Differences and Similarities in The Odyssey and Inferno When going through the stories The Odyssey

The two poems are almost complete opposites. In Macbeth the protagonist, Macbeth, advances to power through murder, progressively becoming more evil, or sinful, in nature. Macbeth moves progressively farther from God and moral rightness, the opposite of Dante both in character and development. Macbeth begins as an honourable man who wants to serve his King and country but eventually becomes a traitor to his benefactor which, in the terms of Inferno, would place him in the ninth circle of Hell, along with Lucifer, Brutus, Judas and Cassius. Dante begins as a man who is off the moral path and later becomes closer to God. Macbeth’s wife manipulates and pressures Macbeth into becoming the King through assassination. While in Inferno Dante progressively becomes less evil and closer to God by traveling through Hell and eventually stops pitying the souls of the damned and actually begins condemning them. His departed love, Beatrice, asks Virgil the Roman poet in the first circle of Hell to

There are many similar situations, where the differences in the stories lie in how the author’s character interpreted these experiences. That being said, although the stories of their adventures into the world of the dead are quite similar, they are also quite different. The Odyssey is story about a man named Odysseus, and his travels back to his home. The Aeneid is a story that follows Aeneas, the leader of the Trojans, and his people to Italy

Even though the hero’s in these stories are very interesting their tales would not be as rewarding if they did not have to face many adversities on the way. Some of the monsters in these stories like Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon from Beowulf, while the Odyssey has many monsters but some if the main ones are Cyclops, the suitors, and Poseidon. The culture in Beowulf was more about believing in a higher power and related monsters like Grendel and the dragon to religious meanings while the Odyssey is about looking inward because they are all things in your daily life. Even though there are similarities in the monsters in these stories are different in the way they are perceived.

The amazing epic poem by Homer entitled “The Odyssey” shares many similarities and many differences as well with the Hallmark movie of the same name. The epic poem is about the hero Odysseus who has spent twenty long years filled with toil and loss, through war and sea desperate to return to his home of Ithaca. Odysseus has angered some of the gods and goddesses of a Greek Mythology with his destruction of the mighty city of Troy. Odysseus is represented in the poem and the movie, but there are several differences between the two in the events he encountered. There are also numerous similarities

Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid describe the journeys of the two Greek heroes –Odysseus and Aeneas, as they struggle towards their goal through the crises and deadly situations caused by the wrath of the gods upon them. In the Odyssey, we see that Poseidon (god of the sea/earth shaker) has a grudge against Odysseus while Athena, god of wisdom, aids him throughout his journey. Similarly in the Aeneid, we see that goddess Juno dislikes Aeneas as he is destined to destroy the city of Carthage loved by Juno during his mission to find a new land- Rome, whereas Aeneas’ mother Venus aids him.

The Inferno is a tale of cautionary advice. In each circle, Dante the pilgrim speaks to one of the shades that reside there and the readers learn how and why the damned have become the damned. As Dante learns from the mistakes of the damned, so do the readers. And as Dante feels the impacts of human suffering, so do the readers. Virgil constantly encourages Dante the pilgrim to learn why the shades are in Hell and what were their transgressions while on Earth. This work’s purpose is to educate the reader. The work’s assertions on the nature of human suffering are mostly admonition, with each shade teaching Dante the pilgrim and by extension the reader not to make the same mistakes. Dante views his journey through hell as a learning experience and that is why he made it out alive.

The gods have an effect on the way people live on earth. When Inferno was written by Dante, Christianity was being spread rapidly as majority of the people had embraced it as depicted in today’s world. Dante regards that polytheistic divine beliefs of ancient times were referred as sin against God. This is best reflected in Inferno when hero Odysseus and poet Virgil live in hell due to their anti-Christ

Shakespeare’s King Lear and Dante’s inferno touch on several major points that was important in the past but is still just as important in today's society. Although they differ in nature they both have the same understanding and perspective when it comes to human suffering. Suffering is inevitable because we are subject to the human condition therefore almost making it impossible to make the right choices. Shakespeare and Dante agree that the reason for suffering is a result of making wrongful decisions due to the human conditions of imperfection, both assertions speak truth about the human condition however inferno transmits an aspect of hope that king Lear does not.

