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Leadership Lessons From Beowulf and Oedipus Essay

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Leadership can be defined as the ability of a superior to influence the behavior of a minor or group and persuade them to follow a particular course of action. A leader sets a course of action and ensures that everyone follows the action. Leading can apply to leading oneself, other individuals, groups, organizations and societies. The nature of how leading is done depends on the framework of the situation, one's point of view, and on the nature and needs of those involved. While leadership is learned, the skills and knowledge processed by the leader are influenced by their traits, such as beliefs, values, ethics, and most importantly character. Knowledge and skills directly relate to the process of leadership, while the other qualities …show more content…

Beowulf fought for the devotion of his own country and the name of his own family. This is shown, when Beowulf takes on the dragon without the proper help. At that time, Beowulf was old and weary, which caused him to have a slim chance of winning. Against all odds, Beowulf took on the dragon for the safety of his people. In the end Beowulf succeeded, but had to take his own life to finally slay the dragon. He chose the lives of his people rather than his. He truly fought for the glory. In society today, money has become the only option for a lot of people. In many professional sports today, players are choosing money as their final decision to play for a team. Players would rather take the option of more money, than play for a title contending team. Ultimately, Americans can be called somewhat greedy today. Another lesson that one can learn from Beowulf is to fight for what you believe in. A leader should use his beliefs to accomplish whatever is ahead of him, and not waste their talents on something they don’t truly want to fight for. During the story, Beowulf fought all of the monsters because he thought that was the right thing to do. Beowulf was born into a well-known family, which fought monster after monster. He was raised to follow in the footsteps of his father. His father was a great king, so Beowulf was taught the ways of being a great leader, which led to his strong character. Ultimately, Beowulf believed that he was doing the

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