What Is Beowulf A Heroic Archetype

The historical context of heroism, as LaBarge explains, is directly derived from ancient Greek mythology, which is crucial to the essay's argument. In an excerpt from the text, LaBarge further explains that “heroes were mortals who transcended the ordinary human experience, leaving an immortal legacy”. This historical background & understanding where heroes come from helps to show how significant they have been and

In the eyes of today’s society, heroes are viewed as citizens who have accomplished what seems to be the impossible. Whether imaginary or not, heroes are looked at with awe and congratulated for what they have done for the society. However, there is a much simpler way to be a hero. A hero does not have to be able to climb walls, fly over the city, or even save someone from a burning building right before it crumbles down. A hero is simply someone who goes out of the way to give help to those around them that need it. This hero does not need recognition in what he or she does, but takes pride in what they have accomplished for others. In the novel Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis, Bardia, the King’s lead guard, acts as the hero for Orual

In the Anglo Saxon epic poem Beowulf, written down by two Christian monks, archetypes are highly prevalent and the hero archetype is filled by the main character Beowulf, this position being filled by Beowulf is very heavily throughout the book. One example of this position being filled is his close following to the hero’s quest. Throughout the book he closely follows many of the stages of the hero's quest such as his repeated cycle of fighting evil after defeating it already, we first see this with grendel, then grendel's mom and then the dragon, in the hero's quest the hero constantly has to fight off evil as he is the only one who is able to do it. The first quote in which we see this fighting of evil happen is “So times were pleasant for the people there/ until finally one, a fiend

An epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events. The epic hero of a story embarks on a quest in search of fame and glory, and encounters challenges throughout their journey. No matter the adversity, the epic hero maintains bravery and courage, never backing down. However, what the epic hero does not know is that the “real reason for a quest is always self-knowledge” (Foster 3). In the epic Beowulf, Anonymous employes the affection of a king, bravery in battle, an eternal quest and a lasting legacy to show Beowulf as an epic hero.

Beowulf Archetypes Beowulf is the first surviving epic in English history. It is filled with Archetypes, mainly because it was what other stories were based on. There are situational, symbolic, and character archetypes throughout the entire story. The Quest archetype is the fundamental archetype of the poem.

Imagine being called a monster although you can think, feel and have goals like any other human. Though, due to looking like a beast no humans believe you aren’t hostile. Archetypes are used exactly to show how one can be seen in a story, demonstrating what group they fit in that story.

Beowulf is an epic poem whose earliest surviving copy was written in 1000 A.D. The story consists of three thousand one hundred and eighty two lines that follow the life of the title character. The original author of the epic poem is unknown mainly because it started as a verbal tale passed down orally through the ages. Finally someone wrote it down in a document now called the Nowell Codex. The epic tale is centered on Beowulf and his actions in an adventure to repay a debt owed by his father to Hrothgar, a Danish king. A gargantuan monster that is terrorizing Hrothgar’s mead hall is Beowulf’s target and Beowulf sails across the sea to aid his father’s

Heroes care not only for themselves, but for others. In the White House Funeral Sermon for Abraham Lincoln, “...not for himself only, not for us only, but for all people in all their coming generations till time shall be no more…” This means that President Lincoln took risks not to ensure his safety but to make sure that he would be known as a doer. Lincoln knew that what he was doing would revolutionize the way not only the way his generation would live but all future ones. This showed that he cared not only for himself but for people he would never get the pleasure of meeting. Back in World War II a true hero was born. One of the bloodiest battles of WWII, Hacksaw Ridge, was lucky to have Desmond Doss as a part of their medical team. He saved 75 people. Most in which others had left behind, for they thought that they weren’t saving. He cared about every single one making it back to base to be helped despite who was after him. Or even in the 9/11 boatlift many heroes stepped up to the plate. Vincent Ardolino, Captain of the Amberjack V,

Today in society there are many individuals who can be described as heroic because of their courageous actions towards helping others. People who do not believe in heroes today do not see the change happening around the world for the benefits of future generations. However, in reality many individuals are risking their own lives to fight for what they believe in and for the change they wish to see in this world. Alfred de Vigny asserts that there are no heroes in this world, but even ancient stories like Beowulf provide examples of heroes who risk their lives to save others while we do still have heroes during modern-day times.

The modern day hero contributes positively to the society; he or she is a role model to different race, age and gender. In Beowulf, the king was in charge of the kingdom and he was obligated to fight with his warriors while the modern day, the President is in charge of the people but he does not fight with them in battle, he sends his soldiers off. Modern day heroes are not out looking for fame or fortune, they operate with great passion and drive to fulfill their dreams; if they get recognized for their great work, it is not publicized, it is done within the confines of the work environment. Modern day heroes do not depend on physical strength, they think of other ways to positively impact the society for example, Philanthropy is a great way to impact change in the community and philanthropist are seen as heroes in the eyes of the people they help. A person who donates his kidney to save

The concept of a hero has been around for many generations, and the meaning of a hero is defined in ways people grasp its idea. A hero can be a person who has a superpower and is willing to make a personal sacrifice for the benefit of others or can be an ordinary everyday person who just wants to help people out of his or her own heart. Linda Seger’s article, “Creating the Myth,” tackles the idea of a “Hero 's Myth,” and shows the ten steps of how heroes are transformed from an ordinary person to the Savior. On the other hand, Robert B. Ray piece titled, “The Thematic Paradigm,” emphasizes that in modern films, it is either having an “Outlaw Hero or an Official Hero,” which he uses three stages to demonstrates how they are different each other in the way they perform in the society. Further, the article, “Out of Character: Wonder Woman’s Strength Is Her Compassion - What Happened?” by Stevie St. John, explains how Wonder Woman was viewed as a compassionate woman in the 1940s and 1950s, and in the 2000s she changes into a more violent person. In this essay, I argue that a hero is subjective, and is defined by the villain or event that they had to adapt to suddenly.

Not only is Beowulf honorable and well respected, he is brave as well. 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.

Beowulf’s most seen quality in this epic is his confidence. The scene that most directly shows his confidence is his famous boast. “So, every elder and experienced councilman/ among my people supported my resolve/ to come here to you, King Hrothgar, / because all knew of my awesome strength. / They had seen me boltered in the blood of enemies/ when I battled and bound five beasts, / raided a troll-nest and in the night-sea/ slaughtered sea-brutes…” (Heaney lines 415-422). Beowulf’s boast is said publically, which shows an inspirational sense of confidence to defeat Grendel. The boast also demonstrates Beowulf’s courage and brave characteristics that makes him appear very heroic. Furthermore, Beowulf’s promise to kill Grendel to the Danes is a confident and risky thing to do, but Beowulf is able to pull it off. In Forbes article, it states that good leaders need to “deliver on [their] promises. Which our hero does that very night, killing the beast by ripping him apart ‘The monster’s whole/ body was in pain, a tremendous wound/ appeared on his shoulder’” (Forbes).

Heroes are prevalent in everyone’s life. Whether someone’s hero is a living person or a fabled character from a movie, everybody has come into contact with some sort of hero. In fact, the concept of heroes has existed for hundreds of years, dating all the way back to Ancient Greece. Over time, heroes have drastically changed. As society has evolved, our heroes have evolved with it. Their goals and motivations have changed to coincide with the views of modern society. Modern day heroes have less selfish motives, better qualities, and are portrayed differently than ancient heroes.

It also shows heros care for others shown in sociocentrism instead of being egocentric. This means that a hero is more concerned about others instead of having egocentrism and only caring for their own wants. Heroes tone down the evil in the world by being taking more action and caring for other people instead of themselves.