Comparing Beowulf And Achilles A Hero As A Hero - 829 Words

The world we live in today sure loves it’s heroes, don’t we? Superman, Batman, Spiderman, all of them are multi-million dollar franchises that have remained relevant in pop-culture for years! But one has to wonder, â€Å"Why?†, why are â€Å"heroes† so important in the world of today, and how did they get started? Well, the second question is easy to answer, they were inspired by ancient heroes in the spirit of Beowulf and Achilles. Now, they were very similar to each other; but they had their differences too. No well written character is a hero â€Å"just because they are†, they need to have a motive for their actions, and it’s often a personal reason. Even back when Achilles was fighting for the Greek Empire, he initially wanted little to do with the†¦show more content†¦Just so, Achilles murderously cleft the air, as Hector ran with flashing knees along the wall.† Here, Achilles is described as so fast and dangerous, that Hector is as easy a kill as a pigeon to a hawk. Beowulf in stark contrast, had little of any special note. All that really set him apart was how strong he was, which to be fair, he was really strong. â€Å"The monster’s hatred rose higher, but his power had gone. He twisted in pain. And the bleeding sinews deep in his shoulder snapped, muscle and bone split and broke.† He decided to fight Grendel hand-to-hand since Grendel uses no weapons, and Beowulf managed to rip Grendel’s arm straight from his shoulder. Keep in min d that Grendel is the crazy strong demon that kills and carries away several hundred pounds of warriors daily. It doesn’t matter how crazy powerful you are, if you don’t have the courage, resolve, or better yet bravery to use your abilities, than you are no hero. A hero needs the bravery to achieve the goals they set. Achilles didn’t get involved initially for his own reasons. â€Å"I was not there. All childishness. Though distant then, Patroclus’ comrade in arms was greater far than he- and it is I who had been left behind that day beside the deep-sea ships who now have made your knees give way. He initially refused to get involved, but when someone killed his best friend, he charged intoShow MoreRelatedComparing the Characters of Beowulf and Achilles1291 Words   |  5 PagesComparing and Contrasting Beowulf and Achilles Both Beowulf and Achilles are poetic characters, who hail from different eras of history and different cultural backgrounds. While each is unique in his own way, the two heroes also share similar characteristics. This paper will compare and contrast the medieval Germanic hero Beowulf with the classical Greek hero Achilles (of Homers Iliad), and show how the two are similar and how the two are different. 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