Evolution Of The Hero Essay

Submitted By wisebee87
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Pages: 3
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Keith Lyons Jr.
Civilization I
Discussion 6

In many earlier civilizations the hero has been seen to change and develop across cultures and as time has passed. Beowulf is the center of attention as a hero as he is an Anglo-Saxon warrior. In Anglo-Saxon culture a hero has to have all three strength, wisdom, and courage. Death for an Anglo-Saxon warrior is honorable and the courage they need to possess to be thought of as a warrior needs to be shown even if it means death. They must be willing to achieve glory through death. A major difference from other cultures until this point is that the Anglo-Saxon hero must be humble. Beowulf demonstrates this in his story as he defeats and kills Grendel’s mother and refuses to become king and gives away the treasures he has earned while emphasizing his loyalty to his current leader. Beowulf ultimately fights for his soldiers and his people.
Achilles is a Greek hero who is similar to Beowulf because he is considered to have super strength which seems to have made him a hero to the Greeks. Both Achilles and Beowulf have a final enemy and an upcoming battle. They both defeat their enemies easily and show their heroic features. Beowulf fights to protect the soldiers and his people, and to prove he is a worthy hero in his cultures eyes. Beowulf fights with courage and a sense of moral for his people. Beowulf’s motive is for ultimate glory and helping his people. Achilles fights for himself and does not bother to care what happens to his people. Achilles is consumed with anger, especially after his friend Patrocles is killed. Beowulf lacks this anger as well and fights for protection of his people. Achilles is motivated by anger and glory. Similar in strength Achilles and Beowulf are still both opposite in thought.
Augustus is a Roman hero who can be compared to Beowulf. Augustus was a Roman ruler who was prideful, and loyal. He listened and cared about his soldiers and they thought of him as a great leader in turn. During this time period the culture looked up to intelligence, leadership quality, and valued more ethical beliefs. Because of his leadership qualities he was given legal power over Rome’s religious, civil, and military affairs, as an advisory body to the Senate. He was able to restore peace to Rome after 100 years of civil war, maintain an honest government, connect Rome to its empire with highways, develop a currency system, and encourage free trade, construction and art works (History.com Staff). Augustus is more like Beowulf than Achilles as he puts his people first and has a sense of wisdom and ethical ramifications.
The qualities of each hero reflect their cultures. Achilles reflects the raw Greek emotion of showing brute strength and letting nothing stand in ones way to accomplish
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