Tragedy […] is an imitation of an action that is serious […] with incidents arousing pity and fear. (Aristotles‚ Poetics IV‚ 1449a 10-15) Tragedy follows the rise and the fall of its protagonist who is overcome by the antagonist. Aristotle’s Oedipus Rex and Shakespeare’s Macbeth capture the timeless nature of human experience; they display powerful central characters whose course of action demonstrates the different attributes and sides of human nature. Through the vicissitudes of protagonists’ fates
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AP Notes: Oedipus Rex Oedipus Rex‚ circa 429 BC. Author Biography Sophocles was a Greek intellectual who lived from approximately 497 BC to 406 BC. Only seven of his tragedies survive to present day‚ the most famous of which concern the characters of Oedipus and Antigone. Historical Information Sophocles wrote Oedipus Rex during an era of philosophical advancement which took place largely in ancient Greece‚ and was led by such intellectuals as Socrates‚ Plato‚ and Aristotle. The pervasive questioning
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In "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles we see many occasions where a reader or perhaps even a scholar can begin to get confused. However‚ Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex takes time to look at some of the most debated events throughout the entire book. E.R. Dodd’s transforms Oedipus Rex into a descriptive legible masterpiece. Within we find the answers to many key questions and elements which have plagued undergraduates and scholars for years‚ and perhaps even years to come. "In what sense‚ if in any‚ does
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cause a sort of hamartia; it truly is a fatal flaw. In the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles‚ the hubris and hamartia of Oedipus and Jocasta lead them to their drastic fate. Excessive pride and confidence of outsmarting the gods made their tragic prophecy come true. When a prophet comes to Oedipus to tell him who the murderer of Laius is and accuses Oedipus of the crime‚ Jocasta looks at the prophet as ignorant and explains to Oedipus that she had outsmarted the gods‚ saying “A prophet? In that
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A Comparative Tragedy Study of Fatalism and Determinism: Oedipus Rex and The Thunderstorm 1. INTRODUTION The Thunderstorm and Oedipus Rex‚ the representatives of Chinese and Greek play‚ both tell tragic stories about incest and unexpected destiny. The two masterpieces reveal much about the literature patterns and philosophical implications of the different cultures. The exploration of the two plays could help further understand the oneness of world literature and the tragedy of unlike culture
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Oedipus has three nobilities that make him to be very noble; by his birth to Jocasta and Laios he is a prince thus an heir to the Thebes throne‚ by adoption to Polybus and Merope he is a prince and the heir to the throne of Corinth and by election he becomes the king of Thebes. Oedipus example is used by Aristotle as an example of what a hero should be. He said that a hero should be someone like Oedipus or other men of such greatness‚ who are highly prosperous and renowned (Eden‚ 2014). It is seen
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An archetypical hero appears in every classical literature‚ as all characters share similar characteristics. The main character on Sophocles literature‚ Oedipus the king can be a considerable archetypical hero‚ as Aristotle once indicate that "A man doesn’t become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall." Oedipus sets on several stages that omits him as a tragic hero. The first stage always begins with a special journey‚ where they commit a difficult task to overcome their maturity
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In "Oedipus Rex"‚ Sophocles portraits one of the most intriguing and fascinating traits of the human nature: the search for truth regarding who we are and the realization of the paths reserved by our future fate. The play starts with the presentation of the main character: Oedipus‚ the king of Thebes. Sophocles presents Oedipus to the reader as a majestic figure who addresses his attention to the people of Thebes from his palace. The city had been hit by a devastating plague due to Laïos (the
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Yair Lopez Prof. Madara 2/27/2012 Section 07 Critique of Oedipus Rex Is Oedipus Rex one of the most important pieces of literature of all time? This Athenian tragedy was written by Sophocles and was first performed in 449 BC. This piece is about a king named Oedipus who in the course of the story finds out that he killed his father and married his mother. I enjoyed a lot of parts of this story especially when he made the decision you leave Corinth because he was told about the prophecy and
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The primary characteristic of Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex is that it is an ironic play. The play’s irony grasps the audience in a profound way because of the awareness that occurs regarding everything that is going on. Even though we‚ as observers‚ are sickened at the tragic life of Oedipus and the other characters‚ we are still able to appreciate the ironical characteristics of the play itself. The irony primarily exists in the context of man being free‚ but at the same time‚ fated. Without doubt‚ this
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