The Death of the Hero in Beowulf Some literary scholars argue that Beowulf developed character flaws over the course of the long narrative poem and that at the time of his death , he was the victim of pride, avarice, selfishness and an inordinate need for glory. The purpose of this essay is to show that he was a tremendous hero from start to finish. Towards the end of the poem, when the fire dragon ravaged the land of the Geatish and burned King Beowulf's mead: To the good king it was great anguish, pain deep within the spirit. The wise man believed it. . .had broken the old law; his chest filled with dark thoughts that were foreign to him (2327 et seq.). What was the “old law?” “When the ravages of the dragon begin, the poet makes old Beowulf fear having transgressed ofer ealderight (against the old law) (2330): the pagans have their own moral code, separating them from the author and from us » (Frank 52). The last thing said of the dead hero was that he was lofgeornost (the most eager for glory). Is this a Christian quality? This scholar says no: "To say with your last word that the hero, above all men, desired to be praised, wanted glory bestowed by his fellows, is to insinuate that the hero is lacking, according to Christian standards" (Bloom 3) In Beowulf, the hero has extraordinary qualities: “He was the strongest man alive at that time, powerful and noble. » Seeing Beowulf approaching, the Danes' sea guards declare: "I never saw a greater man on earth..." King Hrothgar of the Danes says of Beowulf: "The sailors who brought gifts to the Geats.. . middle of paper ......owulf has become a king who now finds himself confronted with an enemy over whom he is not able to achieve victory himself. Even with Wiglaf's help, our hero loses his life in this contest. It is a heroic death, without moral decadence, which crowns an incontestably heroic life.BIBLIOGRAPHYEBloom, Harold. "Introduction." In Modern Critical Interpretations: Beowulf, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987. Chickering, Howell D. Beowulf A bilingual edition. New York: Anchor Books, 1977. Fry, Donald K. “Introduction.” In TheBeowulf Poet, edited by Donald K. Fry. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968. Ogilvy, J.D.A. and Donald C. Baker. “The Heroic Death of Beowulf.” In Readings on Beowulf, edited by Stephen P. Thompson. San Diego: Greenhaven Press,1998.