Beowulf Selfish Hero Essay - 996 Words

The Selfish Hero In the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, the stupendous hero’s many great deeds often appear to be for other’s benefit, yet Beowulf’s final conquest exposes his lust for glory and fame, thereby showing his lack of concern for anything else. This lust for immense glory and fame feeds his ego and causes his death and the imminent downfall of his great people the Geats. Throughout the poem, Beowulf’s deeds seem marvelous and good, yet in end his deeds are shown to be done solely out of lust for glory. The first indication of this occurs when Unferth interrogates Beowulf on Beowulf losing a simple race. Beowulf immediately counters this criticism with a boast stating he lost the race to save sailors, â€Å"From now on sailors would†¦show more content†¦Again in this fight, he only wins by finding a magic sword, but no one questions his luck and the people of Heorot celebrate his great triumphs. Thus, through his unquestioned luck, Beowu lf grows greatly in fame and glory and he enjoys it. Finally, after many years, Beowulf goes on to face his final opponent; the Dragon. After the Dragon has been set on a rampage against the Geats, Beowulf declares in his last boast that, selfishly, he will defeat the Dragon alone, â€Å"Beowulf spoke, made a formal boast for the last time: I risked my life often when I was young. Now I am old, but as king of the people I shall pursue this fight for the glory of winning† (2510-14). Beowulf’s emphasis in his formal boast is about â€Å"the glory of winning† instead of expressing concern for his people. Beowulf, this entire time, has not been fighting monsters for the Geats or to help others. In this formal boast he directly reveals his true intentions of gaining glory. He even states right afterwards that if he were stronger he would fight the dragon without a weapon, just as he did Grendel, â€Å"I would rather not use a weapon if I knew any other way† (2 518-19), but alas he has grown old and realizes he needs the help of a blade to slay the Dragon. Then he speaks to his comrades about the battle, stating that he alone will fight the Dragon and must either win the fight with courage orShow MoreRelatedEssay on Does the Hero Decline in the Epic of Beowulf?1482 Words   |  6 PagesDoes the Hero Decline in Beowulf?      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Beowulf, a rousing Old English poem of man and monster, narrates the rise and fall of a superhuman hero named Beowulf. It is the interpretation of some readers that he declines markedly through the poem. This essay will explore that point of view. 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