Heroes as Seen in World History - Essay Example

College - Civilization English 13 Nov. 2006 Describe and discuss at length the evolution of the concept of the hero in the history and literature of the ancient and medieval world. Be certain to analyze what each society expected to learn from these heroic figures and whether they were indeed models. Heroes are praised for certain qualities by the audience. There is a relation between heroes and the communities they belong to. Society values those heroic qualities, which are important in determining heroism. Heroes are praised for their valor and bravery in superlative degrees like the most beautiful youth, the greatest warrior, and the humblest knight. These qualities help the hero to go after a bigger achievement. The Medieval heroes Beowulf, Sir Gawain and King Arthur are heroes for different reasons. Beowulf is brave but his purpose is dissimilar to that of Sir Gawain and King Arthur. Sir Gawain attaches greater importance to personal honor and gallantry. King Arthur, Sir Gawain’s uncle, is the perfect example of a king of medieval period. The stories revolve around the basic heroic qualities of the heroes, helping or obstructing them in their journeys. Beowulf’s biggest quality is his bravery – to act instantly without thinking about the results. No doubt, he is a great warrior but his time period is different from the time of king Arthur or Sir Gawain. His boastful talk of his bravery sometimes seems unheroic when he tells Unferth “I count it true that I had more courage, More strength in swimming than any other man” (514-15 (41). Although what he is saying is true but glorifying one’s own qualities can’t be seen positively. Beowolf is brave when he goes out to kill Grendel’s mother; he just “donned his armor for battle, Heeded not the danger…” (1328-29 60). He fights without his sword: “On the might of his hand, as a man must do Who thinks to win in the welter of battle Enduring glory; he fears not death" (1420-23 62). He wants glory by truthful means – fighting the menace of society. When we compare the bravery of Beowulf with King Arthur, there is difference; King Arthur is expected to be brave because he is a king; Beowulf’s bravery needs a story to outline his rise and downfall later. The character of Sir Gawain represents honor – the most important virtue. He offers to participate in a fight with the Green Knight as he feels himself to be “the weakest, the most wanting in wisdom...And my life, if lost, would be least missed, truly” (354-5 295). King Arthur had earlier accepted the challenge to fight with the Green Knight but as his death would be destructive for the kingdom and the masses, Sir Gawain finds valor in accepting the challenge and tells King Arthur “this affair is too foolish to fall you” (358-295). The main theme of the poem is Gawain’s honor, which is tested when he succeeds in keeping it when the lady of the house tempts him. Although he shows weakness in saving his life but later, he glorifies his character by admitting his double-dealing to the Green Knight and learns by experience. Beowulf, on the other hand, doesn’t learn from experience and offers to fight a dragon in his mature age when he is not that powerful, he used to be earlier. King Arthur is both -- honorable and wise and acts according to the need of the hour. King Arthur is an example of hereditary attained humble leadership quality. He is just natural in his valor and adventures as they are in-built, not developed like Sir Gawain or Beowulf. The title of his story Le Morte D’Arthur points out how he is most vocal even at his death. Although he is seriously wounded yet he is humble enough to get up for his fallen knight: “this to me a full heavy sight, to see this noble duke die for my sake, for he would have helped me, that had more need of help than I” (454)! This quote perfectly pictures King Arthur who is patient even with Sir Bedivere who cheats him. He looses his patience at being disobeyed twice: I shall slay thee [with] my own hands, for thou wouldst for my rich sword see me dead (455). Beowulf would have cut the throat of Sir Bedivere at his first disobedience only; King Arthur’s values move the story further to a fight between him and the Green Knight. No doubt, the epic leaves a message for future kings of England to follow on the footsteps of King Arthur’s legend. All the three men described, Beowulf, Sir Gawain and King Arthur hold heroic qualities like valor, honor and chivalry but these very qualities in them become the reason of their decline or end. Had Beowulf been less brave, he wouldn’t have to fight the dragon in his advanced age. Sir Gawain also had to fight with the Green Knight to save his honor. Similarly, the precious time to save King Arthur’s life gets wasted in his belief in the loyalty of his knights. The tenth cenury epic heroes like Beowulf and the thirteenth-century romance Havelok the Dane show many differences between medieval Nordic heroes. Beowulf is an impersonal hero who is praised for his powers and abilities. On the contrary, Havelok’s behavior, honor and strong work culture make him praiseworthy as a human being. The history of Nordic society gives some hints of these differences. Nordic heroes like Beowulf are dreaded because of their attacking paganism. They have to be superhuman to counter a powerful and annoying enemy. With the passing of time, in-between the ages of Beowulf and Havelok, a refined Scandinavia appeared, having stable connections with the British Isles. The cultural features of Latin Christendom became more visible; the English life also had its effect – its aristocratic common ways. The power of monarchy became limited by the aristocracy and the Church. Havelok represents these new values of leadership based on principles. The heroes in Beowulf and Havelok the Dane represent these differences in values created by the societies and mirror a society’s hopes for heroism. War and supernatural are essential elements of Beowulf. The hero has to fight the beast Grendel, who has captured the kingdom. Beowulf – the hero – keeps the arm of the monster as a proof of victory. He also fights with Grendel’s mother and later is killed by a dragon and laid on a funeral