A hero is a distinguished person of outstanding qualities and abilities, who is admired for not only having these specific characteristics but also admired by his people for his noble acts and bravery. More specifically to this story would be to look at the aspects of an Anglo-Saxon hero. An Anglo-Saxon hero is a person who is a great leader, is open to and able to protect his people and give them a sense of safety, and is also willing to put himself in harms to protect these people. These heroes were usually someone of high standing or someone with great accomplishments because they distinguished themselves by doing things for the greater good. In the epic poem Beowulf, the unknown author portrays Beowulf as a hero in order to show how being a hero requires a specific set of …show more content…
Arguably the most important of these characteristics is honor. Honor is more than just being respected by others, although that is part of it; honor is more about showing integrity in ones actions, especially in the Anglo-Saxon society. When Beowulf went to the land of the Danes to fight Grendel, he did not do it simply because he wanted the reward, but because he wanted to protect his people and the people of the closely allied Danes. Beowulf only did it because he felt it was his job because it tied into his duty to protect his king, and he also recalls that he had been so successful in past endeavors when he proudly states, “They had in remembrance my courage and might. Many had seen me come safe from the conflict.” (Raffel, 321-322) This quote also shows off Beowulf’s ego as he boasts his courage and might. When Beowulf made the decision to go fight Grendel and protect the people around him he did not do it for the reward he would receive if he was successful but instead to “put another notch in his belt,” so at the worst, Beowulf decided to fight Grendel to feed his ego, which does not hurt