Compare And Contrast The Odyssey And Much Ado About Nothing

906 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Odyssey and o brother, where art thou comparison

Obviously, men, and women are the most common kinds of people on Earth. There always seems to be a push, and pull, a give and take going on between them–yet, not always a coordinated, positive kind. The fact of the matter is that men and women were made to be imperfect (because we are all human) complements for one another, but as human beings, men and women oftentimes struggle to match up, and see eye to eye. The Odyssey by Homer, and Much Ado about Nothing by William Shakespeare search what makes men and women great for each other, and the struggles that they face in trying to make the best of one another–and the disappointments they encounter from falling short of that task. To begin, The Odyssey subtlety investigates the relationships …show more content…

Benedick and Beatrice are similar to Odysseus and Penelope because they are equals in wit. Practically the entire play demonstrates their wits brings the struggle they create for each other alive. However, one special moment that they share where their wits are used in harmony comes after Hero’s almost-wedding, and public disgrace. Benedick goes to comfort Beatrice, and confides, “I do love nothing in the world so well as you. Is not that strange?” (Shakespeare, pg. 227). After some prodding and some repartee characteristic of their relationship, he gets Beatrice to admit, “I love you with so much of my heart that none is left to protest” (Shakespeare, pg. 229). As mentioned previously in another essay prompt, neither one allowed them self to love the other before they felt certain of the other’s feelings. But, once they let themselves love each other, and open up, they were able to be true, and sincere with one another. Their love is strong enough that upon Beatrice’s request to “Kill Claudio” (Shakespeare, pg. 229), Benedick first refuses this challenge, which pains Beatrice; but, in the end, he agrees to challenge Claudio. Love has a lot of power; whether for good, or for bad. But, the point is that no matter the difficulties, and differences between a man and a woman, they can undertake …show more content…

The Odyssey indirectly illustrates the difficulties, and benefits of men and women’s relationship, and that same topic is a main theme in Much Ado about Nothing. At a glance, these two masterpieces are totally unalike, but clearly they have strong similarities in this universal theme. BYU-Idaho students can benefit from serious study and reflection of these two great works in countless ways; but, in regards to the relationship between men and women, they can help see relationships in a clearer light. The culture that students at BYU-Idaho live with can be hard to manage at times. The LDS culture’s ideas about marriage, and sexual relationships between men and women differ greatly from the world surrounding these students, and students can get lost between the two clashing cultures if they are not careful. From these two great works of art, a student can better understand the reality of commitment to marriage. Marriage takes constant hard work; it can be exhausting because of the continuous tussle between the two sexes. On the other hand, though, these books may also help restore a student’s hope in relationships because of the great rewards such relationships can

Show More
Related

  • 'The Odyssey And' O Brother, Where Art Thou?

    1413 Words  | 3 Pages

    Pop culture’s mythology theory is used in many forms of media today, from The Legend of Zelda in video games to “Harry Potter in books. One example of usage of the mythology theory is the 1996 movie, O Brother, Where Art Thou? directed by Joel Coen. This movie is based off Homer’s epic poem, “The Odyssey.” There are many similarities between the two, yet at the same time, there are many differences.

    Read More

  • The Odyssey versus Oh Brother Where Art Thou?

    738 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tens of thousands of stories fit into the hero’s journey archetype created by Christopher Volger. Out of these, a large number of them are stories with remakes that share notable resemblances in their heroes’ journeys. However, none of these quite match those very strong similarities found between Homer’s The Odyssey and Joel Coens’s O Brother, Where Art Thou? These stories share crucial components of the hero’s journey whether it be “crossing the first threshold,” where the main characters of both stories begin their long adventure that transforms them into heroes; “the supreme ordeal,” where the main characters are both deprived of the opportunity to get home sooner; or “return with elixir,” where Odysseus and Ulysses both return to their homes alive the comfort of their wives. In their major plot points, the novel The Odyssey and the motion picture O Brother convey obvious similarities in key elements of their heroes’ journeys such as “crossing the first threshold,” “the supreme ordeal,” and “return with elixir.”

