All good works of writing use imagery to give the reader a sense of realness and reality to their stories. Imagery in literature is defined as the formation of mental pictures or images in likeness of things. Oedipus the King uses the imagery of light and darkness throughout the entire play. Generally, we perceive light as goodness and truth and darkness and bad and evil. Oedipus the King is a play full of imagery based on light and darkness.
When Oedipus dedicates himself to solving the murder of King Laius, he uncovers more than he ever intended upon. While interrogating people of his country he discovers Teiresias, the prophet who represents light in the play, who tells him that Oedipus himself killed Laius. Teiresias is described by one of the chorus leaders as “our god-like prophet in whom the truth resides more so than in all other men.” Light in the play represents truth and honesty. We then learn in the play that desperate Oedipus continues to search for answers only to discover that he was adopted by a new family, that he had killed his father who actually was Laius, and eventually did marry his own biological mother who he was sleeping with and having children with. Oedipus is believed to be considered the darkness because of all the wrong doings he did during his lifetime, such as killing Laius, his father, and marrying his own mother and sleeping with her. In society the choices he made are considered evil, or “dark” as the imagery in the play represents. These actions ultimately caused Oedipus’s downfall at the end of the play where he gouges his eyes out with Jocasta’s broach and is exiled from his home. All through the play Oedipus only wants to learn more and more about the murder, even though he was told many times not to pursue the answers he is desperate to get, but with each answer he uncovers, he is only hurting himself more in the long run.
Light and dark are in representation of Oedipus’s blindness because, he cannot see his fate before it happens and to see what will happen before his destiny actually becomes a reality. I personally think that he ultimately chose his own fate by ignoring the prophecy. Light is shown because of the complete truth Teiresias stated in the prophecy and darkness is then foretold because Oedipus did not recognize the truth or light coming from the prophet. And all along, the denial of the foretelling only represents the darkness and blindness of Oedipus.
Overall, anyone who reads this play can see the imagery of light and darkness throughout its entirety. Light is represented as good, truth and honestly, the characteristics of Teiresias and the evil, wrong, and foolishness of Oedipus who is the darkness. Even with the prophecy of Teiresias, Oedipus was blind to his demise which in the end became his own darkness.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
At the beginning of the play Oedipus proclaims justice for the death of Laius. Oedipus claims that he will avenge Laius’ death with the bloodshed of his killer. Being willing to fight for what is right for your people, or in this case your wife, is a more than heroic quality. Not only is he willing to fight for just but he is adamant about it. Throughout the entire play he is in search of the Laius’ killer. A hero overcomes the obstacles and brings victory out of defeat by strength of might and wisdom. Yet most of the Greek heroes had an Achilles’ heel that doomed them. Oedipus is no different. He runs away to protect those he loves, only to find he destroys those he loves as well as himself. He kills his own father with strength of might and ignores the wise warnings of Tiresias. When did he begin to realize that he was sitting on the throne of his own father, whom he had murdered? Oedipus fits the profile of a tragic hero because though he spent the whole play fighting for justice and searching for the answer he is longing for, searching for the cold killer of Laius and promising vengeance by spilling the blood of the murderer. He crumbles and becomes the fool when he finds out that his blood is the answer. In the end his people win their battle over the chaos, but he loses the fight inside himself. Oedipus realizes the metaphorical blindness that has been hindering him throughout the play and decides that the only way to make it right is to physically blind himself with Jocasta’s…
- 1428 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
This instantly places him right on top and boosts him up to fulfill the Kings position. His intuitive instincts and drive to put together his life signified him as a man always on a hunt. These qualities where huge attributes to his life however, he also had many negative traits which would end him. He was a man with a huge temper which leads right to his downfall. Since his temper is what ultimately killed his father, it was obvious that it would not stop there. His lack of emotion and sensitivity to these killing sprees was a sign of a broken man unwilling to wear his heart of his sleeve. A man of pride. This follows even more problems for Oedipus as time continues. He refuses to listen to Teiresias, the blind seer of Thebes. He is informed about his future and is taking back by all that makes sense to him now. He is left alone to figure out what to do next. Instead of handling the situation calmly and effectively, he goes out on an rampage and seeks to kill his wife/mother for not telling him to the truth. Once he arrives, he instantly finds her hung by her own hair. This forces him to completely lose his right state of mind and punishes himself by gauging his…
