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Analysis of the character of iliad and odyssey
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Analysis of the character of iliad and odyssey
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Fate in Iliad and Oedipus Rex
In the stories The Iliad and Oedipus Rex, Oedipus and Achilles exemplified the portrayal of how a personal characters' fate may lay in their own hands. The egotistical mindset Oedipus held triggered one of the most tragic turns in his future, resembling Achilles. As for his excess pride, it resulted in the loss of his good friend Patroclus.
Oedipus' boastful ways were the initiation of his disastrous downfall. A few years before Oedipus took reign of king, he was requested to step aside while a group of men passed. His self-esteem felt intruded and he was so enraged he killed the crowd. Thinking that he already knew his true father Oedipus did not know that one of the members of the assembly that he had slaughtered was his own father, King Laius. Destroying his father meant destroying the city he was soon to befriend as their king. Oedipus felt as if this curse came from above, as he says in line 1285, "Apollo. Dear children the god was Apollo. He brought my sick, sick fate upon me." But he also believed his ignorance played quite the role in his fate, as in line 700 he says, "I think I may be accursed by my own ignorant edict."
In the not so tragic fate that Achilles life took, his obsession of his ego and pride was also the cause of the loss of his friend Patroclus. Agamemnon stole Briseis away from Achilles as revenge for him having to return Chryseis, to her father. In the proud eyes of Achilles this was a blow to his ego and chose that he would not fight in the war against the Trojans. Even though his friends remained in the war, he wished humiliation on Agamemnon. Before the war Nestor presented the thought of Patroclus wearing Achille's armor and taking his place of battle, so Patroclus followed the suggestion and went into war with Achille`s armor on.
Agamemnon is trying to bribe Achilles with gifts but Achilles is not hearing it. From these lines we see that Achilles is being somewhat selfish he is not willing to accept anything Agamemnon gives him regardless of how much it is even if what he gives him is more than what Agamemnon has himself. Achilles will not take anything from him until he is willing to pay for all the grief he has caused which is pretty much impossible to do. The gifts that Agamemnon will offer are not enough to satisfy Achilles it will not convince him to change his decision about the war or mean enough to him
The selfishness that Oedipus possesses causes him to have abundance of ignorance. This combination is what leads to his father’s death. After fleeing Corinth and his foster family, Oedipus gets into a skirmish with an older man. The reason for the fight was because, “The groom leading the horses forced me off the road at his lord’s command” (1336). Oedipus is filled with a rage after being insulted by the lord and feels the need to act. The two men fight, but Oedipus ends up being too much for the older man, and he kills him. What Oedipus is unaware of is that the man was actually his birth father and by killing him, Oedipus has started on the path of his own destruction. Not only does Oedipus kill his father, but also everyone else, “I killed them all” (1336). The other men had no part in the scuffle, but in his rage, he did not care who he was killing.
She heard a car coming up thru the driveway, a car she did not recall at the moment. “It w...
to Hades to visit his father. During his stay, he talks to a large number of
The first of Oedipus’ fatal traits is naiveté, a flaw which causes him to unknowingly weave his own inescapable web of complications. While searching for the murderer of Laius, Creon recommends that Oedipus ask the blind prophet, Teiresias, for his thoughts. Teiresias and Oedipus begin an argument after the prophet accuses Oedipus as the murderer, and Oedipus retaliates by calling the blind man a fool. Teiresias responds with “A fool? Your parents thought me sane enough.” To which Oedipus then replies “My parents again!- Wait: who were my parents” (Sophocles, Oedipus Rex. 1.1. 423-424)? Oedipus’ naiveté regarding his parents plays a big part in his downfall because he does not know that Laius and Jocasta were his real parents. If he knows this at the time, then Oedipus could realize Teiresias is correct, and that he truly is the murderer. Another proof of Oedipus’ naiveté occurred in the second scene of part one when Oedipus returns after his talk with Teiresias and believes Creon is an enemy. He speaks towards Creon saying “You speak well: there is one fact; but I find it hard/ To learn from the deadliest enemy I have” (Sophocles, Oedipus Rex. 1.2. 5...
And let me strap on my shoulders that armor of yours. That the zealous Trojans take me for you and quickly Withdraw from the fight." Because Achilles refused to help the Achaeans battle the Trojans, a discontented Patroclus took the matter into his own hands by requesting activation into battle disguised as Achilles in the hope of sending the Trojans. into a full retreat from the sight of him. It is apparent that Patroclus was willing to fight, although the odds were greatly against him.
