Oedipus the King is one of the most famous examples of a classic tragedy. At the center of this play, like other Greek tragedies, is the idea that all humans are subject to fate and that no one has the power to change his or her fate. This is the case with the protagonist of this play, Oedipus. Although he has learned from the oracle what his fate is, his victory over the Sphinx and his rise to power in Thebes has led him to believe that he can overcome his supposed fate. Also, his experiences have led him to distrust those capable of telling him the truth about his fate, specifically the oracles and prophets. This paper presents Oedipus as a tragic hero whose flaw is an excessive pride that leads him to overestimate his power. It will show how his …show more content…
He was a blind, blunt, and indecisive prophet. He came to acknowledge the recent death of the King, yet he wanted to stay out of all the commotion even though he knows the truth. Oedipus is persistent and knows he's a prophet and knows he's the only one who can find the killer. Tiresias refuses the first time and the he tells Oedipus is that he is the killer he is looking for and the murder of Laius will turn out to be both father and brother to his own children and son of his own wife. Even though he is blind, he can see better then anyone else around him. Oedipus does not believe him and neither does his new wife Jocasta, yet Teiresias is confident that fate will play its self out. Teiresias starts by saying “Well, it will come what will, though I be mute.” Then Oedipus responds with “Since come it must, thy duty is to tell me.” Teiresias said “I have no more to say; storm as thou willst, and give the rein to all thy pent-up rage.” They choose what to believe, but this does not worry Tiresias because he knows that fate will always win. Oedipus happens to be hypocritical in more ways then one which eventually leads to his downfall as a tragic
Many times in life, people think they can determine their own destiny, but, as the Greeks believe, people cannot change fate the gods set. Though people cannot change their fate, they can take responsibility for what fate has brought them. In the story Oedipus, by Sophocles, a young king named Oedipus discovers his dreadful fate. With this fate, he must take responsibility and accept the harsh realities of what’s to come. Oedipus is a very hubris character with good intentions, but because he is too confident, he suffers. In the story, the city of Thebes is in great turmoil due to the death of the previous king, Laius. With the thought of helping his people, Oedipus opens an investigation of King Laius’s murder, and to solve the mystery, he seeks advice from Tiresias, a blind prophet. When Laius comes, Oedipus insists on having the oracle told to all of Thebes showing no sign of hesitation or caution. This oracle states that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Oedipus must learn to deal with his terrible and appalling fate the way a true and honorable king would. Because...
The question has been raised as to whether Oedipus was a victim of fate or of his own actions. This essay will show that Oedipus was a victim of fate, but he was no puppet because he freely and actively sought his doom, although he was warned many times of the inevitable repercussions of his actions.
He avoids taking responsibility for the murder of Laius because he fears that he has lost to fate and so he diverts the blame of the murder on others. Oedipus protests his fate since he originally learned of it. Because Oedipus experiences a terrible change in fortune, he undergoes a transfiguration and evokes a sense of pity and fear from the audience and his countryman. Oedipus is cursed by a terrible change in fortune when he goes from believing that his “father’s death has lightened up the scene” (52) to realizing that Polybus is not his father and, in reality, he has killed his father and then that he has had children with his mother.
Aristoteles’s “Theory of Tragedy” suggests that the tragic flaw in Sophocles’ play Oedipus is the King’s “self-destructive actions taken in blindness,” but a worse flaw is his arrogance. There are a few opposing views that stray from Oedipus being fully arrogant. First is that he took actions to save himself from further pain. Second, by putting himself in charge was the right thing to do as the leader of his people. Third, Oedipus never tried to outwit the gods but used the prophecy as a warning to leave Corinth.
However, as the plot unfolds, Oedipus begins to show the signs of being a “tragic hero” by Aristotle’s definition. Aristotle says that a tragic hero is a person, usually the main character, who starts out as a great and noble individual. Oedipus is not an evil man but a good, upright, man who suffers a downfall. Aristotle also says that this person begins to become fallible and eventually is doomed by their own “tragic flaw.” We see this with Oedipus when he displays hubris. Oedipus begins to think he can...
