Nassir Alnamah
English 2322
Larry Huff
Strands and Binaries
Oct 23, 2015
Mortality: The Determination of Heroes
Being a hero in the face of death, can be challenging for anyone. Many authors have
written about characters who face death and each one does it differently. Beowulf goes into
many battles and he was confident to be survive after each battle. This last until his final
battle when he goes to fight knowing he could come back to his kingdom after the end of
his battle. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain was brave enough to face the
Green Knight in the “beheading game,” but he became less confident when it comes to his
almost certain death. Gawain is not brave as much as Beowulf when it comes to be so
tough fight to the certain death. Beowulf embraces the idea of death and goes into his final
battle as a hero, while Gawain, out of fear, attempts to cheat death and fails to embody the
true identity of a hero. It is Beowulf’s acceptance of mortality which makes him a true
hero compared to Sir Gawain.
Beowulf is one of the oldest English epics. Beowulf is the story of a man rise to power
through heroic acts. Beowulf embodies the characteristics of a hero as bravery, physical
power, more than the average human. Beowulf like a super powerful man that he is not
fear death. These characteristics are demonstrated in Beowulf’s battle with Grendel.
Beowulf says, “When it comes to fighting, I count myself/ as dangerous any day as
