Oh Brother Where’s Ithaca?

Although there are many connections that can be made between Homer’s The Odyssey and Joel and Ethan Coen’s Oh Brother Where Art Thou, one of them that really stood out to me was similarities between Odysseus and Ulysses Everett McGill.  Both characters have similar motives for their own Odysseys (in trying to get back to their wives), extreme hubris, and are skilled in trickery.

The common theme/ drive for both Odysseus and Ulysses is the task of getting back to their wives.  Odysseus, as we know, has been trapped at Calypso’s island, and has been away from his home for twenty years.  Throughout the epic poem, he longs to get home to see his wife, Penelope, son, Telemachus, and his city or Ithaca.  Throughout his journey, there are many obstacles and distractions that derail him from his trail, but this drive of getting home is what keeps him (somewhat) focused during his journey.  Ulysses, having been imprisoned for practicing law without a licence, also longs to return home.  But, in the case of Odysseus, who has no idea what has been going on at home, Ulysses has received a letter from his wife, Penny McGill, explaining that she has decided to remarry a man named Vernon T. Waldrip, who is apparently “bona fide”.  After being informed of this, Ulysses decides to plan a breakout with his inmates Delmar and Pete.  These motives both drive the characters, Odysseus and Ulysses, and the plot forward to create an interesting adventure, both for them and the reader.  

The second similarity involves both Odysseus’ and Ulysses’ excessive pride.  Their prideful personalities both help and hurt their own respected journeys.  If Odysseus hadn’t mocked Polyphemus so much, he might not of have so much beef with Poseidon, and might of gotten back sooner, maybe even with some of his original crew.  On the flip-side, if Ulysses didn’t care so much about his hair, and the certain kind of hair gel he must use,  he and his pals wouldn’t of had to go out of their way to keep restocking in hair products.  So, although they share similar motives, Odysseus’ pride and Ulysses vanity drag out their own journeys at their own expenses.  

Lastly, both Odysseus and Ulysses have very fine tuned skills in deception.  It helps make up for their hubris.  Odysseus uses his skills in tickery to convince people he is either more than made out to be, or is a foreigner.  He doesn’t fully reveal himself until the end, when he shows himself to Telemachus and then Penelope.  In this case, Ulysses is sort of the same.  He is able to dig himself out of most situations, or make the most of it.  Such as with Mr. Lund, the blind radio station man, he tricks the man with lies about the band “The Soggy-Bottom Boys’” numbers and races.  What comes from his lies is more money for their journey, which is unfortunately stolen. Each of their skills in trickery help both characters get through the many obstacles they experience in their respective journeys, but also extentuate their pride.

These similarities make it very easy to connect The Odyssey to Oh Brother Where Art Thou. Each of the qualities play off each other, changing the pace of their own Odysseys.  It’s unfortunate that Odysseus’ pride and Ulysses’ vanity cause major obstacles in their paths, but their motives and skills in deception almost make up for it.  All in all, although these qualities seem to drag on both Odysseus’ and Ulysses’ journeys, they make for a more interesting story, to say the least.