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O Brother Where Art Thou vs. The Odyssey

Satisfactory Essays

Jaxson Hoey
Mr. Pison
Honors Lit & Comp
13 March 2013
Two Historical and Impactful Journeys The Odyssey is one of the most impactful pieces of literature in history. It illustrates a voyage epic of an ancient Greek hero who shows perseverance to return home to his family despite many trials. So impactful, O Brother Where Art Thou? was made to put this tale into modern terms so that society could better understand and learn from it. O Brother Where Art Thou? was nominated for best picture and won best actor at the Golden Globe Awards in 2001 because of how well it described The Odyssey. O Brother Where Art Thou? is an accurate description of The Odyssey because of the connections on the events of the Cyclops, the Sirens, and the …show more content…

The three women in O Brother Where Art Thou? play the same Role as the Sirens do in The Odyssey. Finally, the most difficult trial Odysseus had to overcome was when the Suitors courted his wife Penelope when he returned home. When Odysseus returned, he found that the other princes in the land called suitors had been feasting in the halls of Odysseus and courting Penelope his wife. Feasting from Odysseus flocks and herds was what they were famously known for when Prince Telemachus said, “Look at them over there just lyres and tunes! It’s easy for them, all right, they feed off another’s goods and go scot-free” (Homer 82). She is about to pick one of the many suitors to marry her when Odysseus returns to his palace. Similarly in O Brother Where Art Thou?, the day that Everett returns to his hometown, he finds his daughters with a man that they scribe as a “fine suitor.” This man is the fiancé of his wife, who has been living in Everett’s house since he went to prison and became his wife’s new boyfriend. Physically, they are both well-dressed and well-fed from lavishing from the spoils of both households. The Odyssey describes them as “they trooped in [the dining hall] with all their swagger” (Homer 82). This is due to the clothes that they wear and the many luxuries in benefitting one’s appearance that come in being a king. In the next scene, the day of the

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