Epic poetry

is very closely followed. The hero is often faced with hardship which causes him to go on an epic journey to complete a task for the greater good, he encounters many obstacles along the way, and he succeeds or sometimes makes a crucial mistake and meets his demise. Beowulf embodies the characteristics of an epic hero because he is courageous, strong, loyal to his cause, and wise beyond his years. His epic flaw was that he was not humble and became too overconfident in himself during battle. At…

between man and monster can be uncertain. Anonymously written, the epic poem of Beowulf expresses many examples of drawing parallels between man and beast, more specifically between heroes and villains. Although it is not unanimously agreed upon by scholars, Beowulf is believed to have been written in eighth century A.D in Britain (Acocella 1). Beowulf was thought to be read as a ballad or as entertainment for guests. Because it is an epic poem, Beowulf is full of heroes, villains, battles,…

The epic, Paradise Lost, is an interesting fictionalized interpretation of the story of Adam and Eve in the book of Genesis in the Bible. John Milton, author, writes about the character of Satan with aspects of being victimized, becoming the potential hero, and looking for the way to freedom from God, the tyrannical ruler. Milton also gives the characters of Adam and Eve a greater sense of awareness to their surroundings and the development of actions other than devoting their lives to…

for his fate. An epic poem tells the story of a hero that has superhuman abilities used to complete feats that no normal man could accomplish. Epics also involve an antagonist that the hero must defeat. The poet of an epic is omniscient and knows every perspective of the story. Epics are passed down through oral tradition. The hero in the epic always has a task he must complete using his supernatural powers, and throughout his adventure he will face many trials and temptations. Epics are…

The Oxford English Dictionary defines a hero as “a person who is admired for their courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities”. Both the history of mankind and literature are saturated with stories of heroes, many of which, are connected to royalty. Whether the hero is rewarded with royalty or begins the hero journey in a position of supremacy, heroism and royalty always coincide. Heroes and eminence also have a plethora of traits in common with each other. Heroes are rewarded with…

Throughout history we have seen many different hero stories and how the hero of the story changes. Joseph Campbell's “The Hero’s Journey” describes all the steps of the hero’s journey, from being an ordinary person, to the call for adventure, to the tests all the way to where the protagonist has changed hopefully for the best and has returned home. These stages are important for combination myths, like what Linda Seger talked about in her article “Creating the Myth”. In her article she talks…

The Will to Survive is Worth the Chance of Life Everyday is a fight for life and with the will to live you are one of the strongest people left on Earth. The book The Road by Cormac McCarthy has many examples of life and death situations about a boy and his father during an apocalypse. They want to make a journey to the ocean where it is safer and warmer, but they have to deal with cannibals, hunger and sickness throughout this journey. They end up making it to the ocean and this was only…

The Vikings Ruthless Raiders or Crafty Survivalists Upon review of the interview with archeologist William Fitzhugh, Who Were the Vikings?, one has to wonder if the long standing view of the Vikings as ruthless raiders is an accurate description. Fitzhugh argues that the Vikings, while a ruthless band, were in fact fighting for their own survival as best they could. He presents a picture of the Vikings as Scandinavian peoples who have garnered a biased narrative. This narrative is characterized…

Life is meaningless, humans often search for clarity. Sisyphus was shown as an absurd hero, he was the wisest and most prudent of the mortals. Although he was labeled as such a noble person, Sisyphus often questioned the meaning of his life and existence. “There is only one real philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Deciding whether or not life's worth living to answer the most fundamental questions of philosophy.” It was found that our existence has no true meaning. We look for things…

“The Road of Trails” Campbell explains that “The Road of Trails” is a series of trails the hero must overcome in the hero’s quest. These trails can be slaying dragons or freeing people from a tyrant. The trails take place from the moment the Hero transverses a threshold into a “dream like landscape” full of “the unknow” and “ambiguous forms”. Campbell explains that for the hero to complete his quest he must overcome several tough trails. According to Campbell, “Once having traversed the…