Your paper must discuss three heroes out of the ones we studied in the Unit (Beowulf, Gilgamesh, Eowyn, Merry, Sundiata, Odysseus). You must use quotes from the text for at least two of the three heroes, and a total of at least four quotes throughout the paper.
Introduction:

Tell your reader what the purpose of your paper is. Propose to define an epic hero by exploring one aspect of heroism.
Provide background. What is an epic?
Choose a trait of an epic hero. This trait should be shared by several heroes we read about (Beowulf, Gilgamesh, Eowyn, Merry, Sundiata, and Odysseus), but should not be so broad that it can apply to all of them.

Paragraph 1:

Describe the unique way that one hero displays the heroic trait that you are focusing on.
Use 2-3 examples from the story excerpts to support your point.

Paragraph 2:

Describe the unique way that a different hero displays the heroic trait that you are focusing on.
Use 2-3 examples from the story excerpts to support your point.
Focus specifically on describing the way the heroes you chose display the same trait differently.

Paragraph 3:

Begin this paragraph by discussing how epics reflect the values of the culture that created them.
Next, introduce one of the heroes we studied in this Unit who does not possess the heroic trait. Describe the ways in which the hero differs from the previous two.
Then, dig in: Does the hero truly express this trait, but in a unique way? Or, what trait seems to replace that one?
Use 2-3 examples from the story excerpts to support your point.

Conclusion:

Come to a meaningful insight into what heroism truly means.