A hero encompasses traits such as humility, bravery, valor, loyalty, and skill. These characteristics have been valued from the time of Beowulf’s culture to the present. One heroic attribute that is especially valued in culture today is humility. This characteristic of humility is frequently associated with the hero Harry Potter because Harry does not care about his title of “the chosen one” (Rowling 436). Even though Beowulf has humble qualities, Harry Potter represents his culture through humility more so than Beowulf because Potter does not care about his title. An example of Harry Potter’s humility is when Harry retrieves the Sorcerer’s Stone. Voldemort wants the stone for personal gain, but Harry is humble and wants the stone to save Hogwarts. At only eleven years old, Harry Potter shows humility and maturity by risking his reputation to save Hogwarts and his friends from evil; which is highly valued in Hogwarts culture. In contrast, Beowulf shows that he is humble right before his last battle. Beowulf mentions that his battle against the dragon might “sweep” him to death (Beowulf 649). He shows humility during his last battle because he acknowledges that he can die, and that he is not above death. Although Beowulf displays humility at his last battle, he still cares about his reputation and title. …show more content…
Harry Potter shows he is humble when he recognizes that he cannot defeat Voldemort without the help of his friends. Although Harry is the chosen one, he is modest and does not let his appellation go to his head. Instead Harry Potter asks his friends for help. Moreover, even though humility is an important part of Beowulf’s culture, Beowulf is not humble when it comes to his friends or his followers. Instead, Beowulf says that no one else can “hope” to defeat the dragon except him (Beowulf 646). Beowulf is caught up in his title, unlike Harry Potter, illustrating Harry Potter’s greater