Please click on the following link and read the blog post there. Then, in a comment, respond to the article. What other similarities and differences are there between Jacob and Odysseus?
http://openmindedtorah.blogspot.com/2008/12/wounding-vulnerability-and-identity.html
Some similarities between Jacob and Odysseus are they both have something that defines them. Specifically, Odysseus has a scar on his body. Even though he comes back to Ithaca disguised as a beggar, Odysseus nurse was able to identify him. When she was bathing him she came of his scar and knew it was Odysseus. Jacob has a limp because when wrestling with someone or his soul his hip got dislocated. People know its Jacob when he walks because he has a limp. These two characters use their wounds definitely. Odysseus uses it to win himself glory. Jacob on the other hand follows the law of sinew. He is okay with being weaker. He embraces himself for who he is. Another difference is the way they use their wounds in life. Odysseus uses it to get or receive glory and Jacob uses it for the glory of heaven.
ReplyDeleteIn the passage, it states that the wounds of Odysseus and Jacob stand both as a testimony to the sufferings of life. This is something they have in common but they also have differences between their wounds. Odysseus's wound is there because boar ran into his foot and cut him open. Everyone knew about this scar this helped Euryclecia notice that Odysseus was Odysseus. His scar was some what of symbol that sent him apart from others. On the other had Jacob didn't have a scar, he had a strained waist. He fought with a divine spirt and hurt his hip. Throughout his life he was limping and that was something reminded him of that day. Odyssseus's scar was something that made him stand out and Jacob's limp reminded him of that specific day.
ReplyDeleteOne difference, was their intentions in the beginning. Odysseus wanted to win the war and return back to his family, while Jacob wanted to get away from his. However, as their stories go on, their intentions get more similar, to where they both just want to go home and have a happy ending. They do not want to have to fight to get that happy ending, but Odysseus fought anyway. Jacob tactfully slipped around having to fight a war with his brother. Another difference, is their relationships with their families. Odysseus had a faithful wife and a good son, and his family and parents greatly depended on him, since he had power. Jacob's family was very partitioned. His father favored his brother, while his mother favored him. In any normal case, this would stop him from getting birthright, since he is also the younger son. His family does not really depend on him at all. Later in his story, he ends up with two wives, two mistresses, and eleven children. Out of this huge family, he only favors his wife Rachel and her son Joseph.
ReplyDeleteThe article describes how both Odysseus' scar and Jacob's hip define the meaning of life, and the harsh realities that come from it. While Odysseus and Jacob are similar in this way, some differences between the two are that Jacob was forced away from his family, while Odysseus' desperately wanted to return to them. The families themselves were also different; Penelope wanted her husband to return, while Esau was feeling angry at Jacob for steeling his birthright and deceiving Isaac. Also, the wounds themselves were different. Jacob's wound to his hip caused him to limp for the remainder of his life, while Odysseus received a scar. Another difference is the way the injuries happened. Odysseus injury was caused by a real life occurrence, while Jacob was wrestling with his own mind against himself. The last difference is the role the wounds have to play; Jacob's wound causes his name to be changed to Israel, one who has "striven with divine beings and prevailed", while Odysseus wound plays the part of a recognizable feature despite his disguise. Some similarities between the two characters is that they are both scared of the reactions of their family members. Odysseus has no idea what Penelope's reaction will be to his homecoming, the same way that Jacob does not know the reaction of Esau will have when he sees him.
ReplyDeleteTheir scars define both Jacob and Odysseus. They result however, from very different battles. Odysseus’ scar comes from a battle with a wild boar, and was probably given to him in self-defense by a terrified animal. However, Jacob’s mark comes from a possibly metaphorical opponent, who purposely scars Jacob once he realizes he has been defeated. When Odysseus and Jacob are reunited with their families, they both sob freely and kiss their loved ones. While Jacob is humbled by his scar and obeys the commands of God, Odysseus’ takes pride in his, and during his journey, had deliberately opposed one of the Olympians. Jacob is reminded to “embrace his vulnerability,” while Odysseus chooses to “win himself glory.” Jacob returns to his home the younger, “softer” brother, similarly, Odysseus returns an old, weak beggar. However, in the end, they are both given glory. Jacob is blessed and renamed Israel, as the twelve tribes of this nation will be descended from him. He is also able to claim his birthright. Odysseus is recognized as the rightful king of Ithaca once again.
