While it might be easy to assume Nolan\u2019s dialogue and decision to use American accents are anachronistic, experts said they are actually more in line with the origins of \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d than you might think.<\/p>\n
Performed in front of crowds for centuries before it was first written down in 6th century B.C., \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d was constantly reinterpreted by whoever was performing it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNolan is only continuing in the tradition that the original performers of \u2018The Odyssey\u2019 would have been undertaking themselves,\u201d said Adam Cooper<\/a>, director of the linguistics program at Northeastern University.<\/p>\n The consternation around Telemachus saying \u201cdad\u201d and the use of American accents points to misconceptions around what words are modern, he said.<\/p>\n The word \u201cdad\u201d itself is far from a hyper-modern piece of language. It can be traced as far back as 1533 and even showed up in William Shakespeare\u2019s plays. In fact, English is littered with words and phrases that are much older than you might think, Cooper explained.<\/p>\n For instance, \u201cHang out\u201d dates back to the early 1800s and was a favorite of English poet John Keats. \u201cCrib,\u201d a slang term for someone\u2019s house associated with African-American culture, was used in the same way as its modern counterpart as far back as Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cKing Henry IV\u201d in the 1590s. \u201cLegit,\u201d short for legitimate, can be traced back to 1897 in the U.S. The phrase \u201cWhat\u2019s up?\u201d is over 180 years old, emerging in British and American slang in the 1830s and 1840s.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDad\u201d was not part of ancient Greek vocabulary, but it likely had an equivalent, Cooper said. \u201cPater\u201d was used for the formal version of \u201cfather,\u201d but a diminutive like \u201cpapa\u201d was used too, he explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to Cooper, that people see \u201cdad\u201d as too modern for \u201cThe Odyssey\u201d speaks more to the age group it\u2019s associated with, children and young adults.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2018[Dad]\u2019 is meant to approximate something we would have very much expected to have existed in ancient Greek, as in any language, where there are close social bonds between parents and children,\u201d Cooper said.<\/p>\n So, why is Tom Holland asking for his \u201cdad\u201d instead of his \u201cfather\u201d?\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Portrait](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Adam-Cooper.jpeg\")
10\/12\/23 \u2013 BOSTON, MA. \u2013 Northeastern teaching professor and linguistics program director Adam Cooper poses for a portrait on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023. Photo by Alyssa Stone\/Northeastern University<\/p>\n![\"Portrait](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Kathleen-Kelly.jpg\")
01\/02\/26 \u2013 BOSTON, MA. \u2013 Kathleen Kelly, professor of English, poses for a portrait on June 2, 2026. Photo by Matthew Modoono\/Northeastern University