- 471 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
In the story of Oedipus the king, Sophocles beautifully demonstrates the imagery of sight versus blindness through the use of tragedy and ignorance. Oedipus is ignorant to his own incest, therefore causing the first instance of his blindness. The second instance of Oedipus' blindness is the ignorance of his true parent's identity. The third instance of Oedipus' blindness is a literal one, in which he physically blinds himself after finding the body of his mother, or wife. Sophocles utilizes his skill of creating a tragic character by showing Oedipus as blind on multiple levels, all the while being unaware of his blindness until the end.…
- 507 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
I saw Oedipus with likeable motives, but his choices purged my emotions for Oedipus. He craves knowledge until he is so disgusted that he sees Jocasta’s suicide and gouges out his own eyes. In the beginning, Oedipus was full of potential but destined to commit evil. The play spirals downwards as Oedipus learns more of his history. Oedipus the King is a moving tragedy. The play follows all concepts written in The Poetics concerning tragedy. The audience is brought to a holistic catharsis, a spiritual revelation, that will help he/she be honorable, more useful and responsible citizens. Like the sudden flip of the face-down card, the audience abruptly disregard their hope for Oedipus realizing his doomed…
- 1201 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
The premise of the play is how Oedipus’s decisions unknowingly lead to his fate. Oedipus was free to make his own decisions, and his decisions tied in with his fate. Oedipus did not know that all his decisions would lead to the killing of his father and the marrying of his mother. Oedipus was a very stubborn and curious person; he forced the servant of Laios and also Teiresias to tell him the truth about his past, even though neither one wanted him to know the truth. The servant stated, “… if I speak the truth, I am worse than dead” (p.165). Both warned Oedipus that he did not want to…
- 456 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In every piece of literary work their are certain devices that the author uses to emphasize the theme and help make their point. One commonly used device is imagery which is word pictures used by a writer to illustrate, illuminate, or embellish their thought. Throughout Macbeth William Shakespeare uses the imagery of blood to illustrate how the want for power can make people do things that they would normally never think about doing.…
- 533 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
“ I hate the murders who killed my father. O, can this be justice, ( pg 128 ).” Oedipus finds out that he has murdered Laius, who was his father, and that he married his mother. The plot goes on to describe how he came about doing such horrific things. At first, Oedipus seems to be the villain, but it can't be so, because he did not know that he was adopted, and that the person he killed was his father. of course, he didn't know that he is marrying his mother either. A prophet named Teiresias enters next and Oedipus asks him for help discover who has killed Laius. However, the prophet is extremely reluctant to speak and begs Oedipus to let him go without saying what he knows. He then gives him some disturbing news, that Oedipus is the person whom he seeks and who killed Laius. Oedipus does not want to listen and calls the prophet a liar and a traitor, even saying that Creon, who sent him, was the designer in a plot against him to gain the throne. The prophet warns Oedipus that even if he doesn't want to hear the truth, it does not make it any less truth that he speaks. Several characters are willing to sacrifice themselves to save Thebes from destruction or for what they believe is right and just. Creon, for example, is ready to die in order to save the city. Teiresias offers to have himself killed when Oedipus suspects him of betraying the trust of…
- 1178 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Oedipus’ brother-in-law, Creon advises him that the curse on the land of Thebes will be lifted if the killer of the former king is prosecuted. Oedipus seeks Teiresias to reveal not only the truth of King Laius’s death, but also his identity; “I say that you [Oedipus] are Laius’ murder- He whom you seek” (Sophocles 14). The information given by Teiresias distresses Oedipus and he accuses Creon and him of conspiring of his life angrily. The utilization of irony in the two characters creates the connection of blindness and sight. The main character is ignorant and “blind” towards the actual blind prophet. In addition, Jocasta is skeptical of prophecy, but ironically followed a prophet when her son was born; “To Laius once There came an oracle… That so it should befall, that he should die By a son’s hands, who he should have by me” (Sophocles 26). Jocasta’s ignorance brought the tragedy to herself. Although Oedipus and Jocasta both have their sight, they did not possess “blindness” to see what occurs in the…
