Beowulfs Leadership - Essay Example

Beowulf
Beowulf is a very physically and emotionally strong person and this strength is seen from his youth up to his older years as a king. Physically, he was able to defeat Grendel the monster who had terrorized King Hrooger and his people and who even killed one of Beowulf’s men. This he did without any weapon whatsoever and he showed no fear when confronting the monster (Haley, 13). His emotional strength is also eminent when he lacks fear even after it seemed that Grendel’s mother was going to defeat him in their fierce fight in the lake. His emotions do not waver and this enables him to find the magic sword and kill her with it.

Beowulf can be said to have been a mature leader since his youthful years until he became the King of Gates and up to his death. This is evidenced in the way he handled the first war with Grendel (where he preferred not to use any weapons so as not to disadvantage the dragon but give him a chance to also fight back with no fear of being at a loss), and also in the second war with Grendel’s mother (he did not want his warriors to be left alone and deserted in case he died in the lake during the battle with the clearly angry and furious woman and he, therefore, gave a set of instructions to the King including that his warriors and his kinsmen be given an inheritance and a place to live in case he died).
His unwavering leadership is another of the characteristics of this hero Beowulf who led his warriors and eventually the Geats people with wisdom and bravery. He puts the needs of the people before him and thinks more about them than about himself even to his death. In the three fights (Grendel’s, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon) his leadership characteristic makes him avoid putting his own warriors in danger and therefore he fights the battles alone. In his last battle, he justified fighting the dragon alone and letting the warriors watch from afar by saying that the people of Gates will need someone to defend them in case he dies.

He is intelligent especially in the use of his superhero powers and waits until the last minute when the enemy has exhausted his or her strength to strike and make the final death blow. This is shown in the battle with Grendel where he swings on Grendel’s arm when Grendel thinks that he is asleep in the hall. They fight while he is still pulling his arm until the dragon is exhausted and Beowulf tears his arm from the shoulder and Grendel goes to die next to his mother in the lake. The battle with Grendel’s mother is no different either, this time he wears body armor for protection and he lets the woman use all her strength to fight him under the protection of the armor and when she seems exhausted, he uses the magic sword to slay her head and that of her son too.