In World Literature we are discussing the topic of superheroes. What are superheroes? And can your average person who does a great deed be considered a superhero? There is clearly a difference between a hero and a superhero. A superhero is a hero that goes above and beyond what is required of him or her. To be considered a superhero a superhero needs some kind of “super” power, they have to be courageous and have an antagonist. Super heroes are typically well known and defend the weak in the name of justice.
What makes a superhero a superhero?
· Super Power
· Courage/ Brave
· Beats Adversity
· Defends the weak/Justice
· Has values
· Cause
· Back story
· A weakness/ Kryptonite
· Publicly Known
In the poem Beowulf, the protagonist Beowulf seems to be a superhero but there is a lot of skepticism over whether or not he is. I believe Beowulf is a hero because he has most of the traits that a superhero consists of. Beowulf is courageous he shows no fear when he agrees to fight Grendel with no weapons. Super strength is Beowulf’s “super” power he manages to rip off Grendel’s arm with his bare hands. No average man could do that. He has more power or strength than a normal man who could be considered a hero. Beowulf beats adversity by succeeding in getting rid of Grendel like he promised. He was doubted by Unferth but in the end he proved himself. After defeating Grendel Beowulf’s story was told by many throughout the land. Beowulf doesn’t seem to have a weakness so far in the poem. He is very cocky and proud but for the most part he has a reason to be. Beowulf has defeated Grendel, his mother and a dragon. He like many other superheroes has to defeat a number of villains which makes them more publicly known and admired.To the Danes and maybe even the Geats Beowulf really is a superhero. He has done what the Danes and so many other people from other lands have tried to do for years in one single night. To the people of Heorot Beowulf has brought them justice and happiness.
A little off topic but after reading the first part of the poem it wasn’t clear to me if Beow and Beowulf was the same person. On page 1566 in our book the caption said that the person who wrote the poem jumped to the protagonist I’m guessing they made a mistake. I’m pretty sure they aren’t the same person because Hrothgar was old by that time and his grandfather Beow would be dead or pretty old by then. However when I compared the version in our book to another version online when they talked about Hrothgar’s grandfather his name was Beowulf. This just confused me.
Word Count: 474
Word Count: 474
Ariel, regarding your question, the manuscript itself says "Beowulf", but most scholars believe that the scribe just got ahead of himself or that there was another person named Beowulf. Near immortality is not something we should ascribe to Beowulf. Most likely it's a different character.
ReplyDeleteOne of the interesting things about this poem is the fact that there are a lot of names dropped toward the beginning that don't seem to have a lot of relevance to the poem. I wonder if the original audience knew who all these people were or if they were just a way of giving a broader feel to the poem than it had originally. Tolkien does the same thing in Lord of the Rings, bringing up lands and people in passing that make the world feel more vibrant and alive.
I agree when you said, “To the Danes and maybe even the Geats Beowulf really is a superhero, “because in my opinion I think Beowulf is a superhero but in his time era he lives in. You brought up good points that I didn’t think Beowulf had as a superhero. And I think Beowulf’s weakness is his arrogance and being cocky. Overall good post.
ReplyDeleteHi Ariel. What I found interesting is that you pointed out that Beowulf does not have any weaknesses. While reading this I had to stop myself and ask "really?? Every superhero has a weakness!" Well, it looks like his weakness is more human, such as old age. I also like how you mentioned that Beowulf could be a superhero through the eyes of the Geats and Danes.
ReplyDeleteI find what Mr. B said in his comment about creating extra characters and places to make the world more vibrant and alive intriguing; especially in the Super Hero discussion. I took a writing class when I was at Boise State University, and we talked a lot about good, effective, powerful writing. One of our discussions was "Show don't Tell". We talked about different levels of writing and the most effective way to write a good story. The first level would be to tell what is going on. It’s ok, but won’t keep them interested. You don’t want to just tell someone about it, you want them to see it. So the second level would be to show, to write in a way that your reader is looking at a picture, but often that's still not enough to keep a reader interested. The third is Disconnected Experience where you write in a way that makes the reader feel they are there in person. This is a good start but the best is Connected Experience. This is writing in a way that your reader becomes one of the characters and feels, sees, and thinks the way they do. They become part of the world you’ve created and they’ll stay there until something is out of place or unbelievable. If you’re good, you can get them to read your story cover to cover feeling that they were actually there. When thinking about Beowulf the story line is great, but the wording is what keeps many people disconnected from the story.
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