ReplyDeleteWell this has nothing to do with the blog, but I thought it was cool that Adam just means man, and that Eve means life. So obviously Eve had the cooler name. (I was inspired to google after reading "would a rose by any other name smell as sweet?") And whoever wrote the blog is clearly jewish, and there are so many jew jokes that I was cracking up.
ReplyDeleteJacob and Odysseus are the same person. They both have faced long years of toil. In addition, they are identified through their physical scars. However, they are also emotionally scarred. Their fights were very different. Odysseus fought an animal he was hunting and trying to kill. His scar is not important other than it gives him pride and identifies him. Jacob's scar embodies his internal conflict with his emotions towards his brother. His fight prepares him for his reconciliation with Esau. Whether his fight was real would have the same result, because he was fighting his brother's guardian angel. Either way he was fighting with his anger for his brother. Odysseus clearly requires his scar, but it does not carry the symbolism of Jacob's scar. jacob keeps the birthright, and Odysseus keeps the thrown and kills the suitors. They both are triumphant in their exploits, but pay heavily for their success.
A similarity between Odysseus and Jacob is that there scars define their identity. For Odysseus, his scar was caused by a wild boar, a physical being, unlike Jacob’s opponent, the divine wrestler who may be symbolic of Jacob fighting himself. If Odysseus were to tell an Ithacan his name, they would most likely never believe him, but they would never deny Odysseus his identity if they were to witness his scar, and thus his scar is actually beneficial for him. Jacob’s scar will always impede him and it also shoes who he is because he kept his ‘scar’, dislocated hip, for the rest of his life. Another similarity between the two is how they are unfaithful. With Odysseus, he constantly cheats on Penelope with people like Calypso and Circe. Jacob favors Rachel over Leah and does not treat her as well. It is proved that he prefers Rachel over Leah when he puts Leah and her children before Rachel and her child when they are going back home. When Odysseus returns home, even though it takes careful planning and effort, he takes back his rightful thrown. That is similar to how Jacob goes home and slowly ends up taking control. Jacob and Odysseus were both gone from home for a long time. Odysseus had been absent for 20 years while Jacob had been missing for 14 years, 7 years for each wife.
ReplyDeleteBetween Jacob and Odysseus, there are many similarities and differences. Jacob and Odysseus both must travel the long road of a hero's quest. Jacob is a hero in a sense that he creates a whole new group of people. He creates Israel and the Isrealians and Odysseus must lead his people and keep them safe and free of harm however, Odysseus' call to adventure is the Trojan War and Jacob is leaving his family to go to his uncle's home and start a new life. Odysseus' challenges are on his journey home and Jacob's are trying to start a family with the one he loves. Odysseus and Jacob's conflicts are somewhat the same in the sense of females. Jacob wants to be married to his love, Rachel, but must work hard to get what he wants, as does Odysseus. On Odysseus' journey home, he comes upon many women and must have intimate relationships with them in order to get to the one woman he really loves, Penelope. Jacob must do this as well. He promised that he will work seven years to be wed to Rachel, but he is tricked and is given Leah, the eldest daughter instead because that is the tradition. After seven more years after being wed to Leah, he finally gets Rachael and has many children with Leah, Rachael, and their servants. Another similarity between Odysseus and Jacob is the wound factor. Jacob must struggle with internal obstacles such as guilt and external ones such as the spirit he wrestled with. He received a dislocated hip from this spirit to remind him of his struggles at that time and he will be reminded for the rest of his life, as will Odysseus. Odysseus has a scar on his leg that he has forever and reminds him of the tough battles he has been through on his journey home and his atonement. These scars on the men's legs remind them of how hard they have worked to get what they wanted and their process of atonement.
