Week 5 Essay: Mythology Repeats Itself

There is a ton of information out there regarding The Voyages of Sindbad and its correlation to The Odyssey and the stories surrounding Odysseus' adventures as he travels homeward. This essay only has the room and focus for a few instances, but I think these may be the most common, and therefore, I wish to make them known to everyone. Knowing and understanding how various cultural mythologies intersect or borrow from each other is a very important aspect of understanding the importance of mythology in and of itself.

First of all, a key component of both mythologies is the central character. There is little difference between Odysseus from Homer's classic poem, and Sindbad the Sailor. They both rely on their wit to get them out of the inevitable sticky situations...which is rather common for both adventurers. As previously hinted, both characters are technically sailors - though I guess that's kind of debatable with Odysseus. Both have a difficult time with getting older and settling down from the lifestyle they are both used to, as well. Again, many similarities.

On their adventures, they run into similar obstacles. Particularly in Sindbad's third voyage, where he goes to a land filled with giants. These giants, in some instances, have only one eye, and they have a taste for humans. If that isn't comparable to Poseidon's son, the Cyclops, I don't know what is. Also, after escaping the giants, Sindbad and his crew run into a giant snake. This is a little less noticeable, but there is a sea creature that Odysseus must avoid that is made up of several snake heads - similar to that of a Hydra from the stories of Heracles.

Now, again, there are plenty of differances in these stories to make them their own, but if I were a betting man, I would bet on the theory that Sherizade took a couple of ideas from Homer. These, of course, are just my thoughts.

The Sindbad I Grew Up With

 

Author's Note

The story I read this week was The Voyages of Sindbad. Specifically, the Third Voyage. When I was reading this, I couldn't help but think it was the story of Odysseus. The similarities were ridiculous. Now, I hope this essay helps others who read it make some connections of their own.