armor is able to protect him, saving his life. Beowulf then finds another, bigger sword and stabs her in the neck, defeating the ugly monster. “But the mesh of chain-mail on Beowulf’s

Beowulf is the hero of all. He has courage, strength, and is considered the prince of the Geats. He always stand by his word no matter what happened, no matter if he must risk his physical integrity for it. He likes to be there for the people that need his help to be saved from the evil. He is willing to risk his own life in order to save the life of his ideals, and that selfless help identifies his heroic identity and character. He defeats three monsters, two of them were the descendants of Cain, demonstrating his capabilities of performing great feats of strength and courage. This heroic icon demonstrates how brave he is, not only with himself but with other people that need his useful help and he is always there to help others, using his ability of strength and courage.

A hero is defined as “a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character,” says dictionary.com. During the whole book Beowulf is saving the Geats, aiding Hrothgar, killing creatures and saving his people. He shows his heroism through his bravery and acts of courage; but he is also being assisted through fate and God. From killing Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon he knows that he is doing great things for all of the people in his kingdoms.

“Beowulf” is a medieval heroic epic. The poem originated on the basis of ancient traditions related to pagan times. The poem represent an early example of precisely moral heroism, but not the one that is caused by the desire for fame and power. The main character of the poem, Beowulf, is capable of sacrificing himself and courage in the name of justice. He is a true hero by honoring his country and exerting his power and strength to protect others. His courage is shown by not hesitating to risk his own life to pursue the Dane’s enemies. By being self-assured, Beowulf is able to successfully defeat the fiends, Grendel and his infamous mother. At the time Beowulf is planning to pursue the vindictive dragon, the epic poem states, “I’ve never known fear, as a youth I fought in endless battles. I am old now, but I will fight again, seek fame still, If the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me.” (ll. 2511-2515). He feels no fear, is confident in fighting the dragon alone, and has no qualms in risking his life to save others. He declares his bravery by saying, “When he comes to me I mean to stand, not run from his shooting flames, stand till fate decides which of us wins... No one else could do what I mean to, here, no man but me could hope to defeat this monster.” (ll. 2525-2534) In his actions, Beowulf’s bravery is clearly shown throughout the poem. As king, Beowulf is the

In the epic poem, Beowulf truly exhibits bravery and courage. There is no doubt that Beowulf is a brave man. As soon as Beowulf is summoned by Hrothgar, he doesn’t hesitate to take up the challenge to battle with Grendel. Beowulf is valiant as he said,“ my hands alone shall fight for me” (Beowulf 38). He intends to fight Grendel with his bare hands not knowing what the outcome will be. Beowulf is willing to risk his life for others which makes him courageous and brave of them all. As a young warrior, Beowulf has proven

When Beowulf fights alone and refuses the assistance and protection of the Danish army, simply so that the victory is achieved entirely by a Christian and for the Christian God, he epitomizes the heroic quality of giving his life to a higher end. Similarly, when Beowulf takes the risk of facing Grendel weaponless, so that the victory is attributed to God rather than the weapons, he performs a spiritually courageous act, another criteria for a hero according to Joseph Campbell. After defeating Grendel alone, in these two ways, Beowulf is able to convert all of Denmark to Christianity and “achieve something”, another quality of a hero. While society focuses on individuality and heroism, due to Beowulf’s strong faith in God and belief in Christianity, he defies societal expectations and attributes all the glory to God, instead of himself. Beowulf’s insistence on fighting Grendel alone is what allows him to achieve his holy mission of spreading the name of God and his glory, and ultimately is what allows Beowulf to be illustrated as a humble and faithful

