Beowulf As An Epic Hero Essay

In the epic, the poet portrays Beowulf as an epic hero describing him as a brave leader, who had larger than life qualities, related to royalty, who undertakes a great journey that no one else was willing to try. A true hero does not fear death; a hero would risk his whole life because he stands up for what he believes in. A hero is a person of great courage who has outstanding qualities and abilities, and who is admired for brave and noble acts. As mentioned before, he has to have great leadership qualities, and always willing to provide people with a sense of security and protection so that everyone can feel safe under his care. The Anglo-Saxon heroes usually were kings or thanes and they considered themselves above others because they do a lot for the greater good of everyone. Beowulf was always willing to live his life on the line for the benefit of others; he was considered a true legendary hero.

During the battle with Grendel, as Grendel and Beowulf were battling, Grendel gashes at Beowulf's chest but luckily, Beowulf was protected by his mail shirt and did not get wounded. During this important battle, Beowulf grabs Grendel's arms, pulls it behind his back and just with Beowulf's grip, Grendel's arm rips off. Grendel then dies, and Beowulf receives loads of recognition. In a continuation to the story, Beowulf later goes to the swamp and swims to the bottom of the lake, which in fact took him all day to get to the very bottom. He arrives at the cave where Grendel's mother lives and they battle. During the battle against the mother of Grendel, Beowulf's sword fails him, that lead him to grabbing a giant-made sword that no human can lift except for Beowulf, he then killed Grendel's mother. The sword worked and killed Grendel's mother because it was not man made. However, this quality lasted up until he was