Comparing Beowulf And John Gardner's Gren

The idea of a hero is explored differently in the ancient Anglo-Saxon text Beowulf and John Gardner’s Grendel. During the time period of both of the stories being a hero is very important to everyone. Beowulf is not a true hero, even if he tries to make himself out to seem like a true hero, based on modern ideas of the Hero.

In the poem Beowulf being a hero is very important to the main character Beowulf. Beowulf has been known for who his father is. Everywhere he goes the first thing he tells people is who his father is and what his father has accomplished. “My father was a famous soldier, known far and wide as a leader of men. His name was Edgetho.” (pg. 46). He says that his father is one of the most famous soldiers around. Now that is the way the poem “Beowulf” talk about heroic but the “Grendel” has a different way of looking at it.

In Gardner’s Novel “Grendel”, the idea of being a hero look at being the inner hero not just a hero on the outside.

Grendel thinks at first that Unferth is not an honorable man but when he says he really doesn’t care what happens to him only he knows what happens there that is the only thing that matter. “But Unferth didn 't. "Or lies here," he said. "A hero is not afraid to face cruel truth." That reminded him, apparently, of what he 'd meant to say before. "You talk of heroism as noble language, dignity. It 's more than that, as my coming here has proved. No man above us will ever know whether Unferth died here or fled to the hills like a coward.” (pg. 64). This is where Grendel realizes that Unferth really is a good man.

The idea of heroism can have very different meanings as you can see in these short stories. Everyone has their own way of thinking about heroism most people think that Beowulf is a huge hero. But really Unferth is the real hero because he doesn’t care whether other people see him being a hero. He just want to make sure that he and god know what he really