4

In the closing scene of Coen Brothers' O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the old blind man driving the handcar, whom Everett and his associates had encountered near the beginning of the film, and who had made a prophecy about them, makes a reappearance.

Does this scene, and the man himself, have any significance? I am aware that the film is based off Homer's "Odyssey", so is this perhaps some parallel character?

I feel like I am missing some point about the film.

Improve this question
4

As mentioned on Wikipedia:

Lee Weaver as the Blind Seer, who accurately predicts the outcome of the trio's adventure. He corresponds to Tiresias in the Odyssey.

The source for this claim is Flensted-Jensen, Pernille (2002), "Something old, something new, something borrowed: the Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou", published in Classica Et Mediaevalia, Volume 53. (The footnote on the page links to the article in Google Books.)

Wikipedia's explanation WRT Tiresias:

In Greek mythology, Tiresias was a blind prophet of Apollo in Thebes, famous for clairvoyance

Improve this answer
4
  • 2
    Are there also insights as to why repappears at the end of the film that can be derived from this information? – Napoleon Wilson♦ Jun 19 at 14:34
  • 1
    I agree with @Napoleon Wilson, I would like to know what the significance of the closing scene of the movie is, too. I would accept this answer if you could shed some light on that. – Ritam_Dasgupta Jun 20 at 9:40
  • There is no meaning. He simply passes by in the background. It's just the director(s) going "hey remember him", wrapping up the movie. It's merely a small joke, a sight gaga: there's a rail track, and this character is still on his handcar moving along. – BCdotWEB Jun 20 at 22:03
  • Are you sure it's meaningless? The reason i have doubts is because it's the closing shot of the film. Moreover, out of all the family members who pass by the rail track, only the youngest daughter takes notice. Isn't that curious? – Ritam_Dasgupta Jun 21 at 12:00

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .