`` Nightcrawler ' : The Homeric Perspective

Eric G. Wilson was born in 1967, and attended Appalachian State University, Wake Forest University, and the City University of New York where he gained a Ph.D. Wilson is currently a professor at Wake Forest University who teaches courses on British and American Romanticism. He has written many books, and “The Miracle of Melancholia” was published in the Los Angeles Times. I have never really thought too much about the effects that sadness can have on people, especially the positive effects. After reading the first paragraph of this piece, I was a little skeptical but as I continued to read, the author’s argument further developed and I now agree that sadness can have positive effects.

After reading Big Fish and The Odyssey, it becomes blatant that the character Edward Bloom is a version of Odysseus, having been rendered new. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is called to war and forced to leave his wife and son. He spends ten years fighting and another ten returning. He was honored as a clever, wise, and strong Greek warrior and acted under the guidance of Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle strategy. In Big Fish by Daniel Wallace, Edward Bloom is dying and his son, William realizes he doesn’t know the man beyond the mythical stories his father told him about his life. Daniel Wallace rendered Odysseus new through the adventures of Edward Bloom.

Odysseus and Percy are similar because they both are stuck with the Lotus Eaters and must help their friends escape by forcing them. Odysseus must force his men off the island, “Those

This action alone can show just what type of person Odysseus actually is which include traits of an inconsiderate, dishonest man.

      Since the beginning of time epic tales have been passed on from generation to generation as a form of entertainment.  Even though each epic is different in its plot, every epic has certain features in common.  The prime example of their similarities is their main character, the hero of the epic.   The hero's behavior changes from the beginning to the end of the tale.  Since the plot revolves around the epic hero, in most cases, they are made to seem God-like, or larger then life, in their capabilities and strengths.  The hero constantly has to conquer major obstacles to achieve their initial and final goal.  Usually the hero is tremendously suspicious of other characters intensions.

During Odysseus’ wanderings, a change comes over him. A change that is motivated by the immense suffering he brings both on himself and on those around him through his prideful actions. Beginning with the prideful raid on the city of the Cicones and culminating with Odysseus taunting the newly-blinded Polyphemus, Odysseus’ pride heaps more and more suffering upon himself and often kills those around him. Because of this increase in suffering, Odysseus changes. He becomes more humble, more tactful, less of a barbarian and more of a planner; this change can been seen primarily through his diplomatic actions in Phaeacia and his cunning use of Athena’s disguise during his time of testing in his own home.

Whether Odysseus is exaggerating a certain scene or characteristic of himself as to come off more strong and hero-like, or Odysseus is leaving out information that adds to the understanding of the story, the story that is told and how it is perceived by the audience depends on and is directly correlated to the situation Odysseus or another character is currently in, who his audience is, and what is it that he wants from the audience. For instance, when telling his story to the Phaecians, Craig Russell claims that “Odysseus’s concern would have been not what “really happened” in the past, but rather what is most beneficial in his present”. Odysseus was focusing on evoking certain emotions and impactful pathos upon his audience in this situation, so that the Phaecian’s might have sympathy for him, feel in awe of him and trust him. Therefore, Odysseus uses storytelling based on the situation

In Night, the set change from Elie’s hometown Sighet to the concentration camps truly embodies the change of Elie’s character. At the beginning of the book, Elie portrays himself as a person who desire to learn about the Jewish religion. Moreover, he even finds a teacher to help him to learn about the very essence of the divinity of the Jewish religion, “ I became convinced that Moishe the Beadle would help me enter eternity, into that time when question and answer would become ONE ”(5). In this case, Elie believes god controls humans and god can answer any questions he has. Conversely, as the setting shifts to the concentration camp, the reality of his faith reveals “ Never shall I forget those moments murdered my god and my soul and turned my dreams to ashes”(34). In the concentration camp, he starts to lose faith in god when he sees god doesn’t help them when dehumanizing actions occur on Jews. Specifically, on the Jewish holiday Appelplatz, he questions and criticizes god , “ Why, but why would I bless him? [...] Because he kept six crematoria working day and night, including Sabbath and the Holy Days? ” (67) By this time, Elie tears off his mask of still believe in god and reveals his true identity: God does not exist, he is hopeless. Moreover, the shift also affects the mood of the story which it transfers the mood from hopefulness to despair and hatred. While in the movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, the coming-of-age genre facilitates the illustration of appearance and reality. Initially, when Bruno still lives in Berlin, he plays with his friends all the time and portrays himself as an explorer. When his family moves to the new residence near the camp , however, his parents tell him he can’t play in the back garden and can’t be an explorer anymore. Out of curiosity, he eventually breaks the rule and jump over the back garden. After running through the forest, he

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and Sophocles, Oedipus the King, both of the main characters conform to the same classic tragic hero formula. Oedipus suffers a life based on a pre‐birth prophecy, whereas Hamlet finds himself burdened with the task of avenging his father’s death. In both situations, two kings must leave their innocence behind as the truth leads them first, to enlightenment and then to their downfall. They battle between the light, the truth and the darkness, the lie. Both Hamlet and Oedipus are similar in that they both showcase their mental state and stability, they are able to make swift decisions, and they both deal with relationships with women. Despite similarities between Hamlet and Oedipus, it is Oedipus’ consideration to do what is best for his people and city that makes him the more honourable man.

Odysseus and Ullysseus Everett McGill are similar characters because of their perseverance, cleverness, and their leadership abilities.

Contrast to the modern American view of evil, Odysseus' blinding of Polyphemus is not an evil act, but rather one that is praised for its cleverness.  Odysseus' "nobody" trick has proved to save his life.  Although his goal was to survive, Odysseus abandoned his morals of honesty to accomplish the feat.  By identifying himself as "nobody", he fooled Polyphemus, but he also hid his true identity, which is lying and deceiving.  He actually degraded his manhood by disguising himself mentally.  Ironically, Odysseus escapes not as a manly warrior, but rather as a sheep.  After leaving the cave, he wants to redeem himself and his manhood.  Revealing his name to Polyphemus almost cost the crew members their lives, but the fame that Odysseus would obtain from tricking Polyphemus will be everlasting and was worthwhile to him.  Showing a lack of good judgement, Odysseus again reveals his position in the water, but luckily, they do escape

To begin, the elements of tone and mood work together to reveal and support the message of survival and struggle. In the novel, Chiger uses descriptive details and her thoughts and attitudes toward the situation that she was placed into set the tone. She describes and explains the agony, hatred, and hopelessness she and others felt in the sewers, revealing her bitterness for the sewers and the Nazis. Chiger also uses mood to present her messages by creating different moods around different characters, making some optimistic and hopeful while making others pessimistic and morose. “This was a reflection of their personalities: my father was gregarious and personable; Weiss was gruff and miserable” (Chiger 107). This is relatable because some people may have disparate attitudes toward a negative situation, and each person may have a different demeanor or mood in response to it. Chiger conveys her themes of struggle and survival through tone and mood, and makes it somewhat relatable.

*INTRO*The character Oedipus in the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles, and the character Othello in the play Othello the Moor of Venice by Shakespeare are both tragic characters. Oedipus ends up killing his father, and marrying and having children with his mother, whereas Othello ends up mistrusting and killing his wife. These two individuals have similarities and differences in several aspects such as the roundness of their characters, the retribution that they incur upon themselves and upon their respective wives whether directly or indirectly, and their horrors.

Odysseus is deceived by Kirke’s beauty and falls for her mysterious ways, but his devotion continues for Penelope. Kirke, deceiving Odysseus with her quick mind, says, “your cruel wandering is all you think of, / never of joy, after so many blows” (Homer 179). Kirke’s desire for the men and her persistence captured Odysseus’s logic, and he ends up living with her for quite awhile, but thankfully his reason comes back. Odysseus’s odyssey was so complex that even small occurrences like the sirens and the lotus plants make him reconsider his priorities and what is truly important to him and his future.

If we examine his quest for identity, it becomes quite apparent that the sequence of events are quite coincidental. First, he summons Tiresias to name the killer, whom Oedipus does not at the time believe to be himself. Second, the tragic hero emerges as anything but a