In the play, Oedipus the King written by Sophocles, the protagonist Oedipus finds himself in many conflicts, most of which seem to be a result of a combination of the actions he took. The play addresses that Oedipus is his own worst enemy, who is too determined to find out who he is and too proud to listen to the Gods. He thinks he can get out of following through on his own fate. So, because of that he doomed himself.
Sophocles’ presents a complex character at the center of his play, Oedipus the King. The tragic flaw of Oedipus is his daring pursuit of the truth at any cost. His attempt to alter his fate is reasonable, but his actions along the way are reckless. Oedipus’s actions are harmful even while his intentions may seem honorable. Sophocles’ play delivers a message that serves as moral caution; that even when people’s fate seems beyond their control, they are still responsible for the consequences of their actions.
Throughout the play we find that Oedipus, the protagonist of this Greek tragedy, is tested by life in a number of ways. To those in Athens who watched the performance of Oedipus the King, Oedipus appeared to be the embodiment of a perfect Athenian. He is self-confident, intelligent, and strong-willed. Ironically, these are the very traits which bring about his tragic discovery. He is portrayed as a character of social conscience whose tragedy stresses the vulnerability of human beings whose suffering is brought on by a combination of human and divine actions.
Oedipus Rex”, by Socrates, is a play that shows the fault of men and the ultimate power of the gods. Throughout the play, the main character, Oedipus, continually failed to recognize the fault in human condition, and these failures led to his ultimate demise. Oedipus failed to realize that he, himself, was the true answer to the riddle of the Sphinx. Oedipus ignored the truth told to him by the oracles and the drunk at the party, also. These attempts to get around his fate, which was determined by the gods, was his biggest mistake.
Even though Oedipus is a hero, we should not admire him, as the intentions for his actions are self-centered. This distinction is necessary to help us better understand the difference between being a hero, and a hero worth of admiration. It is important to know that somebody’s admiration must ultimately stem from the intentions of their actions rather than the results of their actions alone, so we can act accordingly in the future.
Oedipus took great pride in saving people and being seen a hero. He wanted the death of Laius to be avenged and he had to be the one to find the murderer and punish him. "I'll fight for him, I'll leave no means untried, to cach the one who did it with his hand..." (Literature, Oedipus the King, Ln. 270-271, page 1081) He did not want to let the people of Thebes down, and he wanted to show that he would be a true hero once again.
Oedipus The King, by Sophocles, is a play about how Oedipus lives up his fate that he will kill his father and marry his mother, both of which are extremely bad in the Greek society, even though he thinks he is getting away from it. Despite the Greek notions of supreme power of the gods and fate, Oedipus' downfall is primarily the result of King Laius' and his own actions and attempts to defy the gods, consequently Sophocles says that prophecies from the gods of someone's fate should not be ignored. Prophecies from the Oracle of Delphi are told to King Laius and Queen Jocasta, and to Oedipus.
(49-52). From this line, the reader is able to acknowledge the pressure put on Oedipus to find the murderer of Laius and free his people from the plague. However, he gets so caught up in finding who the culprit is, he doesn’t realize that it is in fact, himself. This is also due to his ignorance. In the book, Oedipus is told by the prophet, Tiresias that he is the murderer of Laius.
Oedipus Rex is a tale that provokes contemplation of fate and freewill. The characters in this story do what they think will protect them from their unfortunate fate; Laius and Jocasta send their son to die, Oedipus leaves his ‘parents’ Polybus and Merope to prevent himself from murdering who he thinks his father could be. However, no matter what the characters have done in the past to hopefully
Oedipus is depicted as a “marionette in the hands of a daemonic power”(pg150), but like all tragic hero’s he fights and struggles against fate even when the odds are against him. His most tragic flaw is his morality, as he struggles between the good and the evil of his life. The good is that he was pitied by the Shepard who saved him from death as a baby. The evil is his fate, where he is to kill his father and marry his mother. His hubris or excessive pride and self-righteousness are the lead causes to his downfall. Oedipus is a tragic hero who suffers the consequences of his immoral actions, and must learn from these mistakes. This Aristotelian theory of tragedy exists today, as an example of what happens when men and women that fall from high positions politically and socially.