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Concepts of heroes
Heroes of our societies today
Concepts of heroes
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Epic Heroes have qualities that mere mortals do not possess, such as astounding bravery, superhuman strength and intelligence, and a determination to succeed no matter how daunting the task. Epic Heroes often fight for the greater good or have an overall goal to accomplish. Moreover, Epic Heroes obtain their strengths by inheriting them, or having links to Gods or other Epic Heroes. In his epic poem, Beowulf displays like qualities such as courage, undoubting loyalty, and extraordinary strength. A hero to the Geats in Sweden, Beowulf is called upon to help Hrothgar defend his mead hall, Herot, against the formidable opponent Grendel. Grendel and his mother, two incredibly powerful monsters, wreak havoc upon Hrothgar’s hall and his people as well. Using his exceptional strength and wisdom, Beowulf heroically slays Grendel, consequently becoming the prey of his mother. Again, using his strength and wisdom, Beowulf defeats Grendel’s mother and decides to go back home to Geatland. Moreover, before his battle with Grendel, Beowulf shows great courage when he takes off his entire suit amour and decides to fight Grendel through hand to hand combat, deciding that if he were to use amour the battle would be too easy for him. Also, Beowulf is very confident in his abilities which makes him seem even more daring and …show more content…
They provide a sense of protection to their people, and complete each dangerous act with honor. Beowulf is willing to take on the danger that is Grendel, for the honor of aiding the Geats and honoring his father who has an alliance with Hrothgar. Furthermore, in relation to his battle with Grendel, Beowulf shows great honor when he removes his amour, as he explains that Grendel has less ability in combat that which utilizes a sword. All in all, Beowulf displays great honor in his battles and shows that he is indebted to serve for the greater
There is an epic hero in almost every legend ever told. The hero could be a mortal human who came from nothing, a creature that used to be evil, an immortal god, or even a group of people. In Seamus Heaney’s Beowulf, the mortal man-of-the-hour is Beowulf, son of Ecgtheow. After he settled the feud for his father, he then carried out more amazing deeds and accomplishments. Beowulf portrays great strength, bravery, and is also very faithful to his kingdom. The totality of these qualities is not just a large mass of adjectives; each characteristic plays a special part.
Many individuals fail to correctly describe a hero. When young, they are taught that heroes have superpowers and are powerful. In the epic poem, Beowulf, Burton Raffel contradicts this belief. He translates the characteristics that make Beowulf an epic hero. Beowulf fits the definition of an epic hero because of his courageous deeds that reflect the values of his era, his character traits that reflect important ideals of his society, and his journey leaving his homeland to live with others.
As Beowulf possessed incredible the strength of 30 men, Luke Skywalker the force, and Harry Potter magic, epic heroes continue in every form of today’s entertainment and storytelling. Every culture from the beginning has had their own tales of heroes accomplishing great feats that no one else could. An epic hero is an icon for everyone to relate to, they symbolize different lessons to learn. The epic hero archetype exists as a source of entertainment but also as a demonstrative tool. Their morals and actions are there to help shape our own actions in life. The archetype of an epic hero is unchanging; it stands against the test of time to give us reassurance in the good moral values of human life.
In the poem Beowulf, the protagonist is portrayed as a heroic figure who strives to spread his name and glory out across the land in order to be remembered. Although his acts may not entirely be for the right reasons, Beowulf does express his heroic qualities of bravery, arrogance, and brute force.
Early in the poem, Beowulf hears accounts of Grendel’s destruction of Herot, Hrothgar’s majestic mead hall. Knowing his strength and military prowess, Beowulf immediately devises a plan, recruits men, and orders boats, thrusting himself into a battle that was not necessarily his to fight. Beowulf felt obligated to end Grendel’s reign of terror. Though he knew the death of Grendel would bring him fame and honor, the idealized Beowulf was able to set aside personal ambition in order to end the suffering of the Danes. Shortly after slaying Grendel, Beowulf again displays an awareness of duty when Grendel’s mother extracts revenge upon Herot, killing one of Hrothgar’s best men, Aeshere. Instead of leaving Herot in a state of frenzy, Beowulf comes to King Hrothgar’s side, pledging allegiance and service. Bolstering the defeated king’s moral, Beowulf boldly addresses the older King Hrothgar saying, “So arise, my lord, and let us immediately set forth on the trail of this troll-dam. I guarantee you: she will not get away, not to dens under ground nor upland groves nor the ocean floor. She’ll have nowhere to fall to. Endure your troubles to-day. Bear up and be the man I expect you to be.” Beowulf could not set aside his duty and obligation, though he knew full well the suffering and pain that might result from his actions. Thus, Beowulf is a portrait of
In Beowulf, Canterbury Tales: The Wife of Bath’s Tale, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the authors portray societal values through the development of plot. In Beowulf, Beowulf journeys to Hrothgar’s kingdom. He comes because a monster, Grendel, has been destroying parts of their village and killing their men. Beowulf also comes to repay a debt that is owed to Hrothgar for saving his father and his father’s army. When Beowulf arrives, he boasts to Hrothgar and Hrothgar says that he is allowed to try and defeat the monster. Beowulf fights with Grendel and wins. Soon, Grendel’s mother comes to destroy Beowulf. Beowulf fights her in a long, drawn-out battle and wins. Beowulf grows old and becomes king of the Geats and then he and his
An epic is a long narrative poem on a serious subject. It usually is about
In the beginning of the novel, Beowulf takes interest in the plight of Hrothgar, King of Denmark, and wants to help him fight Grendel. Grendel is a large monster that has been harassing members in the mead-hall of the Heorot. Beowulf owes Hrothgar a favor, due to the fact that Hrothgar saved his father in years past. Hrothgar is honored to have Beowulf attempt to fight the swamp monster, and decides to hold a feast in his name. When Grendel shows up to the feast, Beowulf illustrates his bravery by fighting Grendel without any armor. When Beowulf wins the battle by ripping Grendel’s arm off, everyone in the mead-hall praises Beowulf for his acts of courage. In this scene, Beowulf proves that he is a hero by fighting off a monster that everyone else was afraid of. This made him look
In every epic story, the center of attention will be on the epic hero. Usually all the epic heroes have some kind of special power, which keep them different from other characters. Later on, their epic journey these powers, help them to win the glory, which make them epic heroes. In Beowulf, Beowulf is truly an epic hero, because of his wisdom, strength and bravery.
