“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is not path and leave a trail”- the words that the dear and wise Ralph Waldo Emerson once said. No language can express to it’s fully extent the importance hidden behind the concept that associates itself into what heroism is. What is a hero? Why should they revered? How are they different from us, commoners? These are the questions we frequently ask ourselves while viewing the meaning or depth of what we normally consider a “simple” word.
That is the reason of why Emerson, who was an American essayist, gave himself the task of publishing a volume containing his thoughts and ideas towards various topics while one of them being heroism. The characteristics related to this specific subject is found in Essays, First Series which highlight the ways to defeat a monster like Grendel. One of the requisites of being a hero is to have passion, integrity and a war-like-attitude towards anything evil that could likely endanger the lives of others. An example of this can be seen at the start of the story of Grendel and Beowulf, when the monster gets jealous of the light-hearted laughter in the mead-hall.