English White Block 1
The Odyssey Vs. O Brother Where Art Thou
There are many similarities between O Brother Where Art Thou and The Odyssey. The characters and events that play out are mostly relative to each other. They have the same story plot and outcome. Both of the men are on a journey to get home to their wives and children. Some of the similarities are obvious while others are more diverse and take more thought into the symbolism and meaning behind them.
These two works are parallel to each other. Both begin with an invocation to the Muse. “Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story of that man skilled in contending, the wonderer, harried for years on end,” – Homer. There are also other versions of this saying, this is just the most famous.
Everett from O Brother Where Art Thou has the name of Ulysses which is the Latin form of Odysseus. Odysseus is married to Penelope and Everett is married to Penny. Both Everett and Odysseus have their own group of men that stand by their side through everything regardless of how bad the circumstances become. Both men face obstacles brought on by greater forces being Poseidon and the Jail Warden. Odysseus meets Teiresias who is a blind fortune teller and Everett meets a blind man who is also a fortune teller. Cousin Washington Hogwallop sold out Everett for money, so he is considered a pig and the men believed that Pete had been turned into a toad. Odysseus’s men were turned into animals after drinking Circe’s honey wine. Women washing clothes at the river attracted Ulysses and his friends while Odysseus and his crew were amazed by the Song of the Sea. In the Odyssey, the Cyclops has one eye and kills part of the crew. Big Dan, from O Brother Where Art Thou, only has one eyes and is said to have killed the toad or so called “Pete.” Vernon T. Waldrip courted Penny while Everett was away. Suitors were charming Penelope in place of Odysseus during his absence.
Both of the men’s children were told that their fathers were dead. Odysseus’s son is told that his father is at the bottom of the sea by the suitors. Penny tells their three daughters that their daddy got hit by a train. When Everett finally got back to his wife, he got on stage dressed up as an old hillbilly just to talk to her. Odysseus gets turned into an old man just to see his wife again. When Everett’s daughters see him, at first they don’t believe its really him and even after he explains to them how he really is him, they have doubt. Odysseus’s son doesn’t believe its him and even after he reveals himself, he thinks that it is a god just messing with him. All strong leaders find a way to get through all the obstacles that they face. They will be there for their crew and defend them at the best of their abilities. Even though not everybody made it back with Odysseus, him and Everett did everything they could to get back home. Neither of them failed their missions. Both crews stuck beside their leader’s side. Odysseus and Everett did everything they could to see their families. These two story plots go hand in hand together.
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