What are the qualities of an epic hero? An Epic hero is a hero on a
One might wonder what comprises a hero. Courage, passion, confidence, selflessness, and humility are a few characteristics of a hero. According to dictionary.com a hero is a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal ("Hero-Dictionary.com"). Beowulf, Achilles, Hector, and Hamlet are great tragic heroes in literature.
Beowulf is brave and he does not avoid doing anything that might be dangerous or risky. Beowulf is even willing to give up his life, when he performs some of the courageous deeds. For example, when Beowulf plans to fight Grendel, he tells Hrothgar: “‘the monster’s scorn of men / Is so great that he needs no weapons and fears none. / Nor will I’” (433-35). Beowulf has the audacity to fight Grendel, who frightens everyone with no weapons. He wants to kill Grendel with just his bare hands, even though it is a very challenging task and he could possibly die. Another time Beowulf demonstrates his bravery is when he goes to fight Grendel’s mother alone. When the Geats and the Danes arrive at the lake where Grendel’s mother lives, they see that the bloodstained water is full of “serpents swimming in the boiling / Lake, and sea beasts lying on the rocks” (1426-27). After seeing this lake, nobody is brave enough to dive in and fight the mother, except for Beowulf. Beowulf, who decides to help the Danes one more time, dons his armor and jumps into the hellish lake. Even at the end of the poem, Beowulf continues displaying courage, when he fights a savage fire breathing dragon. At this point in the poem, Beowulf’s youthful days are gone and he is an old man. Even though Beowulf is old, he declares, “‘I will fight again’” (2513). After stating this, Beowulf goes alone with a shield and a sword to
Beowulf, the heroic figure in the poem, is known throughout the land as a courageous man who performs great deeds of valor. He is a Geat, who later becomes the king of the Geats. Beowulf’s strength seems to be a gift from God. As a noble and kind man, Beowulf comes to Herot to save them from God’s foe. Before Beowulf initiates battle with Grendal he exhibits a sense of fairness in not using a weapon against the monster.
A hero is someone that helps others no matter what the situation. There are many qualities that a hero must posses such as bravery, courage, strength, intelligence and honor. These qualities alone are not enough to make a hero. They must also be pure at heart, fight for the good of mankind and only fight when it is to protect the people and not out of revenge. Beowulf is everything a hero should be, but contains a few qualities that a hero should not posses. When Beowulf sailed with his men to Herot he had one goal, to rid the hall of Grendal. Beowulf was under no obligation to destroy Grendal and never asked for anything in return for his services. A true hero would never ask for money or anything of value. He put his life at risk to save the people of Herot, who he didn’t even know, out of his own good nature Great strength has been a trait that has been identified with heroes in many stories and legends. Than he saw hanging on the wall, a heavy Sword, hammered by giants, strong And blessed with their magic, the best of all weapons But so massive that no ordinary man could lift... (II. 1557-1560) Beowulf possessed great strength that separated him from other men. Being able to use a sword that no ordinary man was able to carry gives the feeling that Beowulf is something more than a human being. It makes him special and causes him to stand out from all other men. Fame is something that makes a hero more noted. Beowulfs popularity had spread all over the world. He never let this go to his head and he never thought that he was better than everyone else because of it. “Your fame is everywhere, my friend,/Reaches to the ends of the earth, and you hold it in your heart wisely...” (II.1704-1706). A hero should not be foolish or full of himself. Unferth said: You’re Beowulf, are you- the same Boastful fool who fought a swimming Match with Brecca, both of you daring and young and proud,exploring the deepest Seas, risking your lives for no reason But the danger? (II. 506-511) A hero should not have to prove to himself or to anyone else that he is brave, fearless or courageous. If he is pure a heart and his intentions are good then he can be considered a true hero.
Beowulf’s first accomplishment as an epic hero was his battle with Grendel. Grendel was a huge beast, a descendent of Cain, who ruthlessly murdered innocent Danes because he felt pity for himself. Upon hearing of the Dane’s problem, Beowulf set off to help the Danish without having been called upon. Even though Beowulf had men backing him, He drew battle with Grendel alone and without armor or weapons. Yet, Beowulf emerged victorious with the arm of Grendel as his trophy. Beowulf then went on to kill Grendel’s vengeful mother and a huge fire-breathing dragon who thought it had been done wrong by the Geats. Alas, the killing of the dragon would be Beowulf’s last great battle for the dragon took Beowulf’s life in the struggle for his own.