Édipo, Odisseu e o retorno da memória

The analogy between Oedipus and
Odysseus is striking and provides an intriguing case of
intertextuality once their relationship is investigated
through the fascinating links that the plot of
Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex maintains with the episode of
the foot washing of the Odyssey, Book 19. I argue that
the Homeric Odysseus provided Sophocles with an
inspiring model for imitation: A middle-aged man
carries on his body a childhood scar of which he has
been oblivious for many years. After many years of
absence, a homecoming brings with it a return of
memory: the traumatic scarification begins to surface.
Oedipus’ and Odysseus’ scars bring home something
that has collapsed into forgetfulness. Returning to
Auerbach’s “Odysseus Scar” the article discusses the
scar as a junction of forgetting and remembering and
show how Odysseus’ memory and Oedipus’
forgetfulness are intertwined.