Beowulf was a great and powerful warrior known for how extraordinarily fantastic he was. He had fought and killed everything in his path. When word became known of a great monster called Grendel who was terrorizing Hrothgar's Mede hall, Beowulf made the journey to defeat the monster. When he arrived, King Hrothgar welcomed him and gave him permission to fight the monster, with only one twist; Beowulf wanted to fight the monster without armor or weapons. He fought the monster and killed him, keeping his arm as a trophy, which he hung in the mead hall for all to see. That's why we put cardboard cutouts in the trophy case. He went on to fight Grendel's mother/mother/witch (depending on the translation). After defeating this evil monster, Beowulf returned home to the land of the Geats and 50 years later he was the king of the land. At that moment there was a dragon on the loose and Beowulf was asked to fight it. This battle would be his last, and a faithful man named Wiglaf would help him defeat the monster. Beowulf's motivations for doing these wonderful things were based on the Anglo-Saxon code. Part of the Anglo-Saxon code is to honor one's duty; Beowulf went to Hrothgar's Mede hall because he had a duty to do so. He was known everywhere as the greatest warrior, Hrothgar himself would even say: “Well may he say, whose judgment is right, calling to mind men of old, that this earl was born of a better lineage! Your fame, friend Beowulf, is emblazoned everywhere and among every people. In a manly way you have shown your strength, your power and your wisdom. I will keep my word, the compromised friendship we promised before. Long will you be an anchor for your people...” (Lines 1160-1168) Beowulf believed it… half of the paper… a special talent that you have an obligation to use that talent. This is a tough question to choose a side on because it actually goes both ways. Some would say that even if you have a talent, you have free will and can choose not to use it. Others say that when you are spectacular at something you have a duty to do that thing that others cannot do. If you knew you could help a team win, but you left and that team lost, would you be responsible? If you knew you had the talent to save a life and no one else could do it, would you do it? If you could change the world for the better, but don't put in the effort, are you responsible for the state the world is in? You have the power to change many things in this world, but people like to tell us that we are small and insignificant. They cannot remember the power of one; just one drop of water is enough to start a water fall.