Every epic has that ideal hero, one that is brave, fights for his nation, and is admired and sought after. Throughout history, the idea of one alters. To those in the early 700’s, Beowulf, the main character of Beowulf, was undoubtedly the perfect hero. At his time, men lived to be renowned by all; if a dragon needed to be killed they would stand in line for the opportunity, just to be looked upon as brave and courageous. They were selfish, smart, boasters, and fighters, all of which fits the description of Beowulf. In contrast, Harry, from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, is the saint protagonist to readers in the 21st century. Like Beowulf, he is brave, smart, and a fighter. Although Beowulf and Harry are rather similar, they differ…show more content… A hero can be of any age, size, or time. Beowulf is around his thirties, a full-grown man who has reached his peak in strength and confidence. He is accepting of the evil monsters roaming the world and especially thrilled to be the one to rid the world of them. Beowulf readily battled Grendel, believing that he would be the one to defeat an evil that had been torturing a kingdom for years. Harry is quite dissimilar, being an eleven year old boy who barely knows himself and lacks confidence. Although he would not voluntarily take on an enemy, Harry would undoubtedly stand up for a friend if it were necessary. Born with the courage of a Gryffindor, Harry dutifully fights off evil when he is needed to do…show more content… Ron and Hermione are his best friends and accompany him in his battle. They are loyal to him even at the most dangerous of times. No matter the situation, they believe in Harry as the ‘chosen one’ who can fight his way on top. Harry is very willing to except help; he does not see it as a way of decreasing his popularity, fame, or heroism. In contrast, Beowulf prefers solitary fame. When going into battle, he takes a couple over a dozen of soldiers to aid him, but fights the monsters on his own. After killing Grendel’s mother and resurfacing from under the murky ocean, most of his followers had left him because they did not believe he would be alive. He did not have people continuously loyal to him, nor one that could be