pyre by the sea. The physical charm of Beowulf is stunning to the extent of being supernatural. He is supposed to defend and safeguard his community also. As Beowulf enters the “great hall of the Danes” and “the best of houses” to describe his earlier victories: In my youth I have set about manv brave deeds.... I came from the fight where I had bound five, destroyed a familv of giants, and at night in the waves slain water-monsters, suffered great pain, avenged an affliction of the Weather-Geats on those who had asked for trouble--ground enemies to bits. And now I alone shall settle affairs with Grendel, the monster, the demon. He is not humble in speech but proclaiming and boastful of his previous adventures, in particular he describes a day when he fought three battles. He is over-confident and creates hopes in the minds of his community. When dying, he is not worried about his wounds but his name and fame. It doesn’t harm his image in the eyes of his fellow-beings. They take his sense of proud worthy of their backing: “This man was born to be the best of men. Beowulf, my friend, your name shall resound in the nations of the earth that are furthest away.” Beowulf is a tenth century beloved hero – the possessor of qualities valued by that period’s society. Eleanor Farrell has described features of the epic hero that show an inclination towards splendor in her article “The Epic Hero in Society”: “The virtues of the Germanic warrior: bravery, strength, a sense of obligation.... loyalty, . . leadership, . . . honor, . . . and eagerness for fame and praise.” The hero is not a common man due to his special traits. The tenth century society valued all these qualities, which a super-human possesses. It reminds one of classical gods like Hercules and Apollo. Society expected the hero to be the savior of the land – the kingdom, which saves the culture in return. The tale of Havelok – the thirteenth-century hero is different. Havelok, the prince loses his family and kingdom in an overthrow of power by the enemies. He is brought up by a peasant and takes revenge on his enemies with the help of his adoptive brothers. Havelok is honest and hardworking. He believes in class equality and earns his livelihood by sheer hardwork: “He ... brought home each piece of silver, keeping not even a farthing.” Havelok is humble and gentle; he doesn’t believe in violence and is not easily provoked. Instead, he is powerful in discourse – in finding solutions to the problems. As a child in prison, he faces his captures with innocently polite but brave words. “We are hungry…we have nothing to eat.” Havelok’s words are powerful and show his inner strength. Although he feels lonely without his family, he never discloses his feelings for the comfort of his community fellows. He gets love and admiration for his virtues from all sections of society. The Scandinavian society has a different image of a hero – who is not involved in fierce battles all the time but is hardworking and faithful to the people and the society he belongs to and fulfills his duties towards his fellows and works to uplift them. Havelok is very close to his people. He plays with the children; he is a part of the people – one out of them, very close to their hearts. Society of thirteenth century expects the hero to be a man of near average traits in general but above average qualities in morality. A hero has to prove himself at both levels – humane and brave. He is an ideal of complete humanity, not accomplished by everybody. Beowulf’s society uses words for self-appreciation and reward but Havelok’s society takes word for a meaningful rule. Beowulf aims at saving the kingdom and community but Havelok gets love of his countrymen for the hard work he does for them. Both the ancient epics describe the relation between literature and history, which turns into a relation between an individual and society. When we grasp the history of that period, societies in which Beowulf and Havelok lived, the epics become culturally relevant. Jeffrey Jerome Cohen has associated medieval heroism to masculinity. To him, it seems a visible relation but it is very complex in nature. The hero represents a standard version of maleness, applied with a social intention. Common men try to achieve and imbibe in their characters those qualities that make a person hero. A come-back of the concept of hero is must to keep alive the tradition of heroism. The concept of hero, like the saint, exists only to present an ideal for the masses to follow and cherish. The problem begins when some knights with “troubled” sexualities draw the attention of the society more than their traditional campanions. In Malory’s Morte Darthur, Sir Gareth plays a short role while Lancelot remains the central figure till the end. There has always been seen the danger of aggressive impulse in the characterization of hero; his warrior attire or heroic valor comes to an end after some time. Societies have to take care of these hypermasculine figures when they are not on the battlefields. Certain reasons become the cause of their early farewell to the world. Either they die a martyr’s death or they localize their masculinity in the social institution of husband, which is seen in the higher strata, late in the Middle Ages (Clare Lees, Beverly Kennedy). That’s why we see Chretiens Yvain, ending his compact but splendid career full of adventures in settling after marriage in a castle in the suburbs. This shift of heroism from an adventurous life to domestisizing them becomes risky for martial masculinity; it becomes difficult for heroic figures to adjust between “public obligations and private necessities” (Dan Melia). With the change in time, the culture demands different ethics to be followed by heroes. There are also examples of some heroes adjusting in their new roles, like Einhard’s Charlemagne of late romance; Arthur is somewhat better than Charlemagne due to transfiguration of his identity, becoming the sponsored hero of the British, the Welsh, the Anglo-Normans, and the British empire on the whole. General ending of heroism is death, represented as valor of the past achievements. Failure of heroism is inbuilt when it passes the period of glorification. Hero remains