- 627 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Oedipus was one of the reasons for death in his family. The prophet Tiresias said that one day Oedipus would kill his father and marry his mother one day. And because of this his parents sent him to die. But he still lived and fulfilled the prophecy without anyone even himself knowing at the time. Once the shepherd came, he was able to create the picture for Oedipus and he knew he was the one who killed his father. He was blinded to the truth all this time by the amount of pride he had within him. Jocasta his wife killed herself because she found out that she had married his son and even had kids with him. And because of this Oedipus kills himself. Sophocles once said, “…He digs them down the sockets of his eyes, crying “you’ll see no more the pain I suffered, all the pain I caused!”(237) this reveals that Oedipus realizes what he has done and wants to end all the suffering going on. Oedipus once said, “It’s mine alone, my destiny-I am Oedipus!” This shows who he really is now and what he was destined to become.…
- 560 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
When Oedipus calls on Teiresias to reveal the identity of King Laios' killer, Teiresias reveals the murderer is Oedipus and Oedipus himself reacts in anger, rage, and denial. The chorus as well as Oedipus himself refuses to believe this, understandably. Instead of assessing the situation with level-headedness and a clear mind open to all possibilities, his anger blinds him as to what truly could have happened and, in his rage, he accuses both Creon and Teiresias of plotting against him.Oedipus was blinded from the start, ignorant to his true origins, thus, causing him to trigger the unavoidable chain of events that would lead to the fulfillment of the prophecy. He could not have made a conscious, well-informed decision on how to avoid the prophecy because he lacked the insight to do so. However, even if he had known beforehand, fate itself is unavoidable, rendering insight useless. The irony here lies within the themes of sight and blindness when applied to Teiresias in comparison to Oedipus. Oedipus, with both his eyes, as well as his knowledge and comprehensive skills, could not see the true nature of his actions in killing the…
- 1305 Words
- 6 Pages
Good Essays -
However, if the people chose not to speak up and were covering up for a family or friend they will be banished and not spoken to or able to attend religious activities. He will be cursed and live a life in misery. Oedipus summoned Tiresias as suggested by Creon and also the chorus. When Oedipus asked Tiresias of whom the murderer is, Tiresias refuses to say anything and…
- 1192 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
“Oedipus the King” was a tale depicting the human experience; each human has a great victory, shortly accompanied by a great demise; the rollercoaster of life. Oedipus had his great success soon become the reason for his fall. With Oedipus’ deadly flaw being ‘hubris’; his excessive pride led him to believe he was on the level of ‘gods’. Once he paraded that he was invulnerable (untouchable by even the gods), his fall would be all the more tragic. Throughout the tale however, Oedipus uses many rhetorical devices towards all his subjects without even recognizing.…
- 504 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In this play, Oedipus the King, there are any references to eyes, sight, and the lacks thereof are made throughout Oedipus the King. There are parts where characters have limited physical sight, such as Teiresias's blindness, and there are also parts where their sight, in the form of perception, is limited. Most importantly, sight is used in the play as a symbol for knowledge, such as the how the oracles and the "seer" (16), Teiresias, can 'see' the truth. The play is about Oedipus's quest for knowledge and his attempts to avoid his fate. The underlying question of Oedipus the King is if one can escape their fate. Sophocles presents this question by using sight as a symbol for knowledge, and then leaves guidance for answering the question by showing that being sighted or blind can determine if one can control their fate.…
- 965 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Oedipus says: "Lost! Ah lost! At least it's blazing clear. Light of my days, go dark. I want to gaze no more. My birth all sprung revealed from those it never should, myself entwined with those I never could. And I the killer of those I never would" (67). It is at this point that Oedipus realizes everything: he is the adopted son of King Polybus; he is the true son of King Laius and Queen Jocasta; he killed his father, Laius; he married his mother, Jocasta; and Tiresias' prophesy was right in that he was the man he was looking for. When everything becomes so clear to Oedipus, he feels nothing but remorse. He must punish himself, and does so by gouging out his eyes with Jocasta's brooches. His monologue, brought about by his anagnorsis, foreshadows his self-inflicted…
- 863 Words
- 4 Pages
Better Essays -
In a time when wealth and power was triumphed over truth and justice, dysfunctionality was a result of immoral practices. In Oedipus Rex, the readers come to see the blind sighted nature of Oedipus which leads him to murdering his biological father with the ultimate goal of marrying his biological mother, Jocasta. As the tragedic play progresses, the readers discover that Apollo has made clear that whoever has murdered Laios must be “killed or exiled.†(Lines…) This leads to a townsperson, Choragos, to introduce Oedipus to Teiresias, who is a holy prophet that has knowledge of all the occurrences in Thebes. Teiresias avoids telling Oedipus the truth of who the murderer is, but Oedipus wants to know the truth. As the…
- 946 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays