Throughout the story, Beowulf is shown as a brave and mighty warrior who wants to protect his people. Nevertheless, he is often boasting about his achievements, as is expected in the warrior culture, which is shown in the excerpt when Beowulf and his team come looking for the dragon. Overall, this man proved to be a reliable leader throughout his kingship, which resulted in his being loved and respected by his team and the nation.
To begin with, even though Beowulf is a strong warrior, he is also a king, which brings much responsibility with the title. Instead of proving his power reasonably, he decides to find the treasure guarded by the terrifying dragon, “as king of the people I shall pursue this fight for the glory of winning” (Heaney 2512). Beowulf seems a greedy ruler at times because he does not understand the battles that are worth his life.
It was not the first time that Beowulf was reminded of his pride; Hrothgar had once warned him that it would be his downfall. Hrothgar predicted that Beowulf’s strength would fade quickly, and as the king prepares for his death, he is proud of only himself. To elaborate, the excerpt from the dragon’s hunting shows how boastful Beowulf is when he says, “No king of any clan … had the power to intimidate me” (Heaney 2736). Beowulf could probably live a completely different life if it were not for his pride.
Unfortunately, the epic fight between Beowulf and the dragon makes it obvious who is on the winning side. However, the king has earned his one warrior’s loyalty, Wiglaf, who wishes to help his ruler as he proclaims that “this lord we serve needs sound men to give him their support” (Heaney 2646). United Beowulf and Wiglaf manage to kill the dragon, though not without loss because the dragon’s bite poisons the king, and he soon dies too. As a result, the death of a king would affect his nation as the possibility of the kingdom’s lands being taken is higher without the feared Beowulf.
To sum up, Beowulf was a great king enough as he valued and loved his people. Yet his pride and desire to prove his strength and bravery led him to death. Still, with the help of his loyal warriors, he managed to finish what he started and die after seeing what he traded his life for.
Work Cited
Heaney, Seamus. Beowulf. East India Publishing Company, 2020.