Journal 2

Journal 2: Contemporary Hero Essay

                Grendel is the narrator of the novel “Grendel” and tells an epic story of Grendel’s life. From Grendel’s beginnings to when he jumped off a cliff and died, Grendel was a character as epic and dynamic as Beowulf as he is depicted in the original poem “Beowulf”. There aren’t many characters that are as memorable or will last as long in history as either Grendel or Beowulf, but there are some that are great contenders. For me, one of those contenders is a famous character from a Japanese manga (comic book) named Naruto Uzumaki.

                Naruto Uzumaki is the hero and main protagonist from a manga called “Naruto”. Of all the contemporary manga, “Naruto” is by far the most popular, and he has become a symbol of Japanese manga in general, since he is so widely known even people who’ve never even read a manga before know who he is or what his manga is about. “Naruto” tells the story of a ninja boy named Naruto who has a demon fox inside him. Naruto is on a personal mission to become the best ninja in his village and has to go through many battles to do this and defend his village from attacking ninja villages. The evil that Naruto has to face are the various villages and organizations that want to either destroy his village, take the demon fox from Naruto (which would kill him), or kill people dear to him. There are many enemy countries, headed by hidden villages, in “Naruto” who all have their own agenda that sometimes conflicts with Naruto’s village. The organizations he face either come from the hidden villages or are separate, with the most prominent organization being the Akatsuki, who want Naruto’s fox.

                The reason why Naruto confronts the hidden villages and people like the Akatsuki is because of Naruto’s dream. The best ninja in the village becomes the leader, and in Naruto’s village, that person is called the hokage. The hokage is responsible for protecting the village and everyone in it, so with that responsibility plus Naruto’s personal protectiveness, Naruto has plenty of reason to confront the enemy. The people of the village and his friends are who Naruto confronts this evil for. The virtues that Naruto represents are caring, never giving up, perseverance, friendship, vitality, youth, and doing your best to overcome seemingly impossible odds.