    Read More

  • Theme Of Deception In Much Ado About Nothing

    1058 Words  | 3 Pages

    The difference between Beatrice,Benedick,and the other two Claudio and Hero though is that, these two are very headstrong characters with a different outlook on love, but have very much love for one another. Benedick believes in just being a bachelor and spending the rest of his life messing with as many women as he pleases, well as for Beatrice she believes there is no man good enough and willing to show her the love she wants so she much rather be left alone. But the fact that they honestly want to believe what they say is what makes this get way more interesting. What they don’t know is that they are going to soon become curious trying to figure out what they truly feel for one

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Odyssey And O Brother Where Art Thou

    1294 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Odyssey vs. O Brother, Where Art Thou? The story of the Odyssey has so many events and conflicts that happen throughout it. In mythology, many of the stories have moral or reasoning to teach us different things about life. The main moral of the Odyssey is that you should never give up or quit, even if it is challenging.

    Read More

  • Homer’s Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou?

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 “A Treasure”. So by default, one would assume that that these two stories would be completely different. However, it ends up being quite the opposite. The two stories are so remarkably alike that it is almost staggering. However, it may not just be simple similarities that make the two so alike. The main reasons why the two characters are so alike are not so much the actions that they take, as oppose to the overall human emotional aspect of the two pieces of work. For example, we see that both Odysseus and Ulysses are invested in their lives with their families, and as such, they never have a moment where they stop thinking about the lives they used to live. Both characters are extremely alike in terms of thoughts, skills, and experiences. They are both profound tacticians, as well as being rather strong and good looking men. So in the end, both of these men have plenty in common on the emotional and psychological levels.

    Read More

  • Benedick's Changing views on Love in Much Ado about Nothing

    581 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout Act one and two, Benedick repeatedly says that he will never love a woman or get married. At some stage in the duration of the play his mindset changes. In the end he is head over heels in love for Beatrice whom he once quarreled with habitually. The turnabout in his behavior was brought about by the deceiving Claudio and Pedro who indirectly told Benedick that Beatrice loved him.

    Read More

  • Comparing The Odyssey And Star Wars: A New Hope

    845 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the movie Star Wars: A New Hope, directed by George Lucas and in the epic poem The Odyssey written by Homer, the heroes are able to do more than the average man. These attributes allow the story to be more interesting. Luke Skywalker from Star Wars: A New Hope and Odysseus from The Odyssey both share the common archetype that the hero accomplishes more than the ordinary man does; this shared archetype allows the hero to resolve the story's problem.

    Read More

  • Comparing Odyssey And The Wizard Of Oz

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    The story of the epic hero is seen in many examples around the world, from one of the most well know cartoon, SpongeBob Squarepants, to the novel The Wizard of Oz written by L. Frank Baum. The Wizard of Oz is later turned into film and a well-known play . It is a fun and interesting story of an epic. In their own way, the novel The Wizard of Oz and The Odyssey are examples of epics. Both stories tell of a strong hero who covers a vast amount of distance to achieve their goal, with Dorothy traveling from the Oz back to her home, Kansas, and Odysseus traveling from Troy back to Ithaca. The Wizard of Oz is the story of the heroic, young girl, Dorothy and her friends on a journey to find the great Wizard of Oz to grant them their wish. In the

    Read More

  • Comparing O Brother Where Art Thou And Homer's Odyssey

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    Is it imaginable for a historically known Ancient Greek hero and an escapee from prison to be seen in the same light? At a first glimpse, one would say that they are from two completely different realms and could never be considered alike, but with closer examination, the two might be considered kindred spirits. The similarities between O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Homer's Odyssey are abundant, ranging from the most obvious to the most obscure, though they differ in a variety of ways as well. In the opening credits of O Brother, Where Art Thou? it is communicated to the audience that the movie is “based on Homer’s Odyssey.” Although the Coens did not initially plan to base the film on Homer's epic, Joel Coen has been quoted as saying, “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. It’s very loosely and very sort of unseriously based on the Odyssey (Spearfish)”. While

