How Does Sophocles Use Irony In Oedipus Rex
In his play, Oedipus Rex, Sophocles uses irony to construct the plot and unravel the unfortunate truth. Oedipus Rex, also known as Oedipus the King, was written by one of the ancient Greek tragedians Sophocles during what is called the “Golden Age of Greece”. In this play, the main character Oedipus is warned that he will murder his father and marry his mother. He does everything in his power to prevent the fulfilment of the prediction, but despite his efforts Oedipus does commit the awful crimes. Sophocles uses the ignorance of his main character to instill ironic points into the story.
As a young man, Oedipus was a prince in the kingdom of Corinth. He had no reason to believe any different until a drunken man accused him of not being his
father’s, Polybus, natural son. Troubled by the news, Oedipus seeks the advice of an oracle of Apollo, the sun god. Asking if he is the true son of the king and queen of Corinth, the oracle simply answers that Oedipus will kill his father and have children with his mother. Fearfully Oedipus flees Corinth. Before he enters the city of Thebes, he encounters and murders an old man. Continuing on into the city, he defeats the monster that was terrorizing Thebes and by doing he is rewarded with the queen of Thebes and the kingdom because the former king, Laius, was recently murdered. Unknown to Oedipus the prophecy had been fulfilled.
At the onset of the play, the city of Thebes is under a curse and after consulting Apollo, an oracle explains that the murderer of Laius is the cause of the plague. Now king, Oedipus demands that the murderer turn himself in. Since none of the townspeople speak up, King Oedipus curses whoever the man may be, sentencing that the man will be cast out of the city of Thebes. Demanding answers, King Oedipus calls on an old seer. The seer, Teiresias, refuses to tell the king what he knows, for he knows the truth in its entirety and does not want to relay this information. Teiresias’s unwillingness to talk enrages Oedipus and causes him to question even further. Queen Jocasta seeing her husband’s distress, tries to console by mentioning that once an oracle said that the child of herself and her late king Laius would be the man who would bring Laius to his death. She explains that the oracle’s message is wrong; Laius and Jocasta had their child left in the wilderness to die. Plus, Laius was supposedly killed by a gang of robbers, not a single man. The King is not completely soothed by his wife’s words because he realizes he had killed a man before he had arrived in Thebes.
The irony of Oedipus Rex is that until the conclusion of the story, Oedipus is completely unaware of his situation. He leaves the town of Corinth to avoid what he believes to be his actual parents. He killed men and one of them happened to be his father. Oedipus, by total chance, comes to Thebes where he is able to marry Jocasta, whom he does not know is his mother. In the end, King Oedipus places a curse on himself and is ultimately banished from Thebes as an ashamed, doomed man.
As a young man, Oedipus was a prince in the kingdom of Corinth. He had no reason to believe any different until a drunken man accused him of not being his
father’s, Polybus, natural son. Troubled by the news, Oedipus seeks the advice of an oracle of Apollo, the sun god. Asking if he is the true son of the king and queen of Corinth, the oracle simply answers that Oedipus will kill his father and have children with his mother. Fearfully Oedipus flees Corinth. Before he enters the city of Thebes, he encounters and murders an old man. Continuing on into the city, he defeats the monster that was terrorizing Thebes and by doing he is rewarded with the queen of Thebes and the kingdom because the former king, Laius, was recently murdered. Unknown to Oedipus the prophecy had been fulfilled.
At the onset of the play, the city of Thebes is under a curse and after consulting Apollo, an oracle explains that the murderer of Laius is the cause of the plague. Now king, Oedipus demands that the murderer turn himself in. Since none of the townspeople speak up, King Oedipus curses whoever the man may be, sentencing that the man will be cast out of the city of Thebes. Demanding answers, King Oedipus calls on an old seer. The seer, Teiresias, refuses to tell the king what he knows, for he knows the truth in its entirety and does not want to relay this information. Teiresias’s unwillingness to talk enrages Oedipus and causes him to question even further. Queen Jocasta seeing her husband’s distress, tries to console by mentioning that once an oracle said that the child of herself and her late king Laius would be the man who would bring Laius to his death. She explains that the oracle’s message is wrong; Laius and Jocasta had their child left in the wilderness to die. Plus, Laius was supposedly killed by a gang of robbers, not a single man. The King is not completely soothed by his wife’s words because he realizes he had killed a man before he had arrived in Thebes.
The irony of Oedipus Rex is that until the conclusion of the story, Oedipus is completely unaware of his situation. He leaves the town of Corinth to avoid what he believes to be his actual parents. He killed men and one of them happened to be his father. Oedipus, by total chance, comes to Thebes where he is able to marry Jocasta, whom he does not know is his mother. In the end, King Oedipus places a curse on himself and is ultimately banished from Thebes as an ashamed, doomed man.