ReplyDeleteJacob and Odysseus are similar in many ways. They have gone through similar trials, both physical and mental. Odysseus received his scar from a fight with an animal. When he finally reached Ithaca, he was first recognized by Eurycleia, who saw his scar and realized his true identity. In Jacob's case, he received his scar in a wrestling match with a divine creature. To this day, many people recognize Jacob by his limp from his limp that he got that day. The scars that Odysseus and Jacob share are one of the major similarities; however, once you search with a little more detail, you notice dozens more. For example, both Jacob and Odysseus had their lives foretold for them by the gods/God. The gods had said that Odysseus would bring much suffering for others, and suffer himself as well. Jacob's mother, Rebekah, was told that Jacob would receive the birthright even though he was the younger child. These two similarities are not the only ones, but they are two of the most important and two of the easiest to spot.
ReplyDeleteThere are many resemblances and differences between Odysseus and Jacob. Jacob and Odysseus both have scars. Odysseus got his scar while hunting a boar. This scar later allows Eurcleia to know that the beggar that is staying as a guest truly is just Odysseus in disguise. Jacob’s scar is from a peculiar night when some unknown spirit attacks Jacob. Jacob defats the spirit; when the spirit discovers that it has been beaten it dislocates his hip so he has to walk with a limp. After this traumatic episode Jacob is reunited with his brother Ecua. Each man got his scar a different way and it symbolizes something different to each of him. To Odysseus his scar symbolizes his victory over the wild animal, and shows it with pride. On the other hand Jacob is humble with his scar. A similarity between both of the stories is that they both reunite with a loved one after we learn about their scars. After Jacob gets his scar from fighting with the spirit he is reunited with his brother Esau, who forgave Jacob for craftily taking his father’s blessings. After Eurcleia see’s Odysseus’ scar while he is disguised as a beggar she is able to tell that Odysseus is just disguised as the beggar, and Eurcleia is able to rejoice in his homecoming. Another similarity between Odysseus and Jacob is that they both has to take power from someone. Odysseus has to take the power from his suitors in order to once again become the king of Ithaca, and Jacob has to craftily take the power (birthright) from his brother Esau. Another similarity is that both of them have to make a journey. Jacob has to visit his uncle’s house so his brother will not kill him, and Odysseus has to voyage to Troy to fight in the Trojan War.
ReplyDeleteAs we have discussed in class already, one similarity between them are their knacks for making mistresses. They have quite a talent, Circe and Calypso being Odysseus' mistresses, and Zilpah being one of Jacob's many mistresses. A main similarity between the two is why they want to return. Jacob returns for brotherly love, he wants to rejoin Esau and live a life of happiness with his long lost family. Odysseus' motive seems to return to his wife, also part of his family, and equally important, his son. So both Odysseus and Jacob return of family reasons. A difference between them might as well be their style of homecoming. Odysseus returns, but as a beggar, disguised from all he knows, and reveals himself only to a select few who will help him in his revenge. Jacob comes home quite like himself, and does not hide anything from his brother, who embraces him and gives him a hearty welcome. I also noticed another somewhat similar relationship between Odysseus and Jacob: the time that they were away from home. Odysseus is away for approximately 20 years, and the time is told in the Iliad and the Odyssey. Jacob works for 14 years, and the events following the finishing of his labor I can expect to last him another 6. It is not clearly stated, but I think it is quite interesting that both of these characters have been away from home for such a lengthy period.
ReplyDeleteIn the two stories, both Odysseus and Jacob both have wounds that define them. They both got their wounds by trying to overcome something. Odysseus had a wound on his leg when he was trying to overcome a bear, while Jacob got one on his hip while fighting a divine being. Both these scars help people recognize the two people. Odysseus is known for this scar on his leg and Jacob is known for his limp when he walks. In fact, in the Odyssey, even when disguised as a beggar, Odysseus' maid still recognized him while bathing him because of the scar. However, the way the two character "use" the scars area completely different. Odysseus uses him to claim glory and to boast about his bravery. But Jacob is okay with what he got, and says that the wound came because it was meant to.
