Heroes of Today: Beowulf.

Heroes. The word hero has such a diverse meaning, depending on the time setting and the circumstances. A great hero does not necessarily need a great cause. The littlest of things can be heroic to some but mean nothing to others. I work as a lifeguard at a local lake community and last year our theme for our social event at the beach was "American Heroes". Each family made a poster to recognize a particular …

…seen as the more heroic of the sexes. Possibly because many see the duties of a hero involving great physical strength, and that is one of the major characteristics of men (most of the time anyway). In the poem Beowulf, there are some female characters, such as Welthow, who could be viewed as heroes. However, as a reader, one does not know enough about this character yet to say she is heroic in any way.