Beowulf and Modern Day Hero
Jason Belcher
Mr. Lavender
World Literature
16 July 2009 This essay is the comparison between Beowulf and the modern day hero. All soldiers that are fighting for my country certainly comes to mind first, when I think about a modern day hero. Both hero’s are fighting for a good cause, get rewarded for what they do, and get treated with much respect. Although a soldier might not withhold unworldly strength as one such as Beowulf, they both are putting their life at stake, which gives them both the title as being a hero. Both the U.S soldier and Beowulf portray characteristics of a hero. Courage, bravery, and selflessness all play a huge role in their lives. Although one is past and the other present, hero is the only word that comes to mind. They are standing up for what is right, and putting their life on the line at the same time. Running away would be the easy thing to do, but not for a hero. It seems as if the word hero is thrown out into our everyday vocabulary. Almost as if someone everyday becomes a hero. Hitting a homerun, Scoring the winning touchdown, or taking down your high school prom queen does not deserve recognition as a hero. It’s not something that happens merely overnight.
The first comparison is how they are fighting for a good cause. Beowulf is challenged when he receives word from Hrothgar that a monster has come to mead hall and is destroying all his men. I’m sure he was at least scared a little bit. If I heard of a monster that was eating all sort of human beings, there is no way you would ever find me anywhere close to that place. He goes on to defeat not only one monster, but three. The soldiers are doing basically the same. Fighting the enemy, promoting morality, and to stop the suffering of innocent people. They are also trying to promote peace amongst a country that is constantly harassed by the Taliban, which could be considered the modern day monster. In addition, both hero’s are involved in many difficult tasks. They
Mr. Lavender
World Literature
16 July 2009 This essay is the comparison between Beowulf and the modern day hero. All soldiers that are fighting for my country certainly comes to mind first, when I think about a modern day hero. Both hero’s are fighting for a good cause, get rewarded for what they do, and get treated with much respect. Although a soldier might not withhold unworldly strength as one such as Beowulf, they both are putting their life at stake, which gives them both the title as being a hero. Both the U.S soldier and Beowulf portray characteristics of a hero. Courage, bravery, and selflessness all play a huge role in their lives. Although one is past and the other present, hero is the only word that comes to mind. They are standing up for what is right, and putting their life on the line at the same time. Running away would be the easy thing to do, but not for a hero. It seems as if the word hero is thrown out into our everyday vocabulary. Almost as if someone everyday becomes a hero. Hitting a homerun, Scoring the winning touchdown, or taking down your high school prom queen does not deserve recognition as a hero. It’s not something that happens merely overnight.
The first comparison is how they are fighting for a good cause. Beowulf is challenged when he receives word from Hrothgar that a monster has come to mead hall and is destroying all his men. I’m sure he was at least scared a little bit. If I heard of a monster that was eating all sort of human beings, there is no way you would ever find me anywhere close to that place. He goes on to defeat not only one monster, but three. The soldiers are doing basically the same. Fighting the enemy, promoting morality, and to stop the suffering of innocent people. They are also trying to promote peace amongst a country that is constantly harassed by the Taliban, which could be considered the modern day monster. In addition, both hero’s are involved in many difficult tasks. They