Similarities Between Oh Brother Where Art Thou And The Odyssey

When I think of heroes I usually imagine a “superman” like character, whose greatest asset is his overpowering physical prowess combined with a sense of hyper-morality. But, Homer’s The Odyssey introduces a hero who is neither. Similarly, the Coen brothers also present a comparable tale in Oh Brother Where Art Thou, whose hero also lacks an emphasis on these traits. Instead, both authors use their characters to build a more realistic fairytale by highlighting (what happens when simple hospitality goes astray) their hero’s character flaws.

Both the ancient Greek poet Homer, and modern day writer/directors Joel and Ethan Coen, create a hero rife with flaws against a backdrop of inhospitality. In Homer’s The Odyssey it is Odysseus. Odysseus

Back home in Ithaca, Odysseus’s wife Penelope is being heavily pursued by suitors who mean to supplant Odysseus. Odysseus’s son, Telemachus struggles to rid his father’s kingdom from the suitors while trying to uphold his family name. Meanwhile, aided by the goddess Athena and simultaneously attacked by the god Poseidon, Odysseus struggles from island to island to get home. Upon returning home a disguised Odysseus attempts to survey the situation. His wife Penelope does not recognize Odysseus and holds a competition to pick a suitor. Later, Odysseus reveals himself after winning the event and slays the competitors, regaining his former life. Comparatively, in the spring of 2000, Oh Brother Where Art Thou debuted at the Cannes Film Festival. Written and directed by the brothers Joel and Ethan Coen, Oh Brother Where Art Thou also highlights a flawed hero, “Ulysses Everett McGill”. Taking place in the depression era deep-south, depicting three escaped convicts chained together literally and by fate. The main protagonist “Everett” played by George Clooney, convinces two fellow inmates, “Delmar” played by Tim Blake Nelson and “Pete” played by John Turturro to escape a chain gang and go in search of

Although, Homer presents it in a perverted form. An old prophet foretells of Calypso holding Odysseus captive, coveting him for herself, on an island and denying his escape (Fagles 1995: 3, 67, 77). The reader may ask, where is Homer going with this? Creating this conflict allows Homer to use these events as a backdrop for the hero to display his cunningness, ego, selfishness or other character imperfections. Instead of displaying the Greek philosophy of Xenia in an idealistic form, Homer seeks to entertain his audience by emphasizing how his hero reacts, imperfections included. Similarly, the Coen Brothers borrow Homer’s concepts for their hero and locate their story in the deep-south, which is stereotypically renown for its hospitality: Xenia. By doing so they also afford their hero “Everett” the same opportunity to display his imperfections early on against the backdrop of poor hospitality. The three escapees are invited to climb aboard a railroad handcart: an island of sorts. Without request they receive a foretelling about their journey by an old prophet (E. Coen, J. Coen, 2001). This concept is perpetuated many times by both authors and abused by different characters throughout the hero’s journeys. Later, Homer introduces it again when Odysseus tries demanding hospitality from the Cyclops: Polyphemus, by stating, “[W]e’re at your knees in hopes of a warm welcome, even a guest-gift the sort that hosts give