Anastasia OMeara

Ms. Southall
Advanced English 9
12 November 2014
Everett or Odysseus?
A good leader should be able to accomplish what is best for the majority of people. There
are two similar leaders that are the heroes of two similar stories. These two are Everett, from Oh
Brother, Where Art Thou directed by the Coen brothers, and Odysseus, from The Odyssey by
Homer. Both of these characters had a goal. Everetts was to stop his wife from getting married;
Odysseuss was to get home. While these characters are alike, one has to be better than the other.
I believe that Everett was a better leader than Odysseus. In this essay, I will explain why by
showing how both Everett and Odysseus performed in similar situations.
Throughout Oh Brother, Where Art Thou, Everett deals with trial after trial, and so does
Odysseus, but the difference here is that Odysseus gets help from the gods in many situations
while Everett does not have the same supernatural interference. For example, Odysseus didnt
escape Calypsos island until Zeus interfered by sending Hermes, and both Athena and Ino had
to help Odysseus survive after that. Everett, however, escaped the chain gang without as much
help. Also, when Odysseus left Circes island, he was told by Circe what was going to happen to
him so he could be prepared. Everett had to think on his feet more often.
A good leader is responsible for taking care of their followers. All of Odysseuss
shipmates ended up dead. Odysseus forgot all about Elpenor, who died on Circes island, until he
appeared to him in the Underworld. He sacrificed six of his shipmates to Scylla. He failed to stop
the rest of them from eating Helioss cattle. All of Everetts followers ended up alive, well, and

pardoned. The lives of Everetts friends were very important to him. For example, he risked his
life to save Tommy, whom he didnt even know very well, from being murdered.
Everett was a better husband than Odysseus. This is a sign of good character - something
a leader should have. Odysseus seemed like a hypocrite when he cheated on his wife and then
tested her to make sure that she had been faithful. He didnt trust Penelope enough to reveal
himself to her early on. Everett, on the other hand, was very loyal to his wife. He loved her even
when she was engaged to another man, and even when he found out that she was telling his
children that he got hit by a train. If Penelope willingly got engaged to a suitor and told
Telemachus that Odysseus was dead when she knew he wasnt, Odysseuss pride would be
wounded and he would react very badly, and possibly even hurt Penelope.
While Everett may not be an obvious choice, he proved himself to be a better leader than
Odysseus in the way he handled the problems he faced. He didnt have Odysseuss fame, or
power, or supernatural favoritism, yet he was still more capable of leading his followers (and
himself) to success and a better life. In conclusion, Everett is more fit to lead than Odysseus.