O Brother Where Art Thou
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I know O Brother Where Art Thou has the whole Odyssey thing going, but does anyone else notice how much of a tie to religion is in there? Is it just me or does that seem to be more prevalent than the major connections to the Odyssey?
Don't forget
Another key reference to The Oddyssey: Big Dan, the villain with the eyepatch who beat up Everett and Delmar, and the one-eyed Cyclops who battled Ulysses in the original.
I too see all of the
I too see all of the religious references but im still not totally sure how it ties into the Odyssey. The only references i have seen are when pete is turned into a toad and how the other two were lured by the women, and i guess how they are trying to find a treasure which i guess is compatible to Ithica.
well, there's the blind man
well, there's the blind man on the railroad that tells them a prophesy. was that the odyssey? I don't remember too much of it. they gave that to us as freshman, so it's been 4 years. maybe that was oedipus.
I recall something like that
I recall something like that happening in both the Odyssey/Iliad (can't remember which) and definitely in Oedipus. The blindness is a very widely used symbol in Greek myths/epics/plays/etc., while I am by no means any definitive authority on Ancient Greek literature, I remember most prophets in Ancient Greek Literature being blind, meaning that although they lack sight in an outward, more physical sense, that they have an excess of sight in an inner, more wisdom-oriented sense.
One symbol I've noticed in
One symbol I've noticed in connection with the religious theme is water. There is the scene with the baptism, a pretty overt symbol. Then there is the scene with the sirens near the river--a kind of reverse religious influence maybe where the sirens are a kind of temptation. I've also noticed in the dialog just a lot of references to Jesus. There is something going on with the contrast between Everett and Delmar and Pete regarding the baptism as well--D and P are convinced, while Everett remains a doubter.
Water and Fire
This is the first time I have ever seen the movie and even before you talked about water and fire in class today, I thought about that contrast. When Pete was about to be hung in front of the devil is when I first started to feel a definite trend, and the conclusion of the movie today verifies the assertion.
This is the first time I have
This is the first time I have ever seen the movie, but I have noticed a lot of religious references in the movie. So far, I am pretty lost when it comes to the plot. I'm not really sure what they are doing other than escaping from prison. Also, I have never read the Odyssey so I'm not sure how it compares in terms of religious references.
I have read The Odyssey
I have read The Odyssey (though it's been a long time) and I think O Brother Where Art Thou's plot pretty much mirrors it- especially when we find out at the end that Everett's quest all along was to get back home to his wife, which is kind of similar to how Odysseus wants to return home to his wife after his long journey. I don't think you can make an exact comparison- obviously, with the movie being so much more modern than the book, the scenarios are very different. I think the religious angle is an interesting one to think about as well- religion comes up in The Odyssey, though it's polytheism as opposed to Christianity. Odysseus receives help and guidance from the gods he worships throughout his journey. I also wonder about the religious connections of Pete, Delmar, and Everett. We don't know how truly criminal they are- except Everett, whose crime is non violent and small. They do so much good throughout the story, including saving an innocent man from an angry lynch mob, to keeping a corrupt man out of office, unintentionally, even though Everett is never saved. Could they be meant to represent religious figures of some sort? This is especially interesting considering Everett's prayer (and then denial of its importance) at the very end.
O Brother Where Art Thou vs. The Odyssey
O Brother Where Art Thou's plot is similar to the Odyssey's plot albeit in a more modern context. Pete, Delmar, and Everett's escape from jail parallels Odysseus and his men's escape from the psyclops, Delmar being turned into the frog is similar to how some of Odysseus men are turned into sheep and goats, moreover the girls on the river stones are like the singing nimphs that Odysseus men must put wax in their ears to block out their voices, and the final element of similarity that stood out to me, although perhaps obvious, is that Everett is on a journey to get back to his home and his wife. An interesting question would be to compare Everett's qualities and portrayal in the movie with the way Odysseus is characterized in the book.