Although the term hero is easily defined in any dictionary, the definition only deals with what is a hero, not what makes a hero. In order to find the answer to this question, alternative sources of information need to be used. Several authors have presented their own view of the qualities that a hero should have in epics, such as The Odyssey, Illiad, and Beowulf. The epic Beowulf portrays all of its heroic figures, from …showed first 75 words of 1084 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1084 total…dies, he will soon be forgotten, and his exploits will not be celebrated throughout the centuries. Both societies agree that honor is also an indispensable attribute for a hero, though how such honor is calculated differs considerably. The quantity of followers one has may decide whether a person is a great man or a hero, but it is the amount of honor one has that dictates whether that person is a hero or a villain.