Jocasta Mask

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A woman hiding a mistake until it stabbed her in the back; or, more accurately, hanged her by the neck. A woman who wanted control in her life, so she rid herself of fate, only to realize that there was no escaping fate. However fast Jocasta ran from it, it ran faster. In her life and on my mask, two themes are evident: the fact that no one can escape the fate of the gods, and that past sins have a way of catching up with us.
When you take a closer look, these themes evident in my mask. Jocasta’s mask has a black veil that covers everything but her lips. When the veil is lifted, you see her right eye as jeweled to show her view is blocked by pride, since all she can see is her wealth and high position as queen. That is, until she discovers the truth (which is portrayed on the left side of the face). The right …show more content…

She, too, like Oedipus when he is older, is terrified once she hears her fate prophesied. She then does her best to escape it by leaving Oedipus out in the woods to die. After she does this, she believes that her fate has been taken care of and she need not worry about it anymore. Years later, she even tells Oedipus, who is now her husband, that he doesn’t need to fear the prophecy either. Jocasta tells him that the oracles had been wrong before: "So clear in this case were the oracles, so clear and false. Give them no heed, I say; what God discovers need of, easily he shows to us himself" (Sophocles 833-836). It is evident even from these words that she doesn’t think Oedipus needs to worry about the prophecy. In the end, though, she realizes his fate and the inevitability of fate itself when she cries, “O Oedipus, God help you! God keep you from the knowledge of who you are!" (Sophocles 1222-1223).” At this same moment, she realizes her own fate and how no matter what she did, she could never escape her fate or the gods

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