Glory And Honor In The Odyssey

Words: 847
Pages: 4

Glory and honor are two topics that have been discussed since the very beginning of time. Whether it be talking about warriors in battle or someone who is just trying to do the right thing foe his family. One of the most prevalent topics in the two epics, Beowulf and The Odyssey, is glory and honor. The idea of glory and honor is much more prevalent and in your face in Beowulf, where there are several scenes devoted to someone bragging and telling their stories. It is also frequent in The Odyssey, it just isn't as blatant as it is in Beowulf, which is why I feel these stories are very good to compare to each other. The Odyssey is centered around Odysseus' journey home after the Trojan war. Along the way, he meet many different characters where he is able to share his many stories he has acquired through his many years as a warrior. But another person i will talk about is Odysseus' wife, Penelope, who displays glory and honor in her own way. The story of Beowulf is about a kingdom that is having trouble with a "demon". This "demon", Grendel, is terrorizing the kingdom of Hrothgar. The King calls out for someone to help save his kingdom from this demon, which is where Beowulf comes in. The type of honor and glory these two …show more content…
Right when Beowulf arrives at the kingdom of Hrothgar, he is approached by Unferth, who basically tries to call Beowulf a little wimp. Which immediately blows up in his face as Beowulf is then able to tell his story of the great swimming match against Breca, which also including a little sea monster fighting along the way. Telling this story in front of everyone was a great example of how glory and honor are most typically portrayed in this type of literature. Where the glory and honor is right there and very obvious as it is about how he is an insane warrior who can battle several sea monsters but still manage to lose the