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• Jaime Daniel Blanco

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The Cid, an Epic Hero! Jaime Blanco!

! !

An Epic hero I am certain that posses the emblematic characteristics of a

hero is nothing less than the spanish version of the medieval radiant knight that is immortalised in poems and and songs forevermore. This acute resemblance has the name of Mio Cid. Its known to be contained in the oldest Castilian epic poem, “The Poem of the Cid”. This poem is a long treasured imprint of the Medieval Era and its splendour in regard to ideals and folklores of the epoch.! Mio Cid faced a tragic fate when falsely accused for stealth he is force to be expatriated, a brutal dishonour for his beloved ideals as a Hero. But then again, as an epic hero, alone, he overcomes the perilous situation by regaining his honour in various quests, battles and confrontations. ! During that time the Moors were consider popular rivals and enemies of the Spanish kingdom, so after he is expatriated, he arrange an army and began earning lands and sending gifts to the king as good omens for next land occupations. With his strategic intelligence he found a way to reagin his honor.! Later in the story, when the battle agains the moors ends in victory, the King ,as a symbol of redemption and gratitude, offers the Cid to marry his daughter to some noble men. His actions highlighted the importance of the figure of the king as the maximum authority that people ought to have respect and reverend.! Although the Cid comes from a relatively humble origin, he elevate his status with his bravery and courage.This is a small twist from the original idea that epic heroes come from nobel ascendance.Still Cid, strived socially, escalated and shone in glory without any inherited blood that could have raise more than his morals.!

! He embodies the virtues of the times.The Cid, is a prudent honourable man that has both the determination and the equity to manage his troops with intelligence and benevolence. An actual testimony of this high moral standard is present after the noble man abused their future wives, the daughters of the Cid.An event

of

complete degradation to man but instead of killing the nobles for such an aberration,which is the most logical thing, he arrange the dishonour by asking his king for a duel with the nobel men.And after he and his men won gallantly the contend The Cid even let the noble man live and face the dishonour the rest of their lives.! The Cid died around eastern, a symbolic religious date.Lets denote that at that time the Christianity was practiced with fervour among the people, so the mourning of his dead can be view as equally devoted. He died in combat; but as an honourable hero,he wanted to win the ultimate battle, even if he was in the afterlife. He ordered his men to disguise his dead body standing in his horse at the leading spot on the battle. The next day their opponent appalled as they watched his armour and ran away. The fact that he actually won a battle after being dead ratify his greatness. !

! The Cid frame the righteous gentleman-ship.Unlike Beowulf, a narcissistic knight with inhuman strength that has the daring

to face danger without any mercy or

whatsoever.The Cid manage the battle with such respect and dignity for the sake of the combat itself that the figures of these two heroes themselves are opposed and contrasted, which is an interesting fact due to the similar time , circumstances and standards the medieval period had. The Cid for an instance, he seeks with fervour the acceptance of the king, while being a caring husband and father. Chivalry was at its fines with his dues. Beowulf on the other hand

was a wild

savage without any martial status, that gotten himself drunk and didn’t have much

adulation to the royalty . Seeking fame are challenges to full fill his personal drive for attention.! Certainly both left a mark of heroism on their respective civilisation, their legacy is worth to remember. They epitomise the essence of the medieval period with, if not realistically, ideally to the elements that conformed it. Heroism was about the extension of human virtues at its greatest. The more extenuating the virtue lingered in the stanza, the higher the performance quality was. These two heroes surpassed temptation and faced the challenges with their respective expertise.They both face treason from their own men. Beowulf was left alone when he faced the mighty dragon, the Cid was betrayed by the nobel men that were suppose marry his daughters. But after all they still continue with their duty.Outstanding their characters even more.Even in the very end they won and were granted eternal salvation.!

! One observation I personally have about both heroes, is that both inherently showed the whole idea of culturalization of ideals. The Anglo Saxons for example, descendants of nordic warriors had a more raw and rudimentary perception of the lifestyle.Therefore they embodied their heroes with the same qualities. Beowulf has a massive identity, filled with boldly representation of thought process and a daring sense of self. Which makes sense with the idea that the vikings were adventurous warriors that survived with amazing strength unspeakable hardships. The blood was the metal that was moulded in the form of Beowulf.The Spaniards on the other hand, have a more sophisticated hero. The culture of the medieval Iberia was based on tactical positioning and on less brutal and more developed strategical battles. This happen because the influence of the roman empires expert in the culture by the proximity Spain has with the mediterranean.The Location was the clay that was use to sculpt Mio Cid.!

! I consider Mio Cid as a very adequate figure of a hero, because he is portrayed without any supernatural force, a mortal with the strength of any man, and a intellect like any men. What makes him a hero is what all these ethical mindset that rise him above the rest. His gallantly that doesn't need nothing more

than a

righteous path to follow, a warm heart to protect and a great king to obey.! When people have someone to look up in times of darkness when all scientific and spiritual development stagnate, I believe that a hero that comes from the same origins and has the same capacities really helps in a society. The proliferation of values is always welcomed, and what better way to do that, but in a beautiful chant, crafted by the most creative and sensible minds of the villages. The heroes are cast upon the very people, the commoners, that share their personal fantasies and aspirations and melt them into an allegorical silhouette that is bounded to preserve them until the end of time, immortalised in quests for deed and honour, these people hand their own history in the most beautiful way it can be told, in the way of a story.! !

! ! References ! of the ! Historical Figure :! I read the poem in my spanish class a couple of years ago.