2. What might be suggested by the fact that Oedipus had to send twice for Teiresias?…
The ability to see is a much more complex ability than just the physical attribute. Most individuals have the ability to see physically but are blind to the reality of certain circumstances. In the play, “Oedipus the King” by Plato, Oedipus, the tragic hero, is not a blind man but cannot see the reality in the outcome of trying to escape his given fate.…
Sophocles depicts the rise and fall of heroes from their excessive pride and hubris. The heroes,…
As a result of his uncertainty and lack of knowledge, Oedipus’s actions become brazen and unjust. Showing his lack of knowledge of all the facts, he accuses Teirisias and Creon of conspiring to dethrone him, even though they are innocent. Creon tells Oedipus, “If you think that stubbornness without sense is a good gift you are not wise” (126). Here, Creon points out Oedipus’s rash judgment and persistence, yet Oedipus continues to be stubborn. Oedipus’s refusal to stop and admit that he is wrong exemplifies his hubris and contributes to his…
In the study of Greek plays, one tries to recreate for an experience, to recapture something of what is meant to those for whom it was written. We know more about the life of Sophocles than we know do about the lives of any other Greek playwright, but this still is not a lot. Sophocles’ work has been said to be the pinnacle of Greek tragedy. Oedipus the King is something like the literary Mona Lisa of ancient Greece. It presents a nightmare vision of a world turned upside down; a decent man, Oedipus, becomes the king of Thebes, whilst in the process unknowingly fulfilling a prophecy that he would kill his father and marry his mother. As scholars, we are bound to relate this story through history, to ask what the writer really meant, how…
Any great story has its critics ready to critique every great detail of a story. Sophocles’s Oedipus the King is no exemption. Oedipus the King was written around 430 B.C. so this play has had plenty of time to be critiqued. Not only has this Greek tragedy been around for so long, but it is considered a masterpiece; it only makes sense for something very famous to be criticized even more.…
Being ignorant of the world around oneself is worse than being blind. The truth is hard to observe if one is not thinking critically and be open minded. When one is self absorbed in his own hubris, he will lose track of values that are much more important to him, including his own prophesized fate. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus’s “blindness” towards the decisions he made and his past added to his inevitable downfall.…
Oedipus hopes to divert the plague on Thebes by identifying the killer of Lauis, as the oracle instructed. He assumes that, although he has killed someone in the past, there is no way he could have been responsible, seeing as how he came to Thebes long after the king's death. Later on, Oedipus accuses Creon of plotting treason against him. In actuality, Creon has no desire to be king; he enjoys all the wealth and comfort without having to take on any of the responsibility. Oedipus, clouded with confusion and paranoia, starts to put the pieces together and glimpses at the horrible truth. He is stubborn in his firm belief that the people who raised him were in fact his blood. Even after Oedipus realizes that his wife, Jocasta, is in fact his mother, he is in just as much disbelief as he is in horror. How could this have happened? Throughout his life, Oedipus has gone to great lengths to prove the oracle wrong. Ironically, so did his parents, and this ultimately is the reason why the events took place. Unknowingly, the decisions that Oedipus makes through his own free will play right into the hands of fate. It is ironic that everything that befalls Oedipus is the result of his own doing, yet most everything he does is an attempt to disprove the…
“ 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…
“Oedipus the King” is a drama that portrays misfortune that dwells among mankind. The tragic sequence of events first starts with the birth of Oedipus. His biological parents are stricken with grief when they discover a secret that causes them to banish their son from the city of Thebes. Little did they know that, despite their actions, fate would still play out which would, in turn, cause the society of Thebes to be stricken by the plague. Although many people suffered from the unfortunate destiny of Oedipus, perhaps the person that suffered the most was Oedipus himself. Oedipus endured an unforgiving reality check after being blindsided by the current state of his life.…
Oedipus The King is most likely one of the greatest tragedies ever recorded. This play tells the story of the great downfall of a once honored king who by the end of the story, becomes a great curse. This is mainly due to his great sense of pride. It was believed by the Greeks that people with this immense pride thought that they were above the gods. Aristotle believed that the protagonist of every tragedy must have some type of tragic flaw that will eventually lead to his demise. To Oedipus ,of Oedipus The King, pride is his tragic flaw that leads to his downfall. Some examples of his pride taking over him were: when he correctly answered the Sphinx’s riddle, when he abandoned his adoptive parents in Corinth, and when he killed Laius in the crossroads.…
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…
Just as the Sphinx was percieved as a curse on Thebes, Oedipus also becomes a curse to Thebes by the end of the play. During the course of the play it is known that there is a plague in the land of Thebes and the reason why is revealed by Oedipus's brother in law Creon who says, "He was killed. And clearly the meaning of the god's command is that we bring the unknown killer to justice" (Sophocles 28). So the reason why there is a plague on Thebes is because of the murder of the previous king Lauis who was killed by Oedipus. Oedipus also performs the heinous offense of incest. In the play, Oedipus reveals that he was told he would kill his father and marry his mother. "To the question I asked, having heard a tale of horror and misery: how I must marry my mother, and become the parent of a misbegotten brood, an offense to all mankind- and kill my father" (Sophocles 47). To explain, Oedispus has already been told that he would perform the heinous acts of murder and incest, and in doing so he would become an offense to all of mankind (curse). To summarize, because of Oedipus's actions he has unintentionally become a curse to the city of Thebes.…
In Oedipus the King, lines 1477-1484 form the conclusion of the play. After Oedipus is banished from Thebes, the Chorus addresses the people with this passage, explaining Oedipus’ success and downfall. This passage also indicates to the reader how throughout the play, the people’s perspective of Oedipus shifts from respect to shame. In the beginning of the play, the people of Thebes regard Oedipus with respect and envy. On line 14, a priest calls Oedipus “my country’s lord and master”, a title that displays the priest’s respect of his king. As he was highly regarded, Oedipus was the subject of the people’s envy: on line 1749, the Chorus proclaims Oedipus was the “Envy of all in the city who saw his good fortune”. The people’s admiration for…
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…