Oedipus the King conveys many lessons that are relevant to people living today despite the fact that it was written by Sophocles twenty four centuries ago. Oedipus is a child destined to kill his father and marry his mother. During his life, he makes many mistakes trying to avoid his fate. These mistakes teach us about the nature of humans under certain circumstances. Oedipus possesses personality traits which causes him to make wrong decisions. Attributes like arrogance and his inability to make calm decisions in certain scenarios due to his anger causes his downfall. Oedipus’ excessive pride, like many people today, was an important factor that brought him grief. Oedipus’ lack of patience caused him to make hasty decisions which lead him to his greatest agony. Oedipus’ massive ego turned into excessive vanity, this was the first step to his downfall. Oedipus talks to Creon about the murderer of Laius. He declares, “Then I’ll go back and drag that shadowed past to light… but by myself and for myself I’ll break this plague” (Sophocles, 11). Oedipus is saying that he will be the on...
In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, the dual nature of man is a main theme. Jekyll says: "Man is not /truly one, but truly two"(125), meaning all people have both a good and a bad side. Dr. Jekyll creates a potion to fully separate good and evil, but instead it awakens a dormant character, Mr. Hyde. Throughout the novel, Stevenson uses society, control, and symbolism to tell the reader about human nature.
There were a series of events that occurred causing Oedipus did to lure himself to destruction. Oedipus wouldn?t have cursed himself so ignorantly had he been more diligent to analyze the murder with the former King Laius. He deliberately wanted to curse the murder. (On page 438; lines 226-271) "Upon the murder I invoke this curse- whether he is one man and all unknown, or one of many- may he wear out his life in misery or doom! If with my knowledge he lives at my hearth, I pray that I myself may feel my curse."
This essay will focus on how Robert Louis Stevenson presents the nature of evil through his novel ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’. Using ideas such as duality, the technique used to highlight the two different sides of a character or scene, allegories, an extended metaphor which has an underlying moral significance, and hypocrisy; in this book the Victorians being against all things evil but regularly taking part in frown able deeds that would not be approved of in a ‘respectable’ society. This links in with the idea of secrecy among people and also that evil is present in everyone. The novel also has strong ties and is heavily influenced by religion. Stevenson, being brought up following strong Calvinist beliefs, portrays his thoughts and opinion throughout the story in his characters; good and evil.
Oedipus was born with a terrible Prophecy. From the start it was foreseen that he would kill his father and sleep with his mother. His parents, Laius
placed her ravaged body under the wheel of their car, braking over her, as they drove off
Fate is the belief that a person's life is being controlled by destiny while free will is the belief that a person's life is being controlled by themselves where they choose how to live their life and without an external force. Although this topic has divided people for many centuries, many famous poets and authors have used this to their advantage. One example of fate versus free will is Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. Oedipus Rex should be considered to be categorized as a free will drama because of several events that happen that shows Oedipus free will, such as the example of the messenger telling Jocasta the good news, 2“MESSENGER: The people of Isthmus will choose Oedipus to be their king. That is the rumor there.” (1061-1062) The Messenger
Oedipus was a victime of fate, his futur was foretold by an Oracle, he had no way of knowing that his wife was his mother nor that the stranger he killed was his father. Oedipus could not prevent his own downfall. Oedipus was the king of Thebes, he became king when he cured the city of a deadly plague. He cured the plague by solving the riddle of the mythical creature, the Sphinkx. Now the city is suffering from another plague and as king Oedipus must solve the riddle of this one.
The impetus for the downfall of Oedipus, "Known far and wide by name" (Sophocles, 1), is his anger. Enraged he slew King Laius and in anger he hastily pursued his own ruination. From the aforementioned recriminations of Tiresias to the conflict with his brother-in-law Creon (his ill temper again displayed - "Tempers such as yours most grievous to their own selves to bear,... .(Sophocles, 25); through the revealing exchanges with his wife/mother Jocasta and her slave (whose pity saved the infant Oedipus), damming insight grows in a logical sequence, all the while fueled by the Oedipal rage. Realizing the heinous nature of his actions, Oedipus blinds himself in a fit of anger and remorse - now, as Tiresias, he can see.