Homers Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou - 1057 Words

In both Homer’s The Odyssey and the film O Brother, Where Art Thou? the audience is given an opportunity to experience a spectacular adventure, filled with not only the sense of journey, but also the senses of peril and excitement. A tale about a Greek hero being compared to a film set in Middle America starring three jail-escapees seems rather far-fetched. However, upon closer inspection, both actually share a lot in common. The Odyssey stars Odysseus, a man famous for his heroics in the Trojan War. O Brother, Where Art Thou? shows a bit of a contrast by starring Ulysses, a former convict who escaped and began looking for â€Å"A Treasure†. So by default, one would assume that that these two stories would be completely different. However, it†¦show more content†¦This is quite similar to Odysseus, who is able to weave his way through countless situations due to his incredible sense of psychology and tactics, a lot of which is based off of his good looks and so cial personality. One noticeable moment from the Odyssey was when he fooled the Cyclops, Polyphemus, into telling the other Cyclops that â€Å"nobody† was bothering him. This ploy was the reason that Odysseus managed to escape a horrible fate. Moments like these are what set these two men apart as both keen, and just flat out smart. Intelligence is something that is key to have when dealing with the world, and these characters show true talents by possessing it. But one thing that seems to be quite intriguing is how that intelligence is used. Odysseus first uses it in order to escape fighting the Trojan War, however, in the end; it is his love for his son, Telemachus which forced him to play his part in the battle. Of course, from what we have read in the Odyssey, Odysseus also shows extreme talents on his way back to Ithica, where he fought not only people and monsters, but also the god Poseidon. With all of stress these men have, where can they find compassion? â€Å"Love is all we have, the only way that each can help the other.† Euripides The answer to that question is family. Both men have great senses of family; Ulysses has a wife whom he loves and six daughters that he fights to keep custody of over theShow MoreRelatedO Brother, Where Art Thou?: Modern Adaptation of Homers Odyssey1265 Words   |  6 Pagesfilm O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a reinterpretation of the epic poem The Odyssey. The Coen brothers, writers and directors of the film, did not over analyze their representation. â€Å"It just sort of occurred to us after we’d gotten into it somewhat that it was a story about someone going home, and sort of episodic in nature, and it kind of evolved into that,† says Joel Coen in Blood Siblings, â€Å"It’s very loosely and very sort of unseriously based on The Odyssey† (Woods 32). O Brother, Where Art ThouRead MoreThe s Epic The Odyssey And The Movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?848 Words   |  4 PagesI have watched O’ Brother, Where Art Thou? hundreds of times before takin g this class, but until now I had no idea that it was largely based on The Odyssey, by Homer. When I reviewed the movie I realized that it is almost a parallel to The Odyssey. To summarize the film O’ Brother, Where Art Thou?, Ulysseus Everett McGill, played by George Clooney, is doing time in Mississippi. He ends up scamming his way off the chain gang accompanied by Delmar, played by Tim Blake Nelson, and Pete, played by johnRead MoreComparing The Odyssey And O Brother Where Art Thou1279 Words   |  6 PagesThe â€Å"Odyssey†, one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer, and â€Å"O Brother Where Art Thou†, a 2000 a film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. At first thought you would not think the movie â€Å"O Brother Where Art Thou† and â€Å"The Odyssey† have anything in common. It is however, the modern film depiction of the troubles of a man during the depression and is molded by the ancient struggles of Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey. â€Å"The Odyssey† is about a Greek warrior and isRead MoreComparing The Odyssey And The Movie `` O Brother Where Art Thou ``949 Words   |  4 Pagesmovie â€Å"O Brother Where Art Thou† there are connections not only with actual events that have occurred in the 1930’s, but also with Homer s Odyssey. From similarities in characters and storyline in the Odyssey to the life during the Great Depression, are all included and demonstrated. However, just like similarities, there are also inaccuracies that are not exactly the same between the movie, story, and the actual events of the Great Depression. For example, the movie O Brother Where Art Thou wasRead MoreThe Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou: Two Relevant Pieces?1872 Words   |  8 PagesThe Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou: Two Relevant Pieces? Time has not become the conqueror for the classical epic poem The Odyssey. For the past 2,500 years it has been turning its pages for many people all around the world, classifying it as the Western literary tradition. Even in the 21st century The Odyssey is still depicting its prominence when the film O Brother, Where Art Thou was directed in 2000 by loosely portraying the epic. The Coen Brothers’ film O Brother, Where Art Thou mirrorsRead MoreO Brother Where Art Thou Character Analysis1694 Words   |  7 Pages The Coen Brothers’ film, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, is loosely based on Homer’s famous Greek epic, The Odyssey, in that certain features in the film resemble those found in Homer’s epic, but the film still reveals its own sense of originality by making it more relatable to the modern world. While The Odyssey is set in Ancient Greece and O Brother, Where Art Thou? is set in the southern part of the United States during the 1930’s, the w orks are similar in following a protagonist who encountersRead MoreAnalysis Of O Brother And The Odyssey 1707 Words   |  7 Pagestest of time is Homer’s The Odyssey, and epic poem telling of Odysseus, a warrior and a king, and his long and trying journey back to his home country(Fagles, 186). The evolution of this epic can be seen as it gets interpreted and transferred into other forms of media, particularly film, which is one of the most prominent forms of media in the modern technological world. One popular adaptation of The Odyssey to film is the Academy Award nominated film O Brother, Where Art Thou where Odysseus is portrayedRead More O Brother, Where Art Thou? - From Greek Classic to American Original3139 Words   |  13 PagesO Brother, Where Art Thou? - From Greek Classic to American Original In the winter of 2001, American audiences initially paid little attention to Joel and Ethan Coens Depression era, jail-break, musical buddy comedy O Brother, Where Art Thou? The films reputation lingered, however, and over the next seven months O Brother eventually grossed a significant $45.5 million (imdb.com). Loosely adapted from Homer’s The Odyssey, the film focuses on Ulysses Everett McGill’s (George Clooney’s) journeyRead MoreOdysseus- Everett Comparison730 Words   |  3 Pagesâ€Å"The Odyssey† details the story of a man named Odysseus who went through many trials and tribulations while trying to get home to his family. In the past, many stories, movies, and other works of literature have based its plot around the story: â€Å"The Odyssey†. However, there is one movie that stands out as unique and its title is â€Å"O Brother Where Art Thou†. The producers, Joel and Ethan Coen, did a wonderful job in making actor Ulysses Everett McGi ll represent Odysseus. Everett from â€Å"O Brother WhereRead MoreO Brother Where Art Thou1597 Words   |  7 PagesAnalysis â€Å"O Brother Where Art Thou† This old time musical theatrical movie clip was an insightful blast from the past that made you cherish those days where it was inconceivable to not be a gentlemen, and it was a down right shame to be anything less then an honest women. This old time movie with a new age attitude definitely strikes the funny bone of any modern day movie watcher. â€Å"The opening titles inform us that the Coen Brothers O Brother, Where Art Thou is based on Homers The Odyssey. The Coens