Is Beowulf A Hero

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Riley Patterson Sibbach English IV 12 December 2014 Beowulf, Hero or Not? Beowulf, a very powerful man indeed, does that make him a hero though? Beowulf presented himself as a man all about status, and making a name for himself. How does that make anyone a hero? Beowulf of course protected people by evil biblical monsters. Beowulf fought three battles; these battles encourage the people to love him. Beowulf has a strong possibility of hero status. Can a man obsessed solely with his title obtain the hero title? Beowulf fights all of his battles alone. He wants to take all the credit for himself. "But Beowulf longed only for fame, leaped back into battle...so fame comes to the men who mean to win it and care about nothing else!" (Beowulf 54)…show more content…
First Grendel, killing Grendel the first night in. Second he defeated Grendels she-wolf mother. He easily conquered the first two fights. His last battle killed him though. He sacrificed his life for even more glory. “Beowulf does not show true heroic compassion, and his motives for carrying out heroic deeds are not always purely selfless. The reason why Beowulf battles the dragon is solely because of the reward in favor of the noble hero who will conquer it.” (Study mode) His last moments where lonely but for one man. When he fought the dragon his weapons and defenses failed him. While he burnt to death the man came to his aid out of true loyalty and…show more content…
“In the final episode—the encounter with the dragon—the poet reflects further on how the responsibilities of a king, who must act for the good of the people and not just for his own glory, differ from those of the heroic warrior.” (Character list) His rash sacrifice left his homeland kingless. Beowulfs ideals helped many people but didn’t care for their lives just what they thought and remembered him. It's undisputed that Beowulf was a great king and warrior. He earned the respect he had with his many deeds. “Beowulf is my hero because of his outstanding fighting skills, his great strength, and finally his great loyalty. These are all major traits of a great hero.”(Not) Many people believe Beowulf a hero simply because of those traits. He used his traits selfishly for his own gain but made it seem to go to the gain of the people. In modern times heroes are composed of great qualities and put others first. in his time he could be called a hero. Now-a-days he would just be a strong warrior who came to an unnecessary death. Beowulf was too old to fight the dragon on his own and survive. he left his kingdom kingless. He chose a noble man, the only man who stayed by his

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