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Oedipus the king as a tragedy
Oedipus the king as a tragedy
Oedipus the king as a tragedy
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The Portrayal of Blindness in The Outsider and Oedipus the King
A primitive motif in Oedipus the King by Sophocles and The Outsider by
Albert Camus is blindness. The protagonists in the novels are blinded
to a personal truth, and are physically blinded as well. In The
Outsider, Meursault’s blindness is metaphorical, as he is negligent to
his own absurdity, which he later becomes categorized as. On the other
hand, Oedipus’s blindness is literal, as he is ignorant to the truth
of his life; and the fact that he is incapable of escaping the destiny
that the Gods have set out for him, which resulted in him gorging his
eyes out. The characters suffer an emotional and physical blindness,
which leads to tragic irony in Oedipus the King and existential irony
in The Outsider. In both the novels, it is only towards the end that
the two protagonists release themselves from their crudeness of the
truth.
The blindness that overcomes Meursault and Oedipus prevents them from
seeing and understanding the lives that they are living. In
Meursault’s case, he oblivious to his own absurdity, as he only comes
to terms with this ideology towards the end of the novel. As a
student, he had ambitions; but as he came towards the end of his
studies, he realized that “none of it really mattered”. At that
instant, his vision became clouded, as he began to realize that he was
not dissatisfied with his life. He is also blind towards the
indifferent universe which he inhabits, which is ironic because he
would eventually become an absurd hero of this society. If the
circumstances were different and Meursault did actually discern the
uncaring universe and its callousness towards his absurdity, he could
perchance foreshadow where his in...
... middle of paper ...
...while in Oedipus the King
it was a permanent issue and was brought about by Oedipus himself.
However, the metaphorical blindness of both Oedipus and Meursault was
an evolution throughout the novel, as they eventually come to terms
with the philosophies in which Camus and Sophocles had in mind. At the
end of both the novels, the character’s blindness leads them to
finally understand the circumstance in which they are in. When
Meursault finally understands the meaning of his life, he becomes the
absurd hero whereas Oedipus’ outlook becomes more realistic and he
ironically gorges his eyes out. Similar to Meursault, he intends to
prove that he has not advanced to anything from his new found
discoveries.
Bibliography:
Camus,Albert . The Outsider . Great Britain: Hamish Hamilton, 1982
Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Oxford University Press, New York, 1998
“Oedipus is, as it were, only a tragic analysis. Everything is already in existence, and has only to be unraveled.” Throughout the history of literature, there has been perhaps no other character quite as complex and convoluted as Oedipus. Whether it be the reality of his parents abandoning him to die or the mere fact that he married his own mother Jocasta, Oedipus has been continually analyzed and processed by scholars in an attempt to discover the means by which Oedipus arrived at his eventual outcome. To summarize, Oedipus, being originally from Corinth, travels to Thebes in search of his true heritage. After a series of events, Oedipus becomes the king of Thebes and soon discovers the truth. Once thorough deliberation has been given to
Blindness can normally be defined as the inability of the eye to see, but according to this play, blindness is not always a physical quality, but a mental flaw some people posses. The author uses physical blindness, as well as intellectual blindness to illustrate Oedipus' status as a tragic hero. Throughout the play, blindness is seen as a main theme, where Sophocles explored not only physical blindness, but also intellectual blindness. The theme of blindness is split into two main categories, where one is the ability to see, while the other is the willingness to see. Oedipus, who sets out to rescue the city of Thebes by bringing the killer of Laius to justice, becomes the victim of fate where whatever choice he makes seems to be the wrong one. From this, the question of whether or not Oedipus' blindness of the truth was what ultimately destroyed him is one that can be answered with many opinions, as it all depends on how the reader perceived the play.
The ancient Greeks were fond believers of Fate. Fate, defined according to Webster’s, is “the principle or determining cause or will by which things in general are believed to come to be as they are or events to happen as the do.” The Greeks take on Fate was slightly modified. They believed that the gods determined Fate: “…fate, to which in a mysterious way the gods themselves were subject, was an impersonal force decreeing ultimate things only, and unconcerned with day by day affairs.” It was thought that these gods worked in subtle ways; this accounts for character flaws (called harmatia in Greek). Ancient Greeks thought the gods would alter a person’s character, in order for that person to suffer (or gain from) the appropriate outcome. Such was the case in Oedipus’s story.
The search for the truth behind the story involves all of the characters. There is hardly a scene or conversation in which the theme of sight and blindness is not in one way or another discussed and this is central to an understanding of the play. The meaning goes much deeper than might be suspected; it is easy to say that Tiresias is blind but can actually see and that Oedipus can see but is actually blind. While this is important, it is but the starting point. Within the theme of sight versus blindness, Sophocles explores the definition of sight, the concept of eyes being the direct pathway to the heart, and the importance of eye contact in order to show that sight and blindness reflect a deep search for truth and reality.
In the play, Oedipus the King, blindness is used metaphorically and physically to characterize several personas , and the images of clarity and vision are used as symbols for knowledge and insight. Enlightenment and darkness are used in much the same manner, to demonstrate the darkness of ignorance, and the irony of vision without sight.
