Heywood Broun's The Fifty-First Dragon

Compare/Contrast Essay Dating back to nearly 550 BC, fables have acted as the source of many readers’ entertainment. Though predictable, we somehow still remain captivated by these tall tales, detailing the peril, and then aid, of all of your typical characters: the princess, the hero, the made up creatures that interact with them -- you get the idea. Identifying with these characters isn’t probable -- we are, after all, mere human beings who don’t experience those sort of things. This, however, changes with author Heywood Broun’s relatable depiction of Gawaine le Coeur-Hardy in his short story, “The Fifty-first Dragon.” Although mine and Gawaine’s levels of arrogance greatly differ, we compare similarly in our levels of anxiousness and tendency

While still not exceptional academically, Gawaine found his calling slaying dragons, and found it well. In preparation for real encounters, Gawaine tirelessly charged at, and beheaded, a dummy paper dragon time and time again. Despite it not being by his own volition, his training uncovered an unique skill, previously unbeknownst to him. Gawaine took advantage of this and became cocky. Paying little attention to his other capabilities, Gawaine centered his focus around his training and his desire to impress people. He developed a “deceptive display of ferocity” and began shouting at bystanders and making a show of himself. This budding pridefulness only grew larger throughout the story (as demonstrated by the mocking sneer he used to taunt dragons, and more elaborate stunts performed later on). Gawaine’s newfound arrogance started crossing over into his life and affecting more than just his studies. He carried a boldness that bordered the edge of disrespect. Even his authority figures became inferior in his eyes. Overlooking the knight school rules, he often snuck out, only to spend long nights at the village tavern drinking and behaving carelessly. The more he accomplished, the worse it got. Gawaine no longer felt it necessary to even view the dragons as a challenge. Instead of trying to impress others with his stunts and great strength, he simply approached his competitors in a way that made people view

Gawaine starts off in a sticky situation. The story begins by saying “Of all the pupils at the knight school Gawaine le Coeur-Hardy was among the least promising.” He was athletic and sturdy, but school definitely wasn't his strong suit. He lacked spirit and wasn't inclined to change. The Headmaster and Assistant Professor were compassionate enough to try to help rather than remedying the issue with expulsion, regardless of it actually being more because they had ulterior motives than anything else. Even the Assistant Professor resisted when the Headmaster talked about the ethics and the ideals of the institution. Still, Gawaine isn't sociable, and finds the Assistant Professor’s suggestion to become a dragon slayer concerning. The story says that Gawaine seemed dangerously close to a relapse into his old habit of whimpering at that point. Gawaine’s tendency to fall back into old habits is also demonstrated by his reaction to finding out that there was never a magic word to begin with. Instead of being proud of himself, as he had been before, and feeling accomplished for having done all of that on his own, he regressed. He felt deceived and displeased with what he had found out. He developed a stutter when talking to the Assistant Professor and finding out the truth. He didn’t get up at dawn as he had the other days, and no longer cared. Instead they found him