Centuries after the unnamed author penned the heroic elegy Beowulf, there is little question that the titular character is just that–a hero. As he conquers foes in the name of glory and for the will of God, Beowulf cements his reputation as a hero, and a Christian one at that. To reach such an admirable status, he faces adversaries both humanoid and bestial, culminating in his battle against a fearsome dragon, the ultimate enemy. In this climactic scene, slaying no other foe would allow Beowulf to reach his legendary status. By slaying a dragon in particular, Beowulf defeats an embodiment of evil and pagan belief, truly proving himself a hero of Christianity. Before considering the role of the dragon, it is important to recognize that Beowulf’s …show more content…
This first becomes clear when, in his boasts to his followers, he claims that the “glory of winning” motivates his desire to defeat the dragon (2514). His people would have associated heroism with courage and desire for glory, especially of the posthumous sort, and would have considered this boast an indication of truly heroic character. Given this cultural attitude toward glory, it is no wonder that they would revere him as a hero, but it is the fact that he fights a dragon, and not some other creature, which is most significant in determining his heroism. As Tolkien says in his analysis of the poem, “A dragon is a potent creature of man’s imagination, richer in significance than his barrow is in gold,” and to slay a dragon is “the chief deed of the greatest of heroes” (page 113). The poet reflects this same sentiment by using the slaying of the dragon, rather than some other figure, as that which cements Beowulf’s legendary status. By foreshadowing Beowulf’s death when he boasts “for the last time” just before fighting the dragon (2511), the poet insinuates that Beowulf is to become the sort of hero that his people will revere most highly, as death resulting from wounds sustained in battle would have been the supreme act of heroism in Beowulf’s time. It is this particular act of courage in the face of certain death that truly shows the extent of Beowulf’s valor and that he is a hero of the most distinguished sort. Also, given that his heroic death occurred after fighting a dragon rather than some other beast or a human, it is implied that defeating such creature is more valiant than to slay any other foe, just as Tolkien
All the dragon is an enemy that Beowulf has to face to complete his dream of dying a
In the last stage of Beowulf’s epic hero journey, fatalism determines his grand finale against the dragon. The warrior king’s long journey is now coming to a close and before going into battle against the dragon, Beowulf realizes that, “After many trials,/ he was destined to face the end of his days/ in this mortal world; as was the dragon,/ for all his long leasehold on the treasure” (Beowulf 2341-2344). After facing Grendel and his mother, fate has lead Beowulf to the crisis of his journey. The dragon is the final monster he must defeat in order to complete his monomyth cycle. He is a symbol of the deadly sin, greed.
Thinking Beowulf as a folk hero, he seems to be a real- warrior who is brave enough to defeat Grendel and has no -fear in himself. Besides that, Beowulf depicts himself as a hero when he replied Unferth saying, “the truth is this: /when the going was heavy in those high waves/ I was the strongest swimmer of all" (529-534). When it comes to dying Beowulf wants to make a barrow on his name.
As king, Beowulf stepped up and fought the malevolent dragon in his last battle. In his last boast he uttered, “ I’ve never known fear, as a youth, I fought endless battles. I am old, now, but I will fight again, seek fame still, if the dragon hiding in his tower dares to face me.” (62). Beowulf was very confident for the circumstances.
Questions of Honor: Beowulf Beowulf’s honor and integrity can be questioned throughout the entirety of the epic poem, Beowulf. Whether or not his actions are inspired by his own pompous arrogance or confidence, one can argue that he is a hero nonetheless. Evidence and experience prove that Beowulf is more of a fearless hero than an excessively prideful man, and his hubris is more than justified due to the formidable duties he is able to execute. Throughout the poem, Beowulf expresses his intense strength and courage to the fearful people in the poem. His daring sense of self-assurance is backed by his victories against all three monsters, (even though he suffers a tragic death after facing the dragon, it is a defeat nonetheless).
