The Ideal Hero in Beowulf

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Recommended: Analyze beowulf as an epic

Classifying whether or not Beowulf is an ideal hero, one would have to understand the definition of an ideal hero, and then the decision and whether he has any flaws within this understanding can be made. Beowulf identifies many traits to allow the reader to make his own assumption on this epic poem. According to the dictionary, “a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities” (dictionary.com?) is the proper guideline to determine if a character is an ideal hero or not.

To begin, Beowulf exhibited many characteristics that suggested proper heroic qualities. “ He was strong, an outstanding fighter and very loyal to all who came into his presence” (Killenbeck, and Orci). When Beowulf had to present himself to kill Grendel, he made sure he did it with the upmost care to the people, their belongings, and Heorot. The people of Heorot, which made his determination to defeat Grendel even more powerful, invited him into a great feast before the battle. After he defeated the great Grendel, he was praised for his work and this only made Beowulf more loyal to these people of Heorot. Another great heroic aspect of Beowulf was the fact “he believed that no fighter should have the upper hand” (Killenbeck and Orci). Any fight that took place was thought to be as fair as possible. When Beowulf had to fight Grendel he knew that

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the dragon had no extra equipment to increase his chances of conquering, therefore Beowulf didn’t take on any extra equipment and believed, “when it comes to fighting, I count myself as dangerous any day as Grendel” (Beowulf, line 677-678). Both Grendel and Beowulf believed they were excellent warriors and were ready to prove it. “Venturing closer, his talon was rai...

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...his change within, but they still had faith. Beowulf was their ideal hero and despite his imperfections, they believed in him until the very end.

Works Cited

“Beowulf.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume A: The Middle Ages, 8th ed. Ed. Greenblatt, Stephen, and M.H. Abrams. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006. 34-100. Print.

"hero." Dictionary.com. dictionary.reference.com. 2011. Web. 21 Feb. 2011. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/soldier

Killenbeck, Matt, and Rick Orci. "Literary Hero: Beowulf." The My Hero Project. Stephanie Cole, 01 Jul 2004. Web. 14 Feb 2011. http://myhero.com/go/hero.asp?hero/asp?hero=beowulf

Zaragoza, Dianna. "Beowulf: A Hero for Today?." associatedcontent from yahoo. Dianna Zaragoza, 31 Ja 2007. Web. 14 Feb 2011. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/131699/beowulf_a_hero_for_today.htm l?cat=9

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