What is a hero? Some define a hero by his merit, how he acts and leads his personal life, many think that being a hero depends on ones character and merit. While this question is very abstract and does not really have an answer, I would like to speak on it. In my belief a hero is someone who acts. Someone who acts in a way that benefits humanity or the society that they are part of. A hero identifies with a cause and will fight for it. While this is just my opinion it is a very broad definition and encompasses many individuals whom many people would not consider a hero and possibly even a villain. As an American one person who this definition would encompass would be Adolf Hitler. Though I am sure that I would believe that he was a hero if I was a member of Nazi Germany, this still supports my definition of a Hero as the way that one society views him, or the society that he identifies with. This definition of a hero is much more of a case by case basis and is defined by the person and the values of the culture that they live in. I would also like to relate this to the story Grendel that we read.  While this can be contradictory and often is when different heroes are pitted against each other, one becomes a villain for one and vice versa. In Grendel, the monster/villain is necessary for the hero and for a complex to society, this can be related out to say that heroes are villains and villains are heroes if you look objectively at the situation with an understanding of both societies. The definition of hero is extremely objective but is defined much more by the actions of someone compared to the characteristics and intentions of someone. Every definition of the hero has to have some degree of ambiguity as even the most general of definitions are bound to have flaws which in the end makes heros a very case by case and personal choice.