Beowulf is determined as a hero in my eyes, throughout the brave and heroic attributes that he had undertaken within this poem. When defining a hero in our first week of class, we had come up with the idea that a hero is someone who is: selfless, has strength, sacrifices everything that they have for the greater good and shows confidence. Beowulf has shown all of these attributes beginning with being selfless. Beowulf came to the Danes because he knew that he needed to not only keep his kingdom safe, but surrounding kingdoms. Beowulf’s heroism was defined on these next couple of lines. On line 193, “There was no one else like him alive. In his day, he was the mightiest man on earth, high-born and powerful. He ordered a boat that would ply the waves. He announced his plan” (Heaney, 15, 193-196). Beowulf knew the dangers that fighting this demon could bring, but he sacrificed everything he had. If Beowulf would have lost the battle, his Kingdom (Geats) would have been left with nothing and Hrothgars kingdom would still be under attack. Beowulf also shows his strength throughout the poem. When Beowulf arrives at the Danes, he shows no fear. Beowulf speaks with Hrothgar to learn what is true about his threat. Beowulf speaks giving the Danes much hope, line 294 “ whatever it is, this danger abroad in the dark nights, I come to proffer my wholehearted help and counsel” (Heaney, 21, 294-298). Beowulf is a hero and a leader, even if we look at him within modern times. Beowulf shows cause and reason to why he is at the Danes, he creates leadership upon his men and he has shown devotion towards this cause of wanting to defeat Grendal the demon in the poem. Every move Beowulf takes in this poem is what I believe we would want in the modern times of war. We want a leader that will be able to take charge and follow through with the actions they speak upon. In modern time, we also want a leader that protects our land and has their best opinion out for their Country. We want a leader like Beowulf. There is times that as a reader one could think that he is only completing these heroic attributes to uphold his overall reputation of himself, but isn’t that everyone’s main goal when completing a monumental task?

In the epic poem of Beowulf, the main hero, Beowulf, proves himself as the hero everyone thinks he is over and over again. Whenever the revered hero and his men face adversity, they simply do not shy away. They will stand against it and fight to the end to protect the goodwill of others. Although there are different definitions of what a hero is, there is only one that really sticks out to me. Beowulf represents this definition of a hero because of his courageousness and selflessness. He simply doesn’t care if he dies, but he will do whatever it takes to protect others.

Beowulf himself is a prime example of a hero. He Stands up for what he believes in. His his personal beliefs characterize what a hero stands for in todays society. Some valuable traits Beowulf carries are manhood, and bravery. Some ways that Beowulf shows us how his bravery stands as a big part in his life is by killing Grendel. Killing Grendel caused a lot of problems including when Beowulf took Grendel's talon and Grendel's mother comes back to retrieve it. Bravery showed when Beowulf stood up to Grendel's mother, and when he saved the Danes from the monster.

The heroism of Beowulf’s actions are more or less clearly stated in the epic. Though Beowulf’s deeds push far and beyond what we may comprehend, they are quite a feat. Beowulf has an ambition

In Beowulf the classic epic, Beowulf, the hero of the epic, and other major characters reflect heroic ideals and beliefs of courage, generosity, unquestioning loyalty and devotion. Courage is most evident throughout Beowulf Beowulf does not back down from any challenge that stands in his way whether it be Grendel, Grendel’s mother, or the dragon. His bravery is most evident in his preparation for his fight with Grendel, Beowulf, “took off his shirt of armour, the helmet from his head, handed his embellished sword, best of irons to an attendant,…” He chose to bravely fight his foe, man to beast without weaponery for he knew it would be “cowardly” to defeat Grendel with a sword and armor when Grendel himself had none. Even in his

The theme of Beowulf is heroism. Beowulf himself represents the heroic ideal because of his features, strength, and courage, but also because of his intelligence and honor. Beowulf is proud of his strength and great his honor. When Beowulf goes to Heorot, waiting for Grendel, he refuses to keep a weapon. He believes in himself that he can defeat the monster who has devoured many men without using any weapons. It turns out that Beowulf's intelligent approach was right. Glory is also one of the themes in Beowulf. In the beginning, Beowulf comes to Hrothgar's rescue, not just out of generosity but out of a desire to win glory for himself in battle. Beowulf's quest for glory never ends and drives him, in his old age, to face a foe he cannot