    Read More

  • A Comparison of Homer's Odyssey and Oedipus the King

    892 Words  | 2 Pages

    won) fighting a war against the city of Troy and has been held captive by

    Read More

  • Comparing the Odyssey and Medea

    1326 Words  | 3 Pages

    While home is usually represented by a physical shelter such as a house, Homer and Euripides in their respective novels The Odyssey and Medea show that home has much more significance as a state where one can comfortably express the values and beliefs that define one’s identity. Both authors use protagonists who are far away from home. These characters often associate with and depend upon other characters they meet. Since they live under the influence of others, it is not surprising then to find that the two protagonists lose their individual identities. Moreover, both protagonists will also purposefully develop a second identity that is designed to conform to the society in which they inhabit. Since both protagonists are away from home for the majority of both works, it would be appropriate to examine, through specific instances, how both authors connect a lack of home with an absence of individual identity.

    Read More

  • Comparing The Odyssey 'And O Brother, Where Art Thou?'

    433 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou?, distinct texts share various elements including characters and theme. In O Brother, Where Art Thou? escapees launch a successful song while running from the law in hopes to return to their loved ones. In The Odyssey, post to the Trojan War, Odysseus travels back home after over ten years of absence. O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a film released in the year 2000, based off of The Odyssey, established its setting in the 1930’s during the Great Depression, a result of World War I. While The Odyssey took place after the Trojan War. Both texts share a setting post to a war, this time served as recovery from war. In O Brother, Where Art Thou? Everett begins his journey home to find his children and wife by

    Read More

  • Differences between Beatrice and Hero in Much Ado about Nothing

    1199 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...he other hand, Beatrice and Benedick are comedy-makers and Beatrice is not ruled by her father as Hero clearly is. It does take Don Pedro’s benevolent plot to bring Benedick and Beatrice together, however. A modern audience would prefer Beatrice to Hero as she is her own self and admirable. The relationships also differ because Benedick and Beatrice’s relationship slowly grew whereas Claudio and Hero’s relationship was love at first sight. Perhaps it was a little hasty as we see in Act 4 how their love turns sour.

    Read More

  • Comparing the Aeneid and the Odyssey

    2715 Words  | 6 Pages

    Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid represent their cultures very well, but they express different ideas on what one should strive for in life.  There are also different forces that pushed both epics to be written.  The Aeneid expresses the Roman idea of pietas which means to show extreme respect for one’s ancestors. We see this in Aeneas when he is pictured caring his father away from burning Troy.  He has pietas because he cared so much for his father that in fleeing from Troy he took up his father over his shoulder to save his from certain death.  This is not the only major idea in the Aeneid.  There is also a very political focus.  The Roman were very interested in politics which comes through in the Aeneid. The Odyssey has the Greek idea of arete trapped somewhere among the many themes.  Arete is a strive for perfection in both mind and body.  It is a much more personal and individual idea than the Roman pietas. In the most basic seance the Aeneid and the Romans have a much more political focus and duty to the state ( republic ) than the Greeks who honor tradition , family , and arete.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Iliad And The Odyssey

    1039 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the book the Iliad, The Odyssey, and Works and days, there are many things that can be similar when talking about Greek heroes and the world of Greek poetry. The stories and topics are describing similar events during this time of the eighth and seventh century B.C. In the end, however, they do have some differences in some parts when describing or explaining certain situations and ideas. The world of Greek heroes is written like a story; or Epic Poetry. That is what The Iliad and The Odyssey are; Epic Poetries. They are telling a story of a great hero and their adventures. On the other hand, the more realistic Greek World that is being described in Works and days is a Didactic poem, which tells more of a moral or message to the reader.

    Read More

More about Compare And Contrast The Odyssey And Much Ado About Nothing

Open Document