Similarities Between Hamilton And Beowulf

Lin Manuel Miranda, American author, actor, playwright, and composer, is best known for his most recent Broadway musical, Hamilton: An American Musical, which follows the life and legacy of Alexander Hamilton, one of the United States of America’s “Founding Fathers”. In this musical, Hamilton introduces himself by saying, “...There’s a million things I haven’t done, but just you wait. Just you wait” (Miranda). And while this is true of Hamilton, it is also true of Beowulf, the Geat thane who became king after defeating the monsters that plagued the Land of the Danes. Though one real and one fiction, Beowulf and Alexander Hamilton both can be viewed as ‘heroes’ through their abilities to embody the values of their time, such as generosity, dedication, and bravery. Anglo-Saxon values varied widely, but Beowulf very clearly demonstrated generosity throughout the epic. He willingly goes to the Land of the Danes to fight the monster that plagued them, a very brave and generous action. When facing the potential for death before fighting Grendel’s mother, Beowulf asked that, “If the combat kills me, take care/of my young company; my comrade

Both demonstrated bravery throughout their lives. Beowulf, before fighting Grendel, remarked, “...No weapons, therefore,/for either this night: unarmed he shall face me” (lines 683-685). It was undeniably brave of him to knowingly entire battle against an undefeated monster bare handed and alone. Hamilton exhibited bravery throughout his career in a number of ways. An orphan at age thirteen, he largely educated himself before traveling to New York on his own in order to find a new life in the young colonies. It can be argued that both Hamilton and Beowulf were “young, scrappy, and hungry” (Hamilton: An American Musical) at the peaks of their careers. Both young, not the highest of classes, and hungry to find adventure and help others in their