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ReplyDeleteJacob and Odysseus are both similar and different. For example, they both have a "mark" that gives them a characteristic for them to be remembered by. They both earn these marks by enduring a battle of some sort. Odysseus, by fighting with a boar, and Jacob by fighting with a supernatural being. Although this is true, Odysseus and Jacob also have differences between them. Odysseus uses his scar as something that he is proud of, or something that he uses for glory. For Jacob, his hurt waist is something to make him always remember that fight that he had. This is not a sign of glory for Jacob. Instead, it is sort of humbling. For Odysseus, it is the opposite. In some ways, I think that his scar gives him a sense of accomplishment and pride that helps him to feel as though he is strong and has served his name well. Jacob and Odysseus are different in another way because of the way they are after their fights. Jacob is changed in a way that makes him grateful and humble. For Odysseus, the fight was just another accomplishment for him to be recognized by.
ReplyDeleteThe article brings up some good similarities. Another similarity between Odysseus and Jacob is that they both use disguise. Odysseus uses disguise in multiple situations for different purposes. He was disguised as a beggar when he returned to Ithaca and this tricks the suitors. With the assistance of Rebekah (who is like Athena in this situation), Jacob disguises himself as his brother by using sheepskin to imitate how hairy his brother is and this tricks Isaac into giving him the birthright instead of Esau. One more similarity is that they both slept with more than one woman. Odysseus with Calypso and Circe; Jacob with Leah and Rachel (and their mistresses.) One difference between Jacob and Odysseus is that when Odysseus left home he encountered struggles, trials, and challenges and when he returned home, that was all just seen as a brutal 20 years. However, Jacob had much success while he was gone. Another difference is that when Odysseus returned home to Ithaca, the suitors were still plotting against him. But when Jacob returned home to Canaan, Esau (who was once planning on killing him) welcomed him with open arms.
ReplyDeleteJacob and Odysseus both have to suffer. Odysseus must suffer on his long journey. He must battle the cyclops and Poseidon. Jacob has to endure physical and emotional suffering. He physically has to suffer because he has to work 21 years on his uncle's farm to win his wife and when he wrestles with "Esau's guardian angel" and dislocates his hip. Jacob emotionally suffers, because of the fear and regret he feels for tricking Esau out of his birthright. Another similarity is that Jacob and Odysseus both have a scar that defines them. Odysseus has the scar on his foot that allows his loyal servants to believe that he has finally returned home. Jacob has a dislocated hip "and as a result, Jacob limps through history." A difference although is that Odysseus "uses his wound-narrates his suffering-to win himself glory" Whereas Jacob "embraces the law of the sinew of weakness, foregoing the physical strength of this world," which allows him to "recognize his own vulnerability ... to be open to the vulnerability and needs of others." Overall, the main difference between Jacob and Odysseus lays in the fact that "Odysseus pursues glory" and "Jacob pursues glory to heaven.
ReplyDeleteBoth Jacob and Odysseus suffer for things they have done. Jacob suffers because he stole his father's blessings from his brother, which gives him a mission for revenge. He must work underneath another person for 14 years, before he dares to go home. His fight with Esau's angel could have also been a fight with Esau's anger. Odysseus suffers because he hurts Poseidon's son Polyphemus. He cannot get home easily because the sea god wants to get revenge for his son. Odysseus is unable to get home for another ten years because of Poseidon's wrath. When he arrives at his home the only way that he can prove that he is Odysseus and not an impostor is by using his wound.
