Why Is Beowulf A Hero?

Beowulf is an old Anglo-Saxon story of a terrifying monster Grendel, Grendel travels to the Danes mead hall Heorot and while the danes expect it least he attacks killing countless men purely for the joys of doing so. Hrothgar king of the Danes calls for a warrior to fight this unruly beast. After 12 long years of grendel attacking Hrothgar's calls are answered and the great warrior Beowulf comes to kill Grendel. Beowulf travels to the land of the Danes from across the seas and in the first night he kills Grendel. Sadly for Beowulf Grendel has a mother that now seeks revenge for her son's death and Beowulf is asked to kill Grendel’s mother as well. Beowulf goes to where Grendel’s mother is staying and battled her to the death , Beowulf wins

Not everyone has the same definition of a hero - while some may see one person as a hero, others may not. In "Heroism", Ralph Waldo Emerson writes of qualities that he believes makes someone heroic. When comparing these qualities to Beowulf, it becomes evident that Emerson would see Beowulf as a hero.

Beowulf; a man whose greatness begun when he saved an entire kingdom from the clutches of the vile monster Grendel. Beowulf was known for countlessly putting his body and his life on the line to save his people. His courage and determination is what kept his legacy alive for all of these years. Not only that, but the respect he had for the people around him made him a remembered warrior as well. That’s what I think makes a hero. Being determined to get a job done, having the courage to step in and complete that job, and having enough respect for your people to still obey their wishes despite your apparent fame. The hero I will be writing about is the fictional Marvel Comics character known as the Black Panther (real name T’Challa). He and Beowulf

There have been many criticisms of the character of Beowulf that highlight certain traits which could point away from the notion of him being a hero. One such idea is that he fought the monsters chiefly for personal reasons:

Then the fiend step nearer,(558-564).” Beowulf still sat unfrightend by what occurs and waits for the right moment to attack Grendel. He approaches Grendel after the consumption of the man and grabs his arm and begins to crush it with his hand. “His courage fled; but he found no escape! He was fain to be gone; he would flee to the darkness,(571-572).” Beowulf full of rage and anger began to beat this monster with his bare hands. “And Beowulf gained the glory of battle. Grendel, fated, fled to the fens, to his joyless dwelling, sick unto death,(632-634).” Beowulf without fear or hesitation fought this monster and won. This beast had killed many men at a single time, but Beowulf’s courage let him prevail in a situation where fear takes over the hearts of many men.

Upon entering the Danes' hall, Herot, Grendel is confronted by Beowulf, who immediately seizes Grendel's arms and drives fear into the monster's heart, "... [Grendel] knew at once that nowhere on earth/ Had he met a man whose hands were harder..." (lines 751-752). Through his slaughter of Grendel, Grendel's mom, the dragon, and other monsters, Beowulf proves his amazing strength to the other characters and to the readers.

In the 21st century a good leader is someone who is courageous, understanding, selfless, fights for other and not themselves and not a person who has a big ego. Throughout history the meaning or definition of a good leader has changed much. In the Anglo – Saxon time period, Beowulf, was considered to be a great leader and a hero according to his people, for risking his life and saving them from evil monsters. But in today’s world and lifestyle and how much things and times have changed, Beowulf would not be considered to be a good leader or a hero.

Grendel’s mother attacks Beowulf and drags him to her cave underwater. He tries fighting her with his sword but it doesn’t harm her. After he realizes it doesn’t work he tries to fight her with his bare hands and ends up knocking her to the ground. Grendel’s mother then tries to use her dagger to kill Beowulf but his armor protects him. Beowulf then spots a sword on the wall of her cave and uses it to kill her.

The first monster that Beowulf kills is Grendel. King Hrothgar calls for Beowulf and he comes with fourteen of his best men to meet the King about a monster named Grendel. Hrothgar explains to Beowulf that he needed help slaying this monster that had killed thirty of his men. He tells Beowulf that his men were only celebrating in Heorot, a luxurious building. Beowulf then knows that by singing he will get Grendel to come back to Heorot and so they begin to sing. Grendel then comes back when he hears the singing. He comes directly to kill whoever he sees, but Beowulf charges at the monster first and tears its shoulder off. Grendel then runs away and eventually

Beowulf continued to listen about how this monster was described, he was interested and wanted to challenge this big bad monster to kill him. The king gave a room for Beowulf and his man to rest because tomorrow they would begin to plan their trap to kill Grendel. As everyone slept Beowulf stayed awake as he kept plotting for his trap to kill Grendel. The next morning Beowulf and this man were with the king they were given weapons to use against Grendel but Beowulf didn't know that no weapon could kill Grendel unless it was the big sword that was hammered by

Joseph Campbell once said that “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” This quote makes you think about those who are considered a hero. Beowulf is a man who is the exact meaning of this quote and after reading Beowulf I can see that Beowulf’s soul lives within my mom.

In his defense of the needy and his willingness to sacrifice his life to benefit others, Beowulf has definitely earned the right to be called a hero. Beowulf is not only a hero, but also an example to all warriors of what they should strive to be. This hero risks his death for glory and for the greater good of society; he possesses the virtues, traits, and beliefs that were respected in the Anglo-Saxon culture, and has super human strength. He saved people, fought bravely, was loyal, courageous, and rewarded those who fought bravely. Being a hero is not a title that is given, but rather earned.

This is an action that none of the Danes have seen before, and an action that is extremely dangerous, a life or death situation. Beowulf shows his confidence in himself, sticks through his promise and kills Grendel in a fair fight with only his strength and strategy to help him. As a result Beowulf shows his great promise that seemed impossible for any human being to accomplish and how he falls through with

When I think of a hero I picture the impossible. For most people a hero may be someone they admirer, but it is much more than that. A hero is someone who is willing to take a step outside of the box and do the unexpected, someone who is willing to take the extra steps. Beowulf is a hero because he did everything voluntarily and kept good morals and ethics while doing it.

Beowulf travel to help Hrothgar with the problems he's been having with a demon named Grendel. Beowulf decided to not use any weapons against Grendel, he was going to defeat Grendel with his bare-hands. A wise choices, because no weapons affected Grendel. By Beowulf using his hands, Beowulf was able to but rip Grendel's arm off.