in the memory of the community to which he belongs by the words of praise uttered by his historian, not the hero. Sometimes, a hero knows the end like Beowulf, who consoles himself about the immortalization of his name in local topography. Complex poetic expressions are composed so that heroic values remain ever-cherished in the minds of the communities they belonged to. Finally, if heroism survives, it is due to desire, praise and wonder of its charm, which continues with the passing of time. In Medieval France of twelth century, some of the great works like Chanson de Roland (c.1100), Partonopeu de Blois (c. 1182-85), Beroul’s Roman de Tristan (c. 1165-87), Chretien de Troyes’ Launcelot ou Chevalier de la Charrette (c. 1174-79), and Robert le Diable (c. 1195) are decided on the efforts of their heroes for the wellbeing of their communities. Being faithful and maintaining the level of self esteem is of supreme importance from cultural and social point of views. The hero is not indifferent to these values but these values are imbibed in the thread of relationships. Fifteenth and sixteenth century English writers constructed the romances according to their audiences. Later rewriters made important changes in the texts to present the concept of heroism in modern perspective. The heroes of Partonope of Blois (c. 1480), Sir Thomas Malory’s Book of Sir Tristram de Lyones, and his Knight of the Cart (1485) beside his prose Robert the Devyll (1502?) stress not on the common welfare but individual victory, happiness and salvation. Later works show division in society and hero makes efforts to win in unfriendly circumstances without any cultural and social support. The hero doesn’t face that universal crisis to assimilate his personal and public objectives; instead, he tries to accomplish his personal goals within the limits of law and listens to the voice of his soul. The process of evolution takes place for the development of new ethic, based on individuality. It is important to note that in twelth century, romances were written for the laity and the taste of the majority was taken care of by the writers as entertainment was an important issue. In medieval Europe, there was the tradition of taking oath, passing through an ordeal and waging of a battle, which was common as we see in Juducium Dei. Some sort of physical or moral risk was involved on the assumption that God would save the innocent and punish the guilty. The authors would use the characters of saints or angels to describe the wish of God. Thus in such scenes in medieval romances, the moral values of the protagonist – the central figure -- were well described. If we analyse the ethical element in Chanson de Roland, it enlightens not only about the meaning of warfare at that time but on the relationship between Christians and Pegans.The scholars have used the narrative as a means to study the medieval culture, an expression of the values cherished by the audience of that period. By analyzing Roland’s confessions and Ganelon’s trial by battle, we find that characters get admiration for being part of a bigger scheme of things in which social responsibility encourages welfare of the community. The hero of Partonopeu de Blois also rises to the occasion of fulfilling the ideals of honor and faith, given importance in his culture by passing through a trial in battle. He commits an error in judgment in his confession and repents and struggles hard to prove his innocence. The hero is judged on the basis of the community ethics -- his commonality with the community is primary to his personal freedom. In Beroul’s Roman de Tristan, lovers add to the life of the community. In Robert le Diable, a romance of the late twelth century, through confession and repentence, his determination to control his violent passions, the hero gives his life in the welfare of the community, which includes Emperor, God, Pope and others. In all the medieval romances, individuals make efforts to achieve the common good. Their heroes are attached with their families, lord, God, and peers and their loyalty and honor are of utmost importance. The final curtain is drawn when the social order and unity is established. Partonopeu de Blois ends in a marriage and enthronement in the presence of the whole community. Lancelot brings together everyone at Arthur’s court for the final scene and Robert le Diable ends on a victory note and ceremony, attended by the whole community. The individual victory of the hero is linked with the progress of the community. The later works show distance of the hero from the community to his personal achievements within the permissible limits of the law. In later editions, the Partonope of Blois, the hero is not on the side of the law but follows his conscience. Later heroes struggle to go ahead of their peers. A feeling of competition, found in the fifteenth century Europe, was the reason to change the direction of heroic pursuits from communal to personal. Thus, we see that heroes in later romances -- Partonope, Tristram, Lancelot and Robert – attend to their personal needs, not related with the aspirations of the society. It shows the power of the hero to live in a world full of chaos, showing the ethic on which will breed democracy and capitalism. These romances help us to look into the lives of people of that age – how the society shifts emphasis from the oder and stability provided by the cultural values, to a new unstable approach. We can see it in our own struggle to find meaning of life within the limits of the law. The Medieval literature is the foundation on which we, the people of twenty-one century, stand. Works cited list Holmes, Melanie. Heroes and their Communities: A Longitudinal Study of Four Medieval Romances. Jul 2001. School of Graduate Studies. McMaster University. 10 Nov. 2006 Cohen, Jeffrey. Becoming Male in the Middle Ages. 1997. The Department of English and Program in Human Sciences.The George Washington University. The Discussion. 10 Nov. 2006< www.gwu.edu/~humsci/facpages/jjcohen.htm> Hammett, Stephanie L. The Men About Town: The Characterization and Socialization of the Medieval Hero. 10 Nov. 2006 Shaw, Guinevere. Interpretations of Heroism in Medieval Period. 10 Nov. 2006 Read More