Many know the story of the great Greek hero who traveled the seas, attempting to return home. Odysseus’ story is known in all kinds of places around the globe and the tale has been written and rewritten in all forms of Greek mythology. Two of these are The Odyssey by Homer and Odysseus by Geraldine McCaughrean. While The Odyssey and Odysseusare similar concerning their plot, they differ in point of view and formatting.
The plot of The Odyssey and Odysseus are very similar. Both texts revolve around the Greek hero, Odysseus, and his shipmates as they sail across the ocean and avoid being lured away by mythical creatures called the Sirens. Odysseus decides to put ear wax in the ears of his shipmates and was tied to the ship mast.
Odysseus ends up enchanted by the Sirens and wants to be set free, but is only tied tighter. In the end, in his story, The Odyssey, Homer quotes, “[t]hen scudding swiftly from the dangerous ground, / [t]he deafen’d ear unlock’d, the chains unbound” (Homer 49-50). As their ears were “unlock’d” and chains were “unbound,” they were set free from their restraints, because they escaping the Sirens.
This is similar to Odysseus in which it states, “[o]ver the starboard quarter, the Island of the Sirens dipped out of sight below the brimming horizon” (McCaughrean 13). Since they could no longer see the island, they escaped. Meaning, both ended with Odysseus and his shipmates escaping safely.
While in The Odyssey, the point of view is in the first person; Odysseus, however, differs from a third-person point of view. The first-person point of view is clearly demonstrated when The Odyssey states, “[n]ow round the masts my mates the fetters roll’d, / [a]nd bound me limb by limb with fold on fold” (Homer 25-26). The author uses words such as my and me, referring to oneself.
On the other hand, the third person is emphasized when Odysseus says, “Wearily he kept watch for the island of the Sirens. There! Was that birdsong or human voices drifting towards him?” (McCaughrean 1). The author uses the words “he” and “him,”, referring to another person, in this case, Odysseus. These words continue throughout the stories and prove them to have different points of view.
The formatting of the two texts differs greatly. The Odysseyis poetic, including stanzas and some rhyming words. However, Odysseusis a narrative and follows the standard paragraph format. The Odyssey maintains that form when stating, “[i]n flowery meadows the sportive Sirens play, / [t]ouch the soft lyre, and tune the vocal lay.”
Both lines end in a rhyming word and show the poetic form. [2] It is clear that Odysseus is a narrative when McCaughrean says, “[t]oo quiet, too low, I must get closer, he thought, and stood with his hand to his ear on the dipping prow” (McCaughrean 2). As the actions of Odysseus progress, it forms into written events that flow one to another.
The two works, The Odyssey and Odysseus, are similar and contrasting in many ways. They are different in point of view and formatting, yet the plot is similar. Aside from these, there are more similarities and differences, yet they are all the same story in the end.
William completed his Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in 2013. He current serves as a lecturer, tutor and freelance writer. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, walking his dog and parasailing. Article last reviewed: 2022 | St. Rosemary Institution © 2010-2024 | Creative Commons 4.0
