Beowulf is undoubtedly one of the most lionhearted and noble heroes in written literature, who conquers the most daring of all beasts with strength and bravery that could only be matched by few, both in literature and real life. Beowulf mimics traits similar to some of the greatest Greek heroes such as Achilles and Hercules, but when comparing the hero of today to the hero Beowulf was, the hero today falls quite short of the bar that Beowulf set back in the days of his heroic reign. If Beowulf had been placed into a different era such as the Greek literature era or found himself in the midst of the modern american society, his fate and heroics just might have shown out a little differently. Beowulf has many similarities to heroes of the
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Both heroes suffice the definition of what it means to be a hero, a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. However, Beowulf earned his hero status by killing beasts and dragons and conquering peace through power. The hero of today is crowned a hero for many different reasons and many different ways, such as jumping into a burning car to save a person’s life, or by helping the homeless find homes, careers, and rejuvenate their lives. The police, the firefighters, the moms, the dads, brothers, sisters, civilians are the heroes of today. Beowulf was one of a kind and served his people well, but “Beowulf’s” type heroes are not the heroes of today. Any and everyone can be the hero Today. Beowulf is a lot more like the superheroes we see in movies than the ones that are actually out there committing acts of heroism every day. Beowulf serves an important purpose of showing what it means to be a hero on a much larger scale, so that the common person can look up to and strive to become the type of hero that he was. Beowulf was a hero that would be common in the earlier, more ancient and even compositions of the adjacent eras but today. But when compared to the hero of today, Beowulf sets a high bar that cannot realistically be matched by any person today. Beowulf serves as an important piece of literature, and will continue to do so for the abstract and aweing heroics of the brave
Both heroes suffice the definition of what it means to be a hero, a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. However, Beowulf earned his hero status by killing beasts and dragons and conquering peace through power. The hero of today is crowned a hero for many different reasons and many different ways, such as jumping into a burning car to save a person’s life, or by helping the homeless find homes, careers, and rejuvenate their lives. The police, the firefighters, the moms, the dads, brothers, sisters, civilians are the heroes of today. Beowulf was one of a kind and served his people well, but “Beowulf’s” type heroes are not the heroes of today. Any and everyone can be the hero Today. Beowulf is a lot more like the superheroes we see in movies than the ones that are actually out there committing acts of heroism every day. Beowulf serves an important purpose of showing what it means to be a hero on a much larger scale, so that the common person can look up to and strive to become the type of hero that he was. Beowulf was a hero that would be common in the earlier, more ancient and even compositions of the adjacent eras but today. But when compared to the hero of today, Beowulf sets a high bar that cannot realistically be matched by any person today. Beowulf serves as an important piece of literature, and will continue to do so for the abstract and aweing heroics of the brave