Is Beowulf A True Hero

Beowulf: The True Hero Joseph Campbell once said, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” This indicates that a hero should make sacrifices for the good, like our hero, Beowulf. Beowulf: A New Telling, is a folktale written by Robert Nye about the young hero, Beowulf, who volunteers to fight evil demons and monsters like Grendel. Beowulf is a static hero in this folktale because both as a young hero and as an old king, he was kindheartedly respectful to others. Although Beowulf is known for being a monster fighting warrior, he as a young hero is very kind and considerate to others. For example, after seeing Unferth’s head hanging from a tree branch, Beowulf ordered his men, “Bury Unferth’s head, …show more content…
After hearing about the pitiful slave who took a jeweled cup and woke the Firedrake, all Beowulf said was, “Let him eat honey,” (Nye 93). Beowulf when he said this to his men was trying to say that they should show some pity to the slave who was driven by despair to do such actions. Beowulf also volunteered to fight the fierce dragon that the slave awoke. This shows that Beowulf is static because he as a young hero also volunteered and stood up to the infamous beast, Grendel. Another piece of evidence that Beowulf is a static hero is when Beowulf manages to slay the Firedrake and exclaims to Wiglaf, “Listen, Wiglaf, when I was young, I would have thought that this was dishonorable or something,” (Nye 101). Beowulf asked himself after using his own bees to kill the dragon if what he has done was ok to do. This proves that Beowulf is considerate to even the most vicious things like a dragon. This event is similar to when his young self peacefully exclaimed to Unferth his actions with Breca with consideration enough to not get mad from the slander. Beowulf is truly a static character because he both as a young hero and an older king showed pity and consideration to woeful