The True Virtues of a Hero: From Old Age to New Age Essay Example

The Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Periods shape the view of a gallant from day one till now. From the tales of Beowulf, Le Morte d’ Arthur, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, an epic hero’s persona becomes the ideal image of an admirable character. Regardless of all the faults encountered, with certain characteristics such as honor, courage, loyalty, and honesty, an epic hero can mean so much to an individual. Just as the old ages, not every individual can have the full combination of a hero. As years past and time changes, these virtues still remain the same. Till this day, anyone with courage, loyalty, and honesty, deserves to be honored. Those individuals are the ones that young children look up to the most; those are the true heroes of our lives. Beowulf went through various battles throughout his entire life. Even before crowning him King, he led the Geats to many defeats. When Hrothgar tells Beowulf about Grendel attacking his men in Herot, Beowulf gladly takes the honor to defeat Grendel and makes sure he does not come near Herot and Hrothgar’s men again. For a fact, Grendel was a big creature, the Danes were afraid of him and so was everyone else. They didn’t know how to defeat such a creature. As for Beowulf, without knowing where he’s putting his life, he decides to battle Grendel. With courage and bravery, Beowulf breaks Grendel’s arm off and sends him running back home to his mother. Not only does Beowulf challenge Grendel, he also challenges Grendel’s mother when she comes back for revenge for what he did to her son. With another brave defeat, Beowulf slowly builds up his heroic ego. His finally and last battle with the dragon brings forth his true virtues within his heart. He takes on the dragon knowing there is a high possibility he wouldn’t be able to make it through this challenge. Battling a creature much stronger than him, Beowulf puts forth the courage to protect his people and decides to battle the dragon all by himself. He stands alone while