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The Greek believed strongly in knowing yourself, retributive justice and being able to see things as a whole. They also arranged their social life to provide them with a maximum degree of freedom; freedom form political and religious domination. Despite their strong beliefs in freedom , they always had the belief on fate and usually consult the gods regarding their fate, so that they may live according to their fate.
Fate is the inevitable force that controlled the lives of human. Before the birth of Oedipus, he was destined to "kill his father and mate with his mother". When it was prophesied “that fate would make him (Laius) meet his end through a son, a son of his and mine”, they “riveted his ankles together” and they had Oedipus, he was(p.g40, line 10-12) given to a servant to be killed in an attempt to prevent the prophecy from occurring. “And on that day your savior…”(p.g 56, line,6or 7) it was fate that drives the Corinth messenger to save Oedipus, preventing him from death without fulfilling his destiny. Fate also makes the drunkard to bawl out, “Aha! You’re not your fath...
Fate is defined as “the determining cause by which things in general are believed to…happen as they do,” “It is “an inevitable…outcome.” (Merriam-Webster) However, fate isn’t the determining cause, it is dependent on karmas. Karmas are derivatives of the invisible Karman particles that are all around the world. (umich.edu) Through ones’ thoughts and actions karmas bond to the soul. (umich.edu) Over time the karmas accumulate and begin to cloud the once pure and truly knowledge soul. Ancient Greek tragedian Sophocles uses the idea of fate as the basis for his tragedy “Oedipus the King.” The character Oedipus ultimately turns out to be an exemplification the notions of Karma and fate.
Oedipus the King, a tale of one man’s hubris, paranoia, and willingness to sacrifice his own happiness for the happiness of others. Does one man’s fate designate who he will become? Is it possible to change the fate we are given? Or no matter how hard we try, deep down, it is our qualities that force us to make our fates a reality? In Sophocles’s play Oedipus the King we see a man who tried his hardest to change his own fate at all cost, but because of his human qualities he actually forced his fate upon himself.
Throughout Greek literature, fate has been an influential piece in the plot of many Greek pieces. In Oedipus The King, Oedipus, King of Thebes, knows his prophecy, in which he is to kill his father and marry his mother. He was sent away to be killed by his parents, but he was saved by a servant and became the son of the King and Queen of Corinth. When he learns of his prophecy, he decides to flee Corinth, to not bring pain to his parents. Oedipus believes he is able to disrupt his fate, but fate is set and cannot be changed. From other Greek literature like the Odyssey, gods manipulate the character, but eventually, the outcome is the same. In Oedipus The King, Oedipus’ peripeteia is when Teiresias is summoned, once Teiresias speaks the truth,
Fate is the development of events beyond a person’s control. Essentially it means that there are certain events in everyone’s life that are predetermined and completely unavoidable. In The Iliad, fate is even unchangeable by the gods. The belief is that there is a fixed natural order to the universe and that
...that fate. Events that lead to other events will eventually lead one to their fate. “Oedipus the King” is a great play that sets an example of what fate is. Oedipus chooses to flee from home, in attempt to avoid the god’s statement of his fate from coming true. However, Oedipus’s decision for fleeing is what was necessary to make his fate come true. Undoubtedly, this is what was meant to happen because Oedipus allowed it to. Perhaps if Oedipus ignored the god and never did a thing then perhaps the outcome could have been different for Oedipus. However it did not turn out that way and the choices that Oedipus made is what led him to his doom.
Their fate was that their son was going to kill his father and marry his mother. To prevent their fate, Jocasta and Laius decided to kill their baby once it was born, but one of the messengers felt bad and gave the baby to a couple that wanted a baby. Growing up Oedipus never knew that his parents were not his biological so parents; so when a prophet told him that he was going to kill his father and marry his mother, he decided to run away. In his journey, he came along a man that did not want to get out his way. They were both very stubborn so Oedipus killed the man and his messengers. Then he came to this town called Thebes and married the Queen. Not knowing that he killed his biological father and married his biological mother. I feel that this text approaches fate as a whole, because the main character Oedipus fate was to kill his father and married his mother. His parents should have known that they couldn’t change the course of their
In Oedipus the King, one of Sophocles’ most popular plays, Sophocles clearly depicts the Greek’s popular belief that fate will control a man’s life despite of man’s free will. Man was free to choose and was ultimately held responsible for his own actions. Throughout Oedipus the King, the concept of fate and free will plays an integral part in Oedipus' destruction.
