If you watch O Brother, Where Art Thou without having read The Odyssey, you will assume it’s any other movie, with some unique elements that were oddly added in. Although, if you read the book before or after watching the movie, a lot of those random elements will make sense. These stories tell of two long and hard journeys home, that have obstacles and dangers that must be overcome. While there are many differences between the book and the movie, they also have many similarities. Both stories start with a prophecy. In O’Brother the Blind Seer tells them about a fortune that they will find after a long and hard journey. In The Odyssey, Teiresias is a blind prophet who tells Odysseus of his fate, how much Poseidon despises him for killing
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These prophets are very mysterious elements in both of the stories, that were interesting yet also fit into the storyline. Everett and Odysseus in these stories are very much alike. They are both leaders, cunning, smart, yet still have flaws and make mistakes. One detail that they incorporated into the movie was Odysseus’ eloquence. Both Everett and Odysseus are excellent speakers, and have the ability to persuade people with their words. Everett is a very logical person, and even if what he says doesn’t make sense, it always sounds like it does. After Everett reveals that he stole a pocket watch from Pete’s cousin, Wash, Pete becomes enraged. Everett tells him that he was just borrowing it before he found out that Wash would betray them and call the sheriff on them, and Pete said that didn’t …show more content…
For example, Big Dan Teague, who represents Polyphemus the cyclops, and Sheriff Cooley, who represents Poseidon. Those are some interesting parallels taken from the book and applied in the movie. On an interesting note, the blind radio DJ represented Homer. Both Homer and the DJ told the stories of these main protagonists. The DJ being blind was a connection to how Homer couldn’t see the story itself happen, so he relied on the power of words to tell it. Everett told his story through a song called ‘I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow’, which told of Everett’s journey home, and his wishes to come home to his family. This song resembles the long story Odysseus told people when they’d ask him what had happened to him. The radio DJ played this song on the radio, so people heard and liked the song, which is how Everett’s story was told. The parallel to that was Homer telling Odysseus’ story. One element in the movie that was different from the book was the topic of religion. In The Odyssey, Odysseus had many personal relationships with the gods, like Poseidon, who wanted him dead, and Athena, who helped him and became his ally. Some other characters in The Odyssey had some mythical elements to them, like Circe, who had magical powers, and Calypso, who was a lesser-known goddess who wanted to make Odysseus her husband. Many of these magical characters are somehow related to the gods. For example,
These prophets are very mysterious elements in both of the stories, that were interesting yet also fit into the storyline. Everett and Odysseus in these stories are very much alike. They are both leaders, cunning, smart, yet still have flaws and make mistakes. One detail that they incorporated into the movie was Odysseus’ eloquence. Both Everett and Odysseus are excellent speakers, and have the ability to persuade people with their words. Everett is a very logical person, and even if what he says doesn’t make sense, it always sounds like it does. After Everett reveals that he stole a pocket watch from Pete’s cousin, Wash, Pete becomes enraged. Everett tells him that he was just borrowing it before he found out that Wash would betray them and call the sheriff on them, and Pete said that didn’t …show more content…
For example, Big Dan Teague, who represents Polyphemus the cyclops, and Sheriff Cooley, who represents Poseidon. Those are some interesting parallels taken from the book and applied in the movie. On an interesting note, the blind radio DJ represented Homer. Both Homer and the DJ told the stories of these main protagonists. The DJ being blind was a connection to how Homer couldn’t see the story itself happen, so he relied on the power of words to tell it. Everett told his story through a song called ‘I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow’, which told of Everett’s journey home, and his wishes to come home to his family. This song resembles the long story Odysseus told people when they’d ask him what had happened to him. The radio DJ played this song on the radio, so people heard and liked the song, which is how Everett’s story was told. The parallel to that was Homer telling Odysseus’ story. One element in the movie that was different from the book was the topic of religion. In The Odyssey, Odysseus had many personal relationships with the gods, like Poseidon, who wanted him dead, and Athena, who helped him and became his ally. Some other characters in The Odyssey had some mythical elements to them, like Circe, who had magical powers, and Calypso, who was a lesser-known goddess who wanted to make Odysseus her husband. Many of these magical characters are somehow related to the gods. For example,