Beowulf the Modern Murderer

Beowulf does represent what a hero should be in the literal terms of the meaning of the word hero, which is more focused on the concept of courage rather than doing what is right. If Beowulf was a modern day hero his mantle of esteemed skill and power that seems to be closer to the magic creatures that he is intending to kill rather than the humans he seems so fond of, would mean that he died faster than he could swing his blade. A contemporary hero of our time is Captain America courageous, kind, and stands for justice, what America stood for at the time of his birth. This hero was a symbol of hope but modern hope and the ideology of trying to save everyone doesn’t grow well in the time of Beowulf’s upbringing. Courage and the traits of what make a hero great are relative to the time the story is told. Why do hero’s kill if the point of one is to protect?

            Tough over the top reinforced masculinity is how Beowulf would be described to anyone wondering what he’s like in person. If Beowulf operated under the same morals and principles with feminism added into his minds medieval mix, the same character would still want to kill the “bad guys”. But with the added bonus of believing that women weren’t created to serve his every need because he felt that he deserved it. This would also make him a more controversial character considering the time frame he lived in. Also contrary to popular belief if Beowulf was a feminist that doesn’t automatically mean that he would become female. Beowulf without his skills in combat is nothing more than a man who likes to tell of his skill but always wants to put I on display the next day. I would argue that Captain America is a greater hero in the context of what defines one. For Captain America without his powers he was still a hero though only one without the farthest reach and broadest skillset, he was chosen to take on great power because he was a strong person morally. Beowulf is strong morally but only to serve the purpose of killing one thing so it doesn’t kill another.

            Is someone considered still considered a hero if they continually have to kill in order to achieve their desired outcome. How would you call someone a hero if they kill more than the monsters that they need to stop, it’s a type of bloodshed that happens so often you can’t distinguish the innocents blood between the evil. Good and bad are both relative concepts and are greatly defined by the perspective of the character. Something small to Beowulf such as killing Grendal would seem almost traumatizing to someone such as Captain America. Morals and how those morals influence characters actions define characters as either good or bad according to the story’s reader. Someone such as Captain America reading about the tales of a young up and coming hero killing monsters and sacrificing his friends in the process would see some more evil in the story then just that of the monsters.