Compare And Contrast Beowulf And Odysseus
Beowulf and Odysseus; two heroes in literature. They are similar in many ways. They both share the traits of an epic hero, however, they are different from each other in many ways.
Both Beowulf and Odysseus have the traits of an epic hero: bravery, courage, leadership, strength, craving for fame and glory, among other things. Beowulf exemplifies bravery, courage and strength when he goes off to fight the monster Grendel so that he can no longer terrorized of people of Danesland. He feels a certain responsibility to protect people, which is common characteristic of an epic hero. When he defeats Grendel he is hailed as a hero, he receives fame throughout the kingdom for his deed. Beowulf seeks fame and glory even in his old age when he goes …show more content…
They both handle them well, but in very different ways. Beowulf uses his strength, while Odysseus uses he intelligence. When Beowulf was trapped in the claws of Grendel's mother he uses his strength to cut her head off with a sword. "Then he saw, hanging on the wall, a heavy sword... He drew it from its scabbard, broke the chain on its hilt, and then, savage, now, angry and desperate, lifted it high over his head and struck with a the strength he had left, caught her in the neck and cut it through, broke bone and all.''(513-523, p423). Odysseus uses his intelligence and cleverness in a situation where he is in danger. When Odysseus and his men must find a way out of Polyphemus's cave, he comes up with a brilliant way to get away. He gets Polyphemus drunk and tells him that his name is nobody so that he will yell that nobody is hurting him when he Odysseus blinds him. Then Odysseus and his men hide under the bellies of Polyphemus's sheep so that he wont see or feel them. This allows Odysseus and his men can escape from the cave and leave the island. Odysseus uses his wit to escape when he has no other options.
Beowulf and Odysseus are two epic heroes. They both exhibit attributes of an epic hero: bravery, courage, leadership, etc.. They often chose to handle situations differently but their choices are heroic
Both Beowulf and Odysseus have the traits of an epic hero: bravery, courage, leadership, strength, craving for fame and glory, among other things. Beowulf exemplifies bravery, courage and strength when he goes off to fight the monster Grendel so that he can no longer terrorized of people of Danesland. He feels a certain responsibility to protect people, which is common characteristic of an epic hero. When he defeats Grendel he is hailed as a hero, he receives fame throughout the kingdom for his deed. Beowulf seeks fame and glory even in his old age when he goes …show more content…
They both handle them well, but in very different ways. Beowulf uses his strength, while Odysseus uses he intelligence. When Beowulf was trapped in the claws of Grendel's mother he uses his strength to cut her head off with a sword. "Then he saw, hanging on the wall, a heavy sword... He drew it from its scabbard, broke the chain on its hilt, and then, savage, now, angry and desperate, lifted it high over his head and struck with a the strength he had left, caught her in the neck and cut it through, broke bone and all.''(513-523, p423). Odysseus uses his intelligence and cleverness in a situation where he is in danger. When Odysseus and his men must find a way out of Polyphemus's cave, he comes up with a brilliant way to get away. He gets Polyphemus drunk and tells him that his name is nobody so that he will yell that nobody is hurting him when he Odysseus blinds him. Then Odysseus and his men hide under the bellies of Polyphemus's sheep so that he wont see or feel them. This allows Odysseus and his men can escape from the cave and leave the island. Odysseus uses his wit to escape when he has no other options.
Beowulf and Odysseus are two epic heroes. They both exhibit attributes of an epic hero: bravery, courage, leadership, etc.. They often chose to handle situations differently but their choices are heroic