Beowulf is an epic poem from the Old English Period or Anglo-Saxon Period who’s author is unknown. In a place called Scandinavia, there were two territories that were broken up between the Geats and the Danes. The king of the Danes, Hrothgar, tries to protect his people but unfortunately attracts a monster named Grendel, who only attacks at night. In this poem, Hrothgar helps Beowulf, the protagonist, and Beowulf agrees to do the same and defend the Danes against Grendel. Beowulf kills the monster, and is celebrated as a great hero- but joy turns to horror when Grendel’s mother arrives to avenge the killing of her son. On this quest, he struggles to defeat this swamp-hag and unfortunately gets dragged into Grendel’s mother's cave. When he is
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After grabbing that sword, he slashed her throat and killed her. Then after returning home, an uncle of Beowulf, Higlac dies and Beowulf inherits the crown and becomes king. Many years later, after a peaceful time period of not fighting at all, most of the warriors, including Beowulf, were distressed and then suddenly another monster appeared to challenge Beowulf’s heroism. A dragon, undisturbed for years, suddenly emerges and gets Beowulf’s attention by starting chaos in Geatland. As one last task before Beowulf’s death, with the help of Wiglaf, he fights off the dragon and dies afterwards, but is still successful. “The definition of an epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events.” Beowulf, according to Joseph Campbell’s Journey of a hero, is a fine example of an epic hero.
To begin, this story starts off in Beowulf’s “ordinary world”, which is a place where the character originally comes from. Geatland, a territory in southern Sweden, is the location where Beowulf receives his “Call to Adventure”. Referring to The Hero’s Journey, this next stage begins when “ the …show more content…
Consequently, Beowulf was “ready to act upon his call to adventure and truly begin his quest, whether it be physical, spiritual, or emotional” (Campbell 2). Upon hearing the news, he sailed to Denmark willingly, from Geatland, to take on Grendel. After acting this way, the hero knew that he is not going to turn back. When he arrives to the territory of the Danes, Beowulf grows out of his comfort zone and faces the challenges between enemies and allies by struggling through specific tests that they create for him. For example, at this moment, the hero obtains a hatred for Grendel and Grendel’s mother, who eventually become his enemies. In the epic poem, Beowulf expresses his anger and states “Grendel's hatred began,/ how the monster relished his savage war/ On the Danes, keeping the bloody feud/ Alive, seeking no peace, offering/ No truce, accepting no settlement, no price/ In gold or land, and paying the living/ For one crime only with another” (28). As his hatred grew for his opponents, his acceptance for his allies grew too. Unferth, one of his allies who he is more thankful to have had, gave him the sword that helped him defeat Grendel’s mother. In the literary work, it is noted “A mighty warrior, he lent his weapon/ To a better one. Only Beowulf would risk/ His life in that lake; Unferth was afraid,/ Gave up that chance to work wonders, win glory/ And a hero’s fame. But
After grabbing that sword, he slashed her throat and killed her. Then after returning home, an uncle of Beowulf, Higlac dies and Beowulf inherits the crown and becomes king. Many years later, after a peaceful time period of not fighting at all, most of the warriors, including Beowulf, were distressed and then suddenly another monster appeared to challenge Beowulf’s heroism. A dragon, undisturbed for years, suddenly emerges and gets Beowulf’s attention by starting chaos in Geatland. As one last task before Beowulf’s death, with the help of Wiglaf, he fights off the dragon and dies afterwards, but is still successful. “The definition of an epic hero is a brave and noble character in an epic poem, admired for great achievements or affected by grand events.” Beowulf, according to Joseph Campbell’s Journey of a hero, is a fine example of an epic hero.
To begin, this story starts off in Beowulf’s “ordinary world”, which is a place where the character originally comes from. Geatland, a territory in southern Sweden, is the location where Beowulf receives his “Call to Adventure”. Referring to The Hero’s Journey, this next stage begins when “ the …show more content…
Consequently, Beowulf was “ready to act upon his call to adventure and truly begin his quest, whether it be physical, spiritual, or emotional” (Campbell 2). Upon hearing the news, he sailed to Denmark willingly, from Geatland, to take on Grendel. After acting this way, the hero knew that he is not going to turn back. When he arrives to the territory of the Danes, Beowulf grows out of his comfort zone and faces the challenges between enemies and allies by struggling through specific tests that they create for him. For example, at this moment, the hero obtains a hatred for Grendel and Grendel’s mother, who eventually become his enemies. In the epic poem, Beowulf expresses his anger and states “Grendel's hatred began,/ how the monster relished his savage war/ On the Danes, keeping the bloody feud/ Alive, seeking no peace, offering/ No truce, accepting no settlement, no price/ In gold or land, and paying the living/ For one crime only with another” (28). As his hatred grew for his opponents, his acceptance for his allies grew too. Unferth, one of his allies who he is more thankful to have had, gave him the sword that helped him defeat Grendel’s mother. In the literary work, it is noted “A mighty warrior, he lent his weapon/ To a better one. Only Beowulf would risk/ His life in that lake; Unferth was afraid,/ Gave up that chance to work wonders, win glory/ And a hero’s fame. But