Beowulf, an epic poem written in Old English, reflects many of the ideals of Anglo-Saxon society that we have seen. Many of these Anglo-Saxon ideals include: admiration for exceptional courage, belief in the importance of loyalty to a leader and to the tribe, value of proud personal valor, welcoming people of rank with grave courtesy, the ruler was expected to be generous . to those who were loyal and vice versa to those who were not, in turn everything was thought to be determined by an impersonal and irresistible destiny, finally everyone competed for fame, the only thing that would ever last. In Anglo-Saxon times a hero would be best defined as someone with the likeness of Beowulf. Beowulf, considered a perfect and humble hero, can only be described as someone who shares these ideals. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Beowulf's ideal is related to those of Kings, in the sense of how a King manages his kingdom and his men. The kings of the epic poem are those of the Middle Ages, while those of the Anglo-Saxon era were not really kings but those who instead ruled large lands or pieces of territory. But the similarities between the two are very great. The kings mentioned in Anglo-Saxon times ruled over a piece of land and some people, however, on a hill or two there would be another "king" who ruled his piece of land, and so on. All it took for a person to be displaced was for one “king” to attack and take control of another “king’s” territory. Grendel is the main example of this in the story. Beowulf comes across as rather brash and selfish, but to Anglo-Saxon society this was something they appreciated. Beowulf, in Anglo-Saxon society, would have been considered a bold and confident young man, proud of his actions and capable of using his past efforts to motivate himself towards future success. This society believed in a concept of revenge which resulted in a cycle of revenge. If someone killed one of your men, you were obligated to avenge his death, but then that group was obligated to avenge that death. This is the evidence found in Beowulf's killing of Grendel, but Grendel's mother seeks revenge. (Lines 90-104) The cycle ends only because there is no one left to carry on the legacy. The Anglo-Saxons also believed in the concept of destiny, called wyrd. There are numerous different references to the wyrd in the text, so while the characters take actions to defeat their enemies, they are also aware that fate has a hand in man's situations and outcomes. “Each of us must wait for the end of his journey in this world, and whoever can, should achieve fame before death! This is the best memorial when life has passed and the days of a warrior are told. (Chapter XXI line 3-5.) Loyalty, as shown in this quote, was also another important concept in Anglo-Saxon times. Loyalty was something of the utmost importance to the king and his ilk. Something along the lines of breaking this would mean total punishment and betrayal in the eyes of one's comrades. “And a young prince must be so prudent, giving freely while his father lives so that later, when the war begins, faithful companions will stand by him and hold the line. Admired behavior is the path to power among people around the world.” (lines 20–25) As stated before, Grendel is considered one of the examples of unfavorable Anglo-Saxon ideals. Depicted as a monster or giant, Grendel is feared by all except Beowulf. Grendel is the concept of greed and corruption of men and power in Anglo-Saxon "royalty". The dragon he spoke to.". .