This fiend is a bold and famous fighter, but his claws and. scratching at my shield, his clumsy fists beating at my sword blade, would be helpless. I will meet him with my hands empty- unless his heart fails him, seeing a soldier waiting weaponless, unafraid. Let God in His wisdom extend His had where He wills, reward whom He chooses!” It is no secret that Beowulf kills Grendel with his bare hands. He had the courage to go up against this monster without any weapons and he had the power to defeat him.
This is no greater evil now than it was when the Cyclops had us cooped in his hollow cave by force and violence, but even there, by my courage and counsel and my intelligence, we escaped away. I think that all this will be remembered some day too. Then do as I say, let us all be won over.”’ (12.208-213). In this passage Odysseus shows that he has undeniable courage and he knows it, he knows he is a hero. Odysseus’s quest was a personal one, he wanted to return home to Ithaca and reunite with his family.
Odysseus is described as being a hero, who is very smart and courageous. In Book Nine his ships land on the island of the Cyclops. He and his men venture out onto the land to take a look around. When they return to the ship he tells his men that he and his crew will sail to the Cyclops shore to see who is living there, “What are they- violent, savage, lawless? Or friendly to strangers, god- fearing men?” (9.195-196) When Odysseus meets the Cyclops he is scared at first but then he gets some nerve and explains to the Cyclops who they are.
When odysseus and his crew landed on the land of the Cyclopes, Odysseus could’ve demand to run away, yet he decided to stay. That is what caused him to lose a few of his men. He could’ve saved himself some time, and maybe would’ve been able to get back home sooner. To escape from the Cyclops’ cave, Odysseus blinded the Cyclops, which caused Poseidon to get angry. If I were to be in Odysseus situation, I would not make any of the gods mad, especially the god of the sea.
Is Beowulf an Epic? The literary work Beowulf is an epic because of the epic qualities present throughout this legendary work that originated in the Anglo-Saxon period. An epic is credited by several factors: the ideal man of his culture, a setting which covers great geographical distances, and deeds of valor or superhuman courage. Beowulf was well respected as a leader and warrior, as he was of high importance/A prince of the Geats (line 830). Beowulf traveled to Geatland to hopefully terminate the monster Grendel’s terror/ Across the sea to Geatland (line 297)/ He who had come to them from across the sea (line 825).
He encounters some trouble with Jack, who wants to be the leader and have his own rules. In Lord of the Flies, their civilization starts off with order because they’ve got one ruler who knows what’s best and wants everything to go right so that they can be rescued. Ralph gets voted in to be the leader by the others boys on the island with him. He makes the boys have meetings everyday to build structure and keep the order going on the island. They use a conch shell to symbolize who has the right to talk and for everyone to listen too.
We should have perished ourselves in that place, dead and done for; we could never have moved the great stone which he had planted in the doorway” (112). This quote explains how Odysseus considered killing the Cyclops. But he restrained himself from doing so for he and his men would not have been able to remove the giant stone. All of them would have been condemned to stay in the cave if he had not stopped himself from murdering the Cyclops. In the end it was his restraint that got them out of there alive.
Beowulf responds reassuringly, telling of how he had killed nine sea monsters and had swum faster than Brecca did from the beginning. Had a flood not swept him away, or the monsters distracted him, it would have been Beowulf who was to meet victory. Beowulf, by the end of the seventh segment, has shown confidence in his abilities to destroy Grendel, and everyone is positively convinced (besides Unferth) of his combat abilities-- a heavenly blessing from God. When the time has come for Beowulf and Grendel to battle, the author truly conveys Beowulf as the archetypal hero
First, Beowulf has come to Herot particularly to liberate Herot from the demon Grendel who has wreaked havoc on the mead hall for the last twelve years. Secondly, as Beowulf retells his story of his swimming match against Breca, the reader realizes that Beowulf has great stamina or fortitude that no one can compare to his. Even though Beowulf officially lost the match to Breca, Beowulf indicates to Unferth, who has been questioning his heroic status that he is truly a brave and valiant warrior. At the end of the battle, the narrator features Grendel's defeat to God's power. The theme that we might get from Beowulf victory is that courage and bravery will always prevail.
Oedipus’ knowledge had helped him solve the riddle and made him famous, which led the way for his future. “Who did arise and stand betwixt death and our land.” Once Oedipus had solved the riddle he had been made King. His power grew as he rose to the occasion when his country was faced with struggles and he solved them. Oedipus’ country was weak and looking for a strong leader for guidance. “Who, shooting far beyond the rest, won wealth all-blest, slaying Zeus, thy monster maid.” In the beginning years of his life Oedipus had many great accomplishments leading up to him becoming king such as solving the sphinx riddle and solving the town’s problems.