What makes a character in a story different from any other character? When reading epic novels about Anglo-Saxon culture and epic heroes, a character's characterization and his development of characterization distinguish him from other characters in the novel. There are several ways in which characterization has developed using a different literary element present in Beowulf, Gilgamesh, and The Iliad. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In the book, Beowulf, the main character, Beowulf, was a noble Anglo-Saxon hero. When a monster, Grendel, goes to King Hrothgar's feast and kills Hrothgar's men, Beowulf tries to find and kill the monster who committed the murder (Beers 22). When Beowulf saw what Grendel had done, he was ready to fight and die for the vengeance of Hrothgar's men. However, after the long and tiring fight, Beowulf defeated Grendel. He didn't know that Beowulf would have to face Grendel's mother. She had returned to take revenge on Beowulf, for the murder of her son. During the fight between Beowulf and Grendel's mother, Beowulf used the same tactics he had used against Grendel. He soon discovers that Grendel's mother is unaffected by his sword (Beers 26). Finding that the sword did not harm the beast demonstrated that people could not use the same solution for all of life's conflicts. The problematic encounter led to a change in characterization because Beowulf had to quickly think of another solution to win the battle. He decided to fight Grendel's mother with his bare hands. It worked, but it wasn't very helpful. Then, Beowulf saw a huge sword mounted on the wall (Beers 27). The sword blessed by the giants' magic was too powerful for a human to wield. Beowulf, now enraged and ferocious, grabbed the sword from the wall and thrust it directly into the monster's neck. Due to the blow of the sword, the beast fell to the ground lifeless and the sword was covered in the creature's blood. This story slowly developed the character of Beowulf from a trained warrior, to become a witty and ferocious fighter. This novel and the multiple instances of development explain how Beowulf was different from the monsters of his experiences. In the epic novel, Gilgamesh, the main character, Gilgamesh, and his friend, Enkidu, help each other develop a new role. Throughout the story, Gilgamesh and Enkidu embark on a journey to an enchanted forest to kill Humbaba, the guardian of the cedar forest. The development of the character, Gilgamesh, is achieved through the use of a foil character. Enkidu is the opposite character to Gilgamesh, and is known as Gilgamesh's conscience and his guardian. During the novel, Enkidu led Gilgamesh from the city of Uruk to the cedar forest (Beers 49). This event demonstrated that even though Gilgamesh was a half-god and part of the royal family, he accepted someone to lead him. When they arrived at the Cedar Forest, there was a huge gate separating the two heroes from Humbaba. When Enkidu opened the gate, his hands became numb and his face turned pale (Beers 49). Thanks to this achievement, Gilgamesh becomes the leader and protects Enkidu from danger. Soon Gilgamesh and Enkidu were within walking distance of Humbaba. Gilgamesh began to be very afraid of the giant. When the giant struck Enkidu to near death, Gilgamesh transformed from a cautious scout into a fearless warrior and began to attack Humbaba. Immediately after the crushing, Gilgamesh hovered over Humbaba with an ax and with a perfect bow, Gilgamesh chops off Humbaba's head and Humbaba dies. (Beers 53).,.