ReplyDeleteBoth Odysseus and Jacob have marks of suffering. Odysseus gets the scar when, "he hunts a dangerous wild boar - which 'hooks him aslant,' ripping 'his flesh just beneath the knee." He uses this as glory and how he suffered and used this for glory. However, Jacob obtained a scar when he had to wrestle with a spiritual being. Jacob gets it when the being wrenched his hip socket. Even though both obtained marks of suffering, they both used these in different ways. Odysseus used the mark of suffering as glory because he fought a strong beast. "Jacob however embraces the law of the sinew of weakness, foregoing the physical strength of this world." This is different because he uses the mark of suffering as a lesson of the earth's physical strength.
ReplyDeleteJacob and Odysseus are both heroes in my mind. They both took part in the hero quest and both were better people because of it. They share some similarities and differences. The most obvious one being the scar. One difference is how they got those scars. Odysseus got his from a hunt. Jacob got his from wrestling a divine being. They both were involved with a mass of people but in different ways. Jacob was the father an entire nation (Israelites). Odysseus ruled an entire nation of people (Ithaca). Also, both of these men encountered and slept with multiple women. It was accepted in the time period for men to have multiple wives/mistresses. Odysseus had encounters with circe and calypso. Jacob had encounters with leah and rachel (plus each of their maids). Jacob and Odysseus are similar people and both are a part of sacred literature pieces.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus and Jacob both go through journeys. They both leave home for some reason. Odysseus the trojan war and Jacob because of his brothers anger. They both have struggles along the way, Odysseus coming home, Jacob and his wives. And also they both go through the catharsis healing process when they return. Odysseus cries with Penelope and Jacob cries with Esau, his brother. They are from two different belief systems, the Jews and The Greeks. In the Odyssey the greek gods are shown throughout the story and in the story of Jacob and Esau there is the one and only god of the jewish religion. Both journeys are effected by gods or a god and are not as different as the may seem.
ReplyDeleteIn the blog, the author explained some similarities and differences between Odysseus and Jacob. He stated that both Odysseus and Jacob have scars. From his blog, I noticed a lot of differences and similarities between Odysseus and Jacob that I wouldn't have normally. The main comparison I noticed was their names both have extremely powerful meanings. The blogger explained how Odysseus got his name from his grandfather, and his name means suffering and to put suffering on others. His name is also similar to the word Odyssey which means a journey. This got me thinking. Jacob's name was eventually changed into Israel. He was the father of the Israelites, and their generations to come. They are very different names, but overtime they mean somewhat of the same thing. What I mean by that is Odysseus's name clearly means a journey full of struggle, and Jacob/ Israel had to go through a journey to have generations of Israelites. Odysseus and Israel both had to go through a long journey to give glory to their names. The only difference is that Israel's name and glory was given to God instead of himself.
ReplyDeleteThe similarites of both Odysseus and Jacob are that they are both returning home and have battle wounds. Odysseus is returning home after beaing at war for 10 years and another 10 lost at sea. Jacob is returning after many years after he fled his home away from his brother Easu. Jacob getts his battle wound right before retuning home. Jacob's hip is pulled out of its socket and he walked with a limp from there on after. Odysseus got his wound when he was on a hunting trip as a youngman. Odysseus' scar is used as an advantage and proves his identity.Jacobs' wound on the other hand makes little to no difference to the outcome of his life. Lastly Odysseus' scar is to remember his whole life and identity while Jacob's injury reminds him if an important time for him as he retunrned home to see his brother again.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus and Jacob are tied together by many reasons. First off, they both have wounds somewhere on their body. Odysseus has a wound on his body, that identifies him as Odysseus to a stranger. This wound is so famous that even when Odysseus disguises as a beggar, Eurycleia still knows him because of that scar. Jacob also has a scar on his hip, for he dislocated it. Jacob dislocated his hip because he was wrestling with his spirt, and receives a battle wound. This wound causes Jacob to have a limp. For Odysseus, his wound brings him glory, it tells all the trouble he endured and is a way to identify him. Jacob's wound on the other hand, show the law of weakness (sinew). All great stories are able to be compared with many famous stories, such as the bible.
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