Oedipus the King tells the tragic story of Oedipus and how Oedipus unwittingly fulfills his prophecy. Oedipus prophecy was that he would murder his father and marry his mother. Oedipus grew up in the kingdom of Corinth where he believed that he was the son of the Kings of Corinth; when Oedipus discovered that he is destined to kill his father and marry his mother, Oedipus decides to leave Corinth and try to prevent the prophecy from happening. Unknowingly to him during his escape from his destiny, Oedipus murderers his father and eventually marries his mother and fulfils the prophecy. After reading Oedipus the King I believe that one of the main ideas of Oedipus the King is that Oedipus own tragic flaws lead to the fulfillment of the prophecy and his eventual downfall.
In the tragic play of Oedipus, the prideful king, Oedipus, who demolished the curse of the Sphinx is now the king of Thebes due to their previous king, Laius, being killed by his own son. Furthermore, Oedipus married the queen the queen of Thebes (Jocasta) and has four children. The tragic unfolding starts to begin as the town of Thebes is under another plague and the only way it can be broken is by finding Laius’ killer. Oedipus, being prideful, accuses his wife’s brother, Creon as the unrighteous killer. As the story unfolds slowly, Oedipus finds out that he himself was the killer of his own father and married his mother. Because of this news, Jocasta hangs herself because she cannot bare to live with the shameful embarrassment. In addition,
It seems as if the classical works are replete with dysfunctional families. Oedipus the King is no exception. If the core of a society is found in the nuclear family, then it may be sensible to assume that the Greeks were maligned at the center. On the other hand, they may have been the pinnacle of familial honor if they rooted out their most devious and dangerous escapades in the theater rather than the commons. Whatever the interpretation, there may be value in seeking greater understanding of these people and the meanings of their theatrical themes. One way to gain insight on these matters is to consult one of the greatest critics of ancient times. Aristotle made an interesting commentary about Oedipus the King. He branded the main character of the play a tragic hero. Perhaps, there is more to Oedipus and his tragic story than meets the eye.
Oedipus portrays a tragic protagonist absorbed in a web of illusion that he believes to be real. Oedipus sincerely believes that his life is reality and that he is the son of King Polybus, the King of Thebes, and the husband of Queen Jocasta. However, what Oedipus does not grasp is that he fulfilled the prophecy the gods sent for him.
Oedipus was blind in more then one way. He was blind to the truth about his own life. Oedipus had no idea that his real parents were Laius and Jocasta. He was so blind that he got mad at anyone who was foolish enough to suggest such an idea.
Not only does ignorance have a negative impact on people, it is also “the root and stem of all evil” (Plato), which can destroy a person. To start off, self-superiority can cloud a person’s judgment; making it evident that intelligence can easily be lost to arrogance. To add on, anger and the human tendency to make rash decisions can also contribute to ignorance, resulting in eventual downfall. Lastly, unconscious attempts to blind yourself from the truth can result in the committing of major sins. Tragedy occurs in “Oedipus the King” when ignorance causes disastrous events, proving that lack of knowledge can result in their misfortune.
Throughout Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, there are many references to sight, blindness, and seeing the truth. Characters, such as Tiresias, are able to accurately predict what Oedipus’ fate will be through their power to see the truth in a situation. Oedipus maintains a pompous and arrogant personality throughout the play as he tries to keep control of the city of Thebes and prove the speculations about his fate as falsities. Ironically, although Tiresias is physically blind, he is able to correctly predict how Oedipus’ backstory will unfold, while other characters, such as Jocasta and Oedipus are oblivious to the truth even though they can physically see. Thus, we can conclude that the power of “seeing the truth” deviates greatly from the power of sight in reality and can lead to an expedited fate or a detrimental occurrence.
Sometimes in life people can be “blind” to the truth. The answer to their question or solution to their worry or problem may have been obvious yet, they could not “see” the answer. Therefore, they were blind to the truth. This blindness is not one in a physical sense but another kind of sight or vision. In Sophocles’ writing, Tiresias is a blind prophet that presents the truth to King Oedipus. Tiresias reveals that Oedipus has been blind to the truth his whole life and when he finally does find the truth, he loses his physical vision by saying, “so, you mock my blindness? Let me tell you this. You with your precious eyes, you’re blind to the corruption of your life.”(Sophocles) In this case, those who are blind ultimately do have a higher vision- the truth. The theme of sight versus blindness in Sophocles’ work
Aristotle, in his work The Poetics, tries to delineate the idea of a tragedy. Throughout his work Aristotle says that the hero, or at least the protagonist in a tragedy must be substantially good, almost godlike. This hero must bring upon themselves their downfall, due to their fatal flaw. If the hero is not at a high point, an audience will not care about them, and won’t notice their fall. One must fall a long way in social class in order for it to be noticed by the outside man. Oedipus perfectly exemplifies a tragedy, in relation to modern society, effectively showing how too much pride can often lead to downfall or doom.
Throughout most famous Greek literature, a great hero usually saves the day. In the story of Oedipus though, the good man with one minor flaw goes through great pain. This pain in the play Oedipus Rex is the focal point for the whole play. Almost every aspect of the play builds up and foreshadows Oedipus’ fall from power, and entry into pain. Sophocles in his tragedy Oedipus Rex creates a mood of dramatic irony using the dualities of sight and blindness, and light and darkness. This dramatic irony highlights Oedipus’ hamartia and in doing so Sophocles enhances his message that arrogance and is wrong.