Story Of Beowulf As A Hero example essay topic

The epic story of Beowulf has been around for at least a thousand years, if not more. There must be a reason why it is still read to this day, and why it will continue to be read in the future. This is because of a reoccurring theme in the poem- whenever there are dark times, something will happen to alleviate the situation. The world needs a hero, and without a hero, dark days will only stay. At the beginning of the story, we find out that the kingdom of the Danes, ruled by Hrothgar, is under attack by Grendel. He is sneaking into the kingdom, killing recklessly and mercilessly.

For twelve years, the king is unable to find a way to stop the slaughters. In despair, the Danish even turn to their pagan gods for help. These were hard times, heart-breaking for the prince of the Shielding's; powerful counselors, the highest in the land, would lend advice, plotting how best the bold defenders might resist and beat off sudden attacks. Sometimes at pagan shrines they vowed offerings to idols, swore oaths, that the killer of souls might come to their aid and save the people. (lines 170-78) However, nothing happens, and Grendel continues his rampage. That is, until Beowulf, a warrior from the Great kingdom ruled by Hygelac, arrives in the land of the Danes. Formerly glum and frightened, the people are now rejoicing because Beowulf has come to save the kingdom.

Hrothgar decides to have a great feast to celebrate. Although Beowulf hasn't even killed Grendel yet, Hrothgar and his subjects believe (or at least want to believe) that he will do so. By killing this manifestation of evil, all is set right once again. But extinguishing evil is not necessarily in the definition of a hero. In fact, those who may be considered heroes by some are not considered so by others. For example, we stereotype cowboys as heroes of the Old West, but do not consider that they killed Native Americans to do "heroic deeds".

The quote above even shows this, because the counselors are trying to do the right thing (save the kingdom) but in the wrong way (making offerings to their pagan gods). Since we tend to look at events more in shades of gray as opposed to pure black and white, perhaps the story of Beowulf as a hero survives because of its clarity on defining a hero. Later on in the story, Beowulf himself becomes king of the Geats. All goes well, until a thief breaks into the lair of a dragon. He succeeds in stealing a gem-studded goblet, but the dragon is awakened in the process, and begins his own rampage.

Once again, the great warrior is expected to come to the rescue of the common people. One line of the poem says that he has ruled for fifty winters; whatever his age really is, he is certainly no longer the strapping young lad he was when he killed Grendel and Grendel's mother. Yet, despite his age, he goes off to combat with the dragon, and sacrifices his own life to kill it. This continues the idea of a need for a hero, but this time with a slight modification to the idea.

That is, in times of need, almost anyone can, in theory if not in practice, become a hero. The final case of where Beowulf proves its timelessness is at the end. With the great warrior and king Beowulf now dead, the kingdom of the Geats faces trouble. The people are left without their leader and hero. It seems that now the land of the Geats will face very hard times; they consider Beowulf so great that no one will compare to him, and they will most likely be attacked by their foreign enemies.

Their only hope is to await a new hero to uplift them once more. Wiglaf, who ran into the cave to help Beowulf slay the dragon, may be just who they are looking for. While every other man who went with Beowulf to the cave did nothing and stood around idly as their king fought on, Wiglaf helped by fighting the dragon with his king. More evidence that points to Wiglaf as the next great man among the Geats is how he commands the people at Beowulf's funeral. Today's heroes may not be warriors who go out and fight monsters like Beowulf did. But I think that is exactly why Beowulf is still read.

While the definition of a hero is continually evolving, there is still a need to look for a "true" hero. For example, although we consider policemen and firemen to be heroes (mostly due to September 11th), I think deep down, we want a warrior-type person who will go out slay evil selflessly. It is this quest that makes us read Beowulf.