Luke Skywalker and Beowulf Comparisson
... that the Force is with him by destroying the Empire's dreaded Death Star. In his youth, Beowulf is a great warrior, characterized predominantly by his feats of strength and courage. He also perfectly embodies the manners and values, including loyalty, courtesy, and pride. His defeat of Grendel and Grendel’s mother validates his reputation for bravery and establishes him fully as a hero. Beowulf matures little, as he possessed heroic qualities in abundance from the start. Hrothgar becomes a mentor and father figure to Beowulf, and begins to deliver advice about how to act as a wise ruler. Though Beowulf does not become king for many years, his exemplary career as a warrior has served in part to prepare him for ascension to the throne. The heroic figure of Luke is called to a quest for knowledge about himself and his true paternal origins. As the trilogy progresses, his battles and adventures propel him toward impossible tasks with surprising and ironic results. The end brings a triumphant resurrection of the hero and a restoration of the ancient order of the Jedi Knights and hope for the future. For Luke Skywalker the quest also involves the search for knowledge of his father. The interesting revelations concerning the identity of Luke's father is another convention of the epic. The epic ...