The historical relationship between the Aeneid and the Inferno originates with Dante’s own definition of the former as “the canonic epic model” (Jacoff 3). By definition an “epic model” dramatizes events of historical or legendary importance (Webster). Thus Dante, who “had no direct access to Homer” and the first epic models of Western literature--The Illiad and The Odyssey--chose Rome’s national epic, The Aeneid, as his historical inspiration (Jacoff 3). Specifically, the Inferno finds its overarching structural and thematic antecedent in Book VI of The Aeneid, where Aeneas descends into the realm of the shades. Here among hell’s carnage Aeneas finds his idea of eternal beauty embodied within the shade of his father, Anchises, who has survived in the heaven-like Elysian Fields. In the Inferno, the pilgrim undertakes the same journey as his historical prototype but instead searches for spiritual absolution in a Christian heaven. The motif of the journey remains, but the specific religious overtones of hell become slippery from the time of Aeneas to the pilgrim. For example, in his essay entitled "Imagination and Thought in the Middle Ages," Umberto Eco notes that “the medieval period was a prolongation of the mythopoetic dimension of the Classical period, though

The Chronicles of Narnia can be found to be similar or even somewhat inspired by The Odyssey. The two pieces both follow closely with the Hero’s Journey; in the beginning of the story, the older Pevensie children deny what Lucy says about what’s in the wardrobe and refuse to go see it with her, before they eventually have to enter it after hiding from the owner of the house. Similarly, in The Odyssey, Odysseus is at first reluctant to go to war, but eventually must as Agamemnon discovers he is capable of going to war and forces him to go with. In The Chronicles of Narnia, the children have the supernatural helpers the lion and Mr. Tumnus, similar to how Odysseus had Athena, and in both cases these helpers aided them

In Dante’s Inferno, the relationship between Dante the Pilgrim and Virgil the Guide is an ever-evolving one. By analyzing the transformation of this relationship as the two sojourn through the circles of hell, one is able to learn more about the mindset of Dante the Poet.  At the outset, Dante is clearly subservient to Virgil, whom he holds in high esteem for his literary genius. However, as the work progresses, Virgil facilitates Dante’s spiritual enlightenment, so that by the end, Dante has ascended to Virgil’s spiritual level and has in many respects surpassed him. In Dante’s journey with respect to Virgil, one can see

Dante’s descent into Hell in Inferno, the first part of his Divine Comedy, tells of the author’s experiences in Hades as he is guided through the abyss by the Roman author, Virgil. The text is broken into cantos that coincide with the different circles and sub-circles of Hell that Dante and Virgil witness and experience. Inferno is heavily influenced by classic Greek and Roman texts and Dante makes references to a myriad of characters, myths, and legends that take place in Virgil’s Aeneid, Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, and Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Some of the most important references, however, are the most obvious ones that are easily overlooked simply because of the fact that they are so blatant. Dante is being escorted through Hell by the

The two Homeric epics, the Illiad and The Epic of Gilgamesh, both contain a Hero’s Journey. They show the readers a look into heroic life during the time of the Trojan War. Achilles and Gilgamesh’s Heroic Journeys are not identical, however the characteristics and qualities of them is what holds the similarities. The two characters have a compelling outlook on death, and immortality. They seek different end results; however, their relationship with death is the same. They are considered a hero on a Hero’s Journey, as they fulfill the mandatory requirements. Their journey changed them from people of negativity to people who have been refined

With his writing style and the implementation of some literature firsts, Dante assured his name in history. His mastery of language, his sensitivity to the sights and sounds of nature, and his infinite store of information allow him to capture and draw the reader into the realm of the terrestrial Hell. His vast store of knowledge of Greek mythology and the history of his society assists Dante in the

In ancient Greece literature came to be in a very special way. In the first place, literature has always been significant. It impacts a lot on us now, in school, work, or even just reading a story to your son or daughter at home. Coupled with what people in Ancient Greece did, is very comparable. A long time ago literature meant something special, but not as noticeable to the human eye. A long time ago, far far out in Ancient Greece, there was a story, The Iliad, this story had 15,693 lines! This was one of the first. The Iliad is a story to tell us about Achilles, who was the best warrior, he even fought in the battle against Troy. Another iconic story from Ancient Greece is, The Odyssey. The Odyssey is a story about Odysseus, who tries to return home after the Trojan War.