Achilles And Beowulf Comparison Essay

However, the ominous threat of his own death does not prevent Achilles from fighting valiantly. He slaughters rapidly and brutally, carving a clear path through the Trojans to Troy and to his own kleos. His incredible aristeia is fueled by a total, overwhelming desire to “meet...that Hector who destroyed the dearest life [he knew]” and kill him in battle (18.135-136). Despite his full awareness that killing Hector will destroy any

It is evident from the beginning of the poem that Beowulf is meant to be the hero. He is strong, brave, and courageous but is also boastful and seeks only fame and glory. These characteristics are examples of things that could be related to hyper masculinity and are not necessarily desired in a hero today. In the quote “They have seen my strength for themselves, Have watched me rise from the darkness of war, Dripping with my enemies' blood. I drove Five great giants into chains, chased All of that race from the earth.

The only thing on Achilles mind is killing Hector. Achilles is so angry at Hector that he only thinks about killing him and getting revenge. Achilles anger takes over his body and nothing can stop him from getting to Hector, not even the gods. Achilles finally gets to Hector and desecrates his body. Achilles does not give Hector or a proper burial instead he parades Hectors body on the back of his chariot.

He remained headstrong, stubborn and selfish in his actions, even warranting rebuke from the men on certain occasions. This is seen in the very first conflict that is witnessed on the pages of The Iliad. Agamemnon is faced with the request to give up his war prize, and immediately and indignantly decides against all the council of the army in order to keep his prize of a woman (28). With this decision, he sought his own desires selfishly and disconnected himself from the men he was meant to lead. Granted, he possessed a strong will, a thing very necessary for good leadership.

The text describes Beowulf’s strength by stating, “But Beowulf longed only for fame leaped back into battle. He tossed his sword aside, angry; the steel-edged blade lay where he dropped it. If weapons were useless he’d use his hands, the strength in his fingers.” (457-462). Beowulf realizes that his sword is ineffective against the mighty mother of Grendel.

Beowulf does this for "for the glory of winning" (2514). This shows that Beowulf was so powerful in battle that he doesn't have to struggle and enjoys his glory in winning. And he accomplishes this once again proving his strength in battle. In conclusion Beowulf is so powerful that he can enjoy his glory. This quote also show another trait of an epic hero which is the “fatal flaw.”

Everyone always feels the need to “get even” at someone for a wrongdoing. Getting revenge is what all creatures do at some point in their life. Throughout the Epic Poem Beowulf, everyone has a motive and some of the creatures are out for revenge. In the Epic Poem Beowulf, the unknown author uses the Universal Theme of Revenge, to represent the motivation for the monsters.

As has been noted, many of Beowulf 's characteristics are also shared by traditional epic heroes. He 's brave and never "cowers", defeats previously unbeatable monsters, comes from nobility, and has incredible superhuman strength. Beowulf can be compared to any other epic hero, and the similarities found between them will be never ending. However, there are other characteristics that the king of the Geats possesses which make him be very different from most epic heroes. First, there is the issue with Beowulf 's lack of a moral compass.

He has always pursued traditional goals familiar to Homer’s world and to many places in ours: help friends, harm enemies, earn honor for success in battle. Enraged by the tribunal’s failure to acknowledge his supreme martial skill, Ajax tries to murder all of the Greek leaders. After regaining his senses, Ajax makes this speech, which has the effect of misleading listeners into thinking that Ajax intends to soften and accept the tribunal’s decision, yet he claims that the Greek leaders are aiming to be more powerful than they should be. Ajax says “In future, then, we’ll know to yield to the gods / And learn how to revere the sons of Atreus” (666-667). For self-preservation, Ajax says that one should revere the gods and yield to the Greek leaders, but Ajax emphasizes the power-grabbing by reversing the verbs “yield”, and “revere.”

unlike Lancelot, The Knight of the Cart, Beowulf was not full of a want for the love of somebody else, but is instead an epic poem of a man with amazing strength, and power. With battles fought against monsters, and dragons for glory. Although the theme may have been different for these stories. The main characters shared a lot of the same heroic traits. For instance, Lancelot who was the most legendary of the round table for his strength in combat, and courageous determination.

The movie is said to be a clearly epic but fiction. It really teaches us how to be brave in every trial and challenge in life. The main character Beowulf faces many strong opponents but in the end he defeated all. Beowulf wanted to be honor by his fellow soldiers and for that reason he fiercely battled with the beast, Grendel, who ate all men in sight.

Personal Dragons “Problems may only be avoided by exercising good judgement. Good judgement may only be gained by experiencing life’s problems.” Everyone encounters and struggles with problems in their lives that hold them back. They can be internal or external. Some of them require little effort and can be defeated easily, for example, The hero Beowulf easily defeating Grendel.

The odds seem unlikely for a regular man; however, Beowulf is not like most men. Another trait of Beowulf includes his loyalty to his friends and family. Beowulf leaves his country to travel to an unknown land to defeat a monster who could kill him. He has the loyalty to this country which he has not even stepped foot on it. A couple of years after Grendel’s death, he becomes friends with the Danish king.

“Hero worship is natural to humans” (Scheske). There are two heroes who get worshiped; Beowulf and Achilles. Beowulf is important because he fought a monster to save a kingdom. Achilles is important because he fought to avenge his cousin’s death and also to help the Trojan war. Both if these heroes have courage and strength, but their values differ from each other.

Heroes are a rare and amazing phenomenon. Two heroes that stand out in literature are Beowulf and Achilles. Beowulf is a Herot who is a selfless, even tempered, fate fighting warriors who saves his kingdom numerous times from threats, such as monsters and enemies. Achilles is a Greek, selfish warriors in Greece but has a hot temper and is often unforgiving. Achilles wants to help take the kingdom of Troy, but doesn’t agree with the war.