In Sophocles ' Oedipus the King, the themes of fate and free will are very strong throughout the play. Only one, however, brought about Oedipus ' downfall and death. Both points could be argued to great effect. In ancient Greece, fate was considered to be a rudimentary part of daily life. Every aspect of life depended and was based upon fate (Nagle 100). It is common belief to assume that mankind does indeed have free will and each individual can decide the outcome of his or her life. Fate and free will both decide the fate of Oedipus the King.
A vital subject in the play Oedipus the King is the relation between the characters action and fate. Oedipus had the choice to either let destiny play its course, but as seen in the play Oedipus’s chooses his own downfall, he choose free will. His persistence to uncover the truth about his past and his identity are substantial. Fate on the other hand is accountable for many other important and disturbing events in the play one being responsible for Oedipus marring his own mother. Sophocles clearly suggests that both fate and one’s action works hand on hand, it is clear and becomes difficult to judge Oedipus for incest given his unawareness.
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.
In English literature and Greek mythologies fate and free will played colossal responsibilities in creating the characters in the legendary stories and plays. The Greek gods believed in fate and interventions, predictions of a life of an individual before and after birth which the individual has no control over their own destiny. Free will and fate comingle together, this is where a person can choose his own fate, choose his own destiny by the choices the individual will make in their lifetime. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the definition of free will is the “freedom of humans to make choices that are not determined by prior cause of divine intervention”. Fate and the gods who chose their destinies directed Gilgamesh, Oedipus and Achilles.
The idea of fate has existed for a long time and exists even today. Fate revolves around the idea that people's lives are predetermined and that no matter what is done it cannot be changed. With the gods it was used to explain events that seemed strange. Sophocles expands on this idea by introducing Oedipus' fate. The thought of fate is strong considering no matter how hard he struggles he still receives what was predetermined. As a baby he survived the elements on Mount Cithaeron. As Oedipus was destined to live, it shows the dominance of fate. Having fate play such a large part of the play is certainly an insight into the Greek's idea that fate controls us no matter how hard we struggle against it.
... to believe in the Gods/Goddesses and that they had complete control over every part of their lives. The stories that the children grew up with made them fearful of the divinities and going against them was very scary. The stories were guides on how live for instance don’t be greedy, stand by your family, respect the gods and lots more. In the Greek culture it was very important to live by these moral codes. From a very early time the people were almost “brainwashed” by their own religion to follow the “rules” or else terrible things would happen. Even though their city was so progressive and prosperous they were held back because of their religion. Instead of learning about science it was easier to just assume a mightier power was controlling the weather or harvest. They could never think for themselves because they constantly relied on the Gods to think for them.
From the very beginning, Oedipus was destined to fulfill Apollo's prophecy of killing his father. Even though King Lauis tries to kill Oedipus to stop the fulfillment of this shameful prophecy, fate drives the Corinthian messenger to save Oedipus. What the gods fortell will come true and no human can stop it from happening, not even the kings. Oedipus is once again controlled by this power when he leaves the place of his child hood after he hears that he is to kill his father and marry his mother. "I shall shrink from nothing...to find the the murderer of Laius...You are the murderer..." Oedipus tried to stop the prophecy from coming true by leaving Corinth and only fate can make Oedipus turn to the road where he kills his true father. Leaving Corinth makes Oedipus lose his childhood by making him worry of such issues young people should not have to worry about and becoming a king of a strange land. Last of all, Oedipus carries the last part of the prophecy out, marrying his mother. " I would... never have been known as my mother's husband. Oedipus has no control over the outcome of his life. Fate causes Oedipus to have known the answer to the Sphinx's riddle and win his marriage to his mother, Jocasta. Had fate not intervened, the chances of marrying Jocasta would have been small since there is an enourmous number of people and places to go. Oedipus loses his sense of dignity after he discovers he is not only a murderer, but also that he had committed incest.
In Oedipus Rex, fate is something that unavoidably befalls two characters. The gods decide Oedipus and Jocasta’s fate even before they know it. Trying to avoid destiny is pointless because no matter what, it will catch up to you where ever you are. It is often thought that you can change your destiny, but in reality our fate was put into action the day we were born.