Does anyone think that there r any similarities between The Odyssey and The Lord of the Rings?

Answer 1

Just wanted to add that The Odyssey shows that one must have wits in addition to brawn in order to conquer monsters. That is one of the themes that sets The Odyssey apart from The Iliad: The Iliad is about pure physical strength, such as that of Achilles, and how he conquered based on his athleticism alone. The Odyssey's central character is Odysseus, who is introduced as a man of "twists and turns," meaning he's extremely cunning, and he had to use his wits in order to defeat monsters (who gave him riddles to solve, trapped him, etc). The dominant characters in LOTR, such as Gandalf and Aragorn, are wise and are fast thinkers, which make them great warriors. One of the characters even says at one point that the Urukai will be more difficult to defeat than Orks (sp?) because they are cunning as well as strong. The Hobbits are not brawny beings, but they managed to complete a difficult mission largely because they used their brains.

So...I guess both stories might be trying to say that physical strength and size aren't everything.

Answer 2

There's a long journey.
Also, both of the main characters (Odysseus/Frodo) deal with internal struggles; keeping the ring/staying for years and years on islands with other women instead of going home.
And there's the idea in both that nobody is completely independent; everybody needs help to complete their journey

Answer 3

There's a journey in both stories. Also, the main characters meet creatures/people they never knew about before.

Sorry, I can't think of anything else...
Hope I helped!
10 points best answer?

Answer 4

1.) both are long journeys into far lands
2.) both are attempting to deal with mythology (myth vs. myth wanna-be)
3.) both deal with fantasy creatures
4.) both deal with characters who develope throughout the story
5.) both classics
6.) both stress loyalty (to one's gods and wife vs. to ones friends)