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

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Over the course of human history people have always believed in a supreme, divine being, or a god. Today’s society is no exception, there are countless of religions from Christianity to Hinduism. The archetypal theme of “respect for the gods” in both Homer’s Odyssey and the Coen brothers film O Brother Where Art Thou? shows similarities and differences between society's belief in a god in the present and during the time of the Ancient Greeks. A theme in both the epic and the film is: if one is respectful to the gods he will be helped, but if one is disrespectful he will be punished. The first example of help is shown in the poem through Odysseus’ rescue from Calypso’s island. Odysseus was stuck on the island against his will and wanted to get back home. (Homer 1.56-57) The Greek pantheon decided to help him because they remembered Odysseus’ sacrifices, Athena told Zeus, “ Did not Odysseus offer you delightful sacrifices?”(1.62-63) Zeus responds by agreeing to rescue Odysseus. This situation shows how the Greeks believed that sacrificing and being respectful of the gods could help get a person out of a tight spot. The Greeks also believed that their misfortunes were caused by the gods …show more content…

It can be seen in the Odyssey through Odysseus’ and his men’s actions, for the most part they respected and feared the gods like every good Greek. The meaning of God is different in O Brother Where Art Thou? compared to the Odyssey, not as many people believe there is a God in O Brother Where Art Thou?, while in the Odyssey the belief was universal. An example of non-belief in the film O Brother Where Art Thou? is: Ulysses’ has a continual struggle with the existence of God. Finally when prays to God asking to be saved from the sheriff, God sends a flood. Seeing this Ulysses does not believe it was God but that it was the people flooding the valley. These works show how the belief in a god has evolved over

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