The True Hero In The Epic Of Beowulf

The epic poem Beowulf was written in the era of the Anglo-Saxon’s. Beowulf is said to first be an oral poem. It is believed that someone wrote the oral poem, making it into a written a story. The author didn 't leave a signature, or a date stamp at the very least of it. He could have stopped a debate for going on for centuries. In the first place, is absolutely no history about the poem’s origins, so this lead scholars to dig deep into the story to find out information. Again, a definite author isn’t known, so who wrote it, and what is it? Notably, an epic poem is a long narrative that features a variety of heroic characteristics. Furthermore, Beowulf is a heroic story of a brave man that battles an evil mother and her son, and also battles …show more content…
He is brave and doesn 't care about endangering his life for the safety of others. He defines what I would consider true hero. He has the personality of a hero, along with a lot of strength. Through my observations, I realized Beowulf is what we today would consider Spider-Man or Superman. They are willing to do what other wont just to save a life. On the other hand Cu Chulainn is not much of a hero but he does have heroic characteristics. He was a very young boy, only seven to be exact, when he started to impress people with his strength and skill. There is a very big difference between the two. Cu Chulainn used his skills, and strength more as a show off piece, and not to save others. He just wanted to boast, and do what others didn 't believe he could do. Some may say he was just giving others the example to not give up, while others argue he was just trying to show off. Either way people admired his strength and grown man skills he had at the age of seven. This comparison I believe shows the different characteristics that the Irish, and the English looked for in a hero. As noted, it appears that the Irish just want someone that is strong, and has a very high skill. It appears that the English consider someone that is willing risk his live to save …show more content…
Beowulf is doing all the brave thins he has done to help save another kings country. Why is this though? Why does he decide to do it? After observation I believe he also fell to some of the same pressure that Cu Chulainn. He didn 't do it just to pay back for the favor done for his dad. I believe Beowulf risking his life the first time and getting rid of Grendel was enough. He put his life, as well as the life of his men in danger. So why would he go back? This is where I believe he fell victim to being praised by others. I feel like he liked all the praise he was receiving from the members of his clan, along with the members of the clan he saved. Beowulf in the story took most of the credit for killing Grendel and his mother. Although he did acknowledge his crew, they didn 't receive all the praise that Beowulf did. Cu Chulainn on the other hand, didn 't use his skills to save people, although he was very honorable. Which leads me to my next topic in the comparison between the two