Beowulf Embodies The Characteristics Of An Epic Hero

In Beowulf, the classic story of the hero and his journey 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 the beginning of the poem, Beowulf receives news that Hrothgar is having trouble defending itself from the demon Grendel. Beowulf leaves his homeland and travels to Hrothgar to help defeat Grendel …show more content…
Much like other epic poems, Beowulf received praise in his homeland for his brave actions abroad and was bumped up the social ladder. Later in the poem, Hygelac and all his possible heirs were killed in a familial feud, so Beowulf was crowned the king of the land where he reigned for 50 years. Finally after that long stretch of peace in Geatland, a dragon who had been disturbed by a thief in its lair attacked the town. Beowulf rounded up his most trusted eleven warriors and the thief who knew where the dragon’s lair was, and they traveled there to kill the dragon. Upon seeing the dragon, all but Beowulf and Wiglaf remained as the others had fled in terror, but with Wiglaf’s assistance Beowulf slayed the dragon. During the fight, an aged Beowulf suffered a wound from which he could not recover, and he later died from his injuries. This is in two ways a great example of why Beowulf is considered an epic hero. On one hand, he was one of the only people to remain to fight the dragon, a massive display of bravery and confidence. On the other hand, he became too confident in his ability and eventually met his end during the fight with the