The Idea Of Heroism In Beowulf

I believe the idea of heroism from the time of Beowulf to now have changed drastically. In the time of Beowulf and the writing of Beowulf, a hero was seen as someone who had attributions such as bravery, honor, value, and arrogance. As we see many of these ideas in Beowulf himself, especially arrogance. You often hear throughout the reading that Beowulf always speaks highly of himself. He claims that he is the only one that has the ability to defeat Grendel. He states it over and over making sure that everyone knows his ability, his power, his bravery, and how strong he is. When Unferth tried to downgrade Beowulf’s arrogance, Beowulf stated, “However it occurred, my sword had killed nine sea-monsters,” (574-575) which was the reason as to why he lost the swimming race.

Beowulf is confident enough in his abilities that he believes he can fight off Grendel with no weapons or armor. I believe Beowulf, in the time of this writing was truly seen as a hero. But in this day, I do not believe he is seen as a hero. Heroes today are seen as those who do things not for themselves and for the recognition, but to protect others. They do not brag about the abilities they have, they do not boast about their strength. Very good examples of these people are those that are over seas protecting our country everyday. These people do not do it for the arrogance and glory but they do it to protect and serve those they love and care fore. True heroes in the eyes of the world nowadays are those first responders in the police, ambulances, firefighters, and