Beowulf Vs Achilles Research Paper

Beowulf is the epic hero from the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, written by an unknown poet. Achilles is the epic hero from the Greek poem The Iliad, written by Homer. Beowulf details a Geat warrior who travels overseas to rescue a tribe called the Danes from two ferocious and murderous monsters, and The Iliad details a warrior who battles an enemy during the time of the Trojan War. Beowulf and Achilles are both headstrong and resilient warriors who, in the stories in which they were created, perfectly embody heroism as well as their cultures. While Beowulf and Achilles both have their fair share of favorable and unfavorable characteristics, Beowulf would be a much better fit for modern times.
Achilles is the greatest warrior in the Greek army, and like any exemplary hero, he is resolute and possesses incredible strength and toughness. Nevertheless, his numerous disagreeable traits overshadow his few agreeable ones. He is merciless, indignant, selfish, and vindictive. To
illustrate an act that portrays some of these characteristics, there is a battle which includes Achilles and Hector, the man who killed Achilles’ best friend Patroclus thinking it was Achilles. Hector requests that his body not be mutilated and instead be sent to his people if he dies. To that, Achilles responds, “So with you and me. No love between us. No truce / till one or the other falls and gluts with blood / Ares who hacks at men behind his rawhide shield” (“from The Iliad…” ln. 90-92). This precisely exemplifies how much of a terrible fit he would be for modern times.
Beowulf is not perfect by any means; he has quite a few character flaws, but overall, he is a better man, a better hero, and a better fit for modern times. Some of Beowulf’s unpromising attributes are his pride and his tendency to boast and be obstinate. In spite of that, Beowulf is strong, resourceful, courageous, loyal, and reliable. As he ages and develops as a man, he becomes an even better and more mature hero. He battles two threatening monsters with no assurance of making it out alive, and then he returns home where he eventually becomes the king fifty years later. While he is the king, he faces his final and most arduous battle yet against a fire-breathing dragon. Before he sets off for this battle, he says to his men, “Men at arms, remain here on the barrow, / safe in your armour, to see which one of us is better in the end at bearing wounds in a deadly fray. This fight is not yours, nor is it up to any man except me…” (“from Beowulf” ln. 679-683).
Beowulf and Achilles, in point of fact, have one particular characteristic in common, and that is their blood-lust.
This is the defining characteristic in which they both share, yet it is only a relatively positive quality for Beowulf. For Achilles, his blood-lust is rooted in anger and in a personal desire for vengeance. His intentions are anything but good and heroic. For Beowulf, it appears to be the exact opposite. Beowulf has this blood-lust only in regard to saving a tribe and making amends with their king. For example, when Beowulf finally arrives to see the Danes, he tells their king, Hrothgar, “...I, alone and with the help of my men, / May purge all evil from this hall” (“from Beowulf” ln. 165-166). He is making an extraordinarily heroic promise, and he is proving to everyone that his blood-lust contributes towards saving them. Even though Beowulf and Achilles have that same quality, Beowulf has it for the right reasons, and that makes him a much better hero than Achilles in that
aspect.
Taking all of the information into account, Beowulf and Achilles are both fantastic warriors with immense strength and power. They always put everything they have out during battle, and they never stray away from what they desire. Notwithstanding, modern times have a different way of viewing things, and the standard of what it is to be a hero has altered tremendously. To really fit into modern times, one has to be resourceful and loyal and reliable, not crazy and violent and vindictive. If you understand the distinction between Beowulf and Achilles along with what it means to truly fit into modern times, it is completely effortless to understand why Beowulf would simply be the better fit.