Epic Beowulf praise courageous warrior hero Beowulf, praising his responsibility and sense of honor things are more important than life, hero defying hardship, overcome all difficulties, killed the monster, is the embodiment of justice, civilization and brave. Because the hero's sense of mission, Beowulf for the tragic fate of the upcoming brave fight, he went to kill dragon is a slippery slope, but the hero's sense of mission and sense of responsibility that he still chose this road. This epic to digest, reality and myth to shape Beowulf into one of the most ideal hero, kindness, justice, brave, fearless, in both human nature and the reality of the heroic struggle before the plot violence, and in front of fate, human beings cannot fight side
Beowulf is a strong heroic hero who shows honor,selfless,courage. Beowulf is a strong heroic hero in a way because heroes are protectors and he protected his people of his town. So he is a hero in fact a strong one and a loyal one. There is lots of ways he shows loyalty one i can show is “I had a fixed purpose when i came to sea as i sat in the boat with my band of men I meant to perform to the uttermost what your people wanted or perish in attempt in the fields clutches i shall fulfill my purpose prove myself of proud deeds or meat my death her in the mead-hall”(pages 632-639).I chose this quote because it shows that beowulf would give his head for his people. I think that beowulf wanted to die for his king after all that is the reason
The third and final evil Beowulf must face is the dragon. At this point in the poem, Beowulf has been the “ring-giver” or king for half a century (Beowulf 2207). The role of a king in Germanic times included rewarding warriors with treasure captured in battle; however, the dragon keeps his treasure to himself. This greediness is in direct opposition to the qualities of a good king, and the dragon becomes the representation of selfishness and destruction. Beowulf takes on the role of a warrior once again, and defeats the dragon.
Beowulf makes known that “no man but [himself] could hope to defeat this monster, [and] no one could try.” Beowulf wants to have this fight all to himself, so he can take all of the glory. He is too selfish to conclude that only he could defeat the monster alone. Beowulf cannot be thought of as a hero because “Beowulf only longed for fame.” Beowulf does not perform heroic deeds just to save the citizens, but to receive more admiration from the citizens.
In the story Beowulf they make Beowulf out to be the hero. I believe that he is the hero because of his way that he presents himself when he gets to as his crewmen walked off the boat and they looked bad in clothes Beowulf looked very nice and very manly other than his crewmen looked bad and also he was a hero because he was the only one to come to and help the town. Defeating the monsters which was mother dragon and the last reason that he was considered a hero because after all the monsters he killed he decided to give all of the gold and supplies that he won from the battle with the monsters to all the people in herot and also he was reconized as a hero because he let God decide his Faith during the battle with the monsters.
As the story progress, Beowulf became king of the Geats for 50 years when suddenly a dragon emerged from slumber began to burn down villages. However, Beowulf didn’t pay the slightest attention, but instead ignored what was happening. Finally, when the dragon burns down Beowulf’s throne room Beowulf decided that he needs to deal with the dragon. In Beowulf 's eyes, the lives of his citizens couldn’t even compare to his throne room. When Beowulf prepared to fight the dragon he said, “Now I am old, but as king of the people I shall pursue this fight for the glory of winning” (lines 2512-2514).
Beowulf's final and most difficult battle involves a deadly, fire-breathing dragon. When first analyzed, Beowulf is made out to be a hero and dies the most heroic death. When investigated further, however Beowulf's negligence is portrayed. His disregard for advice given by his fellow Thanes, and leaving the Geats without their brave king shows extreme selfishness. His actions within this battle bring up questions about his motivations and charterer.
It came to Beowulf’s attention that there was a dragon guarding ancient treasure. Unfortunately, his transition from a young warrior to an old king has taken a toll on his intellect and rationale. Having fought his last monster fifty years ago, Beowulf was overconfident about his abilities to fight a dragon that did not fight him unprovoked. Essentially, he put the safety of his kingdom in jeopardy for ancient treasure; a decision lacking in rationale. Nonetheless, it was prophesied that they would need to bid adieu “to all you know and love/ on your home ground, the open-handedness,/ the giving of war-swords” (Beowulf 2884-86), and further evokes
With the battle to protect the city against the dragon, even though Beowulf was king he fought the dragon. He fought the dragon because no one else could. No one was as selfless as he was to risk his life to protect the city. Without Beowulf these monsters would over power good and there would be no balance between good and evil.
As a payment to the king of the Danes, he decides to fight the dragon, just as he fought Grendel. Then he was a warrior and now he is a king responsible for his people. Beowulf’s decision is courageous but inappropriate for a king. His foolish but courageous decision causes him to die in the end. Before he fought the mighty dragon, he said “I’ve never known fear; as a youth I fought in endless battles.