Oedipus the King- Blind To His Own Problems
Oedipus the King- Blind To His Own Problems
No problem can ever be solved by avoiding, hiding or running from it. The best way to solve troubles is to confront them. In the play Oedipus the King, the heroine of the story, named Oedipus, has many troubles. He is looked upon to save Thebes, the city of his reign, from the terrible plague that has come to it. Throughout the play, Oedipus struggles in finding the murderer of King Laius (the prophet Delphi tells Creon that the murderer must be driven out of Thebes in order for the plague to end). Oedipus’ stubborn and arrogant attitude blinds him of the truths he seeks and therefore leaves only himself responsible for his downfall.
While Oedipus was a baby, his parents, King Laius and Queen Jocasta, abandoned him. King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth end up adopted and raising him. Later in his life, Oedipus speaks with a prophet who reveals his fate; he will kill his father and marry his mother. In an attempt to avoid this prophecy, Oedipus flees from Corinth. This is the first instance where Oedipus demonstrates his irrational and obstinate attitude. Instead of trying to confront and/or understand his fate, he runs from it. Coincidentally, Oedipus runs into his fate when he intersects King Laius and his men on the road. One of the horsemen insults Oedipus and they engage in a fight. Oedipus fulfills the prophecy by killing all of those men, including King Laius. Once again, if Oedipus would have been able to keep his composure, he may have been able to work through this problem. Perhaps if he spoke with those men and realized that King Laius was among them, his actions would not have been fatal.
In his opening speech, Oedipus is regarded as just less than a god among other things. He puts so much pressure on himself that once the truth is actually revealed (much later in the play), he has nowhere left to turn. In a remark made to the Chorus while he prays, Oedipus says, “You pray to the gods? Let
No problem can ever be solved by avoiding, hiding or running from it. The best way to solve troubles is to confront them. In the play Oedipus the King, the heroine of the story, named Oedipus, has many troubles. He is looked upon to save Thebes, the city of his reign, from the terrible plague that has come to it. Throughout the play, Oedipus struggles in finding the murderer of King Laius (the prophet Delphi tells Creon that the murderer must be driven out of Thebes in order for the plague to end). Oedipus’ stubborn and arrogant attitude blinds him of the truths he seeks and therefore leaves only himself responsible for his downfall.
While Oedipus was a baby, his parents, King Laius and Queen Jocasta, abandoned him. King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth end up adopted and raising him. Later in his life, Oedipus speaks with a prophet who reveals his fate; he will kill his father and marry his mother. In an attempt to avoid this prophecy, Oedipus flees from Corinth. This is the first instance where Oedipus demonstrates his irrational and obstinate attitude. Instead of trying to confront and/or understand his fate, he runs from it. Coincidentally, Oedipus runs into his fate when he intersects King Laius and his men on the road. One of the horsemen insults Oedipus and they engage in a fight. Oedipus fulfills the prophecy by killing all of those men, including King Laius. Once again, if Oedipus would have been able to keep his composure, he may have been able to work through this problem. Perhaps if he spoke with those men and realized that King Laius was among them, his actions would not have been fatal.
In his opening speech, Oedipus is regarded as just less than a god among other things. He puts so much pressure on himself that once the truth is actually revealed (much later in the play), he has nowhere left to turn. In a remark made to the Chorus while he prays, Oedipus says, “You pray to the gods? Let