Beowulf, as he appears in the epic poem and in the movie, represents the traditional hero:
strong, brave, ready to sacrifice himself for the good of others and his country, and guided
by a deep sense of honor. Today, even if we live in a completely different world, the need for
heroes has not disappeared: it has just taken new forms.
In our society, heroes are not only warriors who fight real monsters, but people who face real
and everyday challenges. I think that today, with globalization and the easy sharing of stories
from all around the world, a hero does not need to be only an important political figure or
someone who donates part of their money to charities; a hero can also be a person we meet
on the street, like a parent who works many hours to give their family a good life.
However, I think we can all be heroes, although we think about heroism in a larger way: for
example, doctors who work in emergencies and who faced Covid-19, or activists who fight
for the environment or human rights. These are people who, like Beowulf, decide to put their
personal interests away for fighting big crises and symbolic “monsters” like sickness,
injustice, the fear to speak, or indifference.
Also, I believe that today a hero is not perfect, and can show weakness. This shows how
many possibilities there are to “be a hero” in everyday life, because even if they have lacks,
a common hero chooses not to be controlled by them. For me, heroism is not something
impossible to reach, but it is not enough to want it — you have to act.
