Oedipus the King
Oedipus the King is the perfect example of a tragedy. It contains a
complete combination of all the features of a tragedy. Aristotle in
his Poetics[1] defines Oedipus as being 'a definite example of the
form and purpose of tragedy'. In tragedies the Greeks dramatized
climactic events in the lives of heroes, and Oedipus' story is no
exception. By using many different literary devices it brings moral
dilemmas of action and motive to the public stage. The action is set
out over the timeframe of one day, which will according to the prophet
Tiresias will bring Oedipus' 'birth' and 'destruction'.
King Oedipus is the central protagonist and within his character lies
a tragic flaw. He is unintentionally the architect of his own
downfall. The strengths that once lead him to solve the riddle behind
the sphinx later lead him to his own downfall. In the words of the
priest; 'you helped us stand, only to fall once more'. Oedipus'
hamartia is his anger. It lies at the root of the plot. It was fury
that lead him to kill Laius. He was about to thrust Oedipus off the
road one night, so Oedipus 'paid him back with interest' by murdering
him. Another flaw is a persistent desire to discover the truth. His
'mindless stubbornness' motivates him to seek the truth about Laius'
killer and who his father is. This search leads to the turn of events
that take place throughout the play.
Despite constant denial of his fate he cannot deny the work of the
gods. Tiresias delivers him a prophecy of this fate. Oedipus'
circumstances are far beyond his own control. No matter what he
attempts to do or alter every path leads the same way. He finds
himself 'always terrified Apollo's' oracle might come true'. However
he is determined to seek out the Kings murderer to punish him. This
search interlinks with the search for his father. Jocasta also tries
to deny destiny believing that 'nothing human can penetrate the
future'. She claims to believe that 'It's all chance, chance rules our
lives'. However fate inevitably takes over. Through the process of
anagorsis Oedipus discovers he is in fact the very criminal he seeks.
Along with this he realises further truth in the prophecy, that he is
married to his mother. Jocasta also comes to realise the same truth.
By the end of the play his final downfall along with hers is
inevitable.
Tragic iro...
... middle of paper ...
...loins that spawned my wretched
life. What grief can crown this grief? It's mine alone, my destiny - I
am Oedipus!'
These two statements show the peripeteia of Oedipus' life. Once a hero
basked in glory, he has now succumbed to his destiny. In turn he is
lowered to a truly pathetic state.
His altered state serves to highlight the reversal of fortune he
undergoes. His tragic flaw leads him to acknowledging his fate.
Oedipus' downfall comes as he tries to escape fate but cannot. The
audience knows this as does the chorus and we can only watch.
Oedipus the King contains nothing outside of the definition; it's just
pure Tragedy at the very core. It also confirms to Aristotle's theory
of Tragedy. It obeys all the rules
and the elements of Tragedy mentioned throughout. These features
entwine together to create the ultimate work of Tragedy. From all of
this it is unquestionable that the word 'tragedy' is a usefully
accurate description of Sophocles' play Oedipus the King.
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[1] W.B. Worthen, The Harcourt Brace Anthology of Drama, 3rd Edition
(USA, Harcourt College Publishers, 2000), p 72.
revengeand one of secrecy. He was not driven by an anger at his ownsin, but
Fear has the power to control, twist and break the ways of the human mind. The body, and mind are tricked and we find ourselves confused and fighting to piece together a troubling puzzle of straying emotion. Franklin D. Roosevelt stated, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”, projecting that fear knows no bounds and is a great power. Fear and power go hand in hand, without fear there is no power, a teacher has no power over a student if the student is not afraid of the consequences of stepping out of line. This is shown in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. The boys on the island experience fear in many different forms and their basic human instincts are swayed to do things they would not do otherwise.
Many times humans do things that contradict another thing they do. An example of this is one thing may be good but also bad at the same time. A person who has done this more then once is Oedipus in the writer Sophocles plays. Sophocles uses imagery like light verses darkness, knowledge verses ignorance and sight verses blindness.
Aristotle defined a tragic story as the adventure of a good man who reaches his ultimate downfall because he pushed his greatest quality too far. Sophocles advocates the definition in the tragic play Oedipus Rex. He develops the play with the great polarities of fame and shame, sight and blindness, and ignorance and insight to show Oedipus’ experiences in search for knowledge about his identity. Through his search, Oedipus pushes his quest for truth too far and ultimately reaches his doom. Oedipus’ reliance on his intellect is his greatest strength and ultimate downfall.
Oedipus is a story about a few basic human emotions. Among them are rage, passion, humility, and guilt. The Ancient Greeks understood these emotions well; their society was based upon the logical emotions, but always threatened by the violent ones. Oedipus was at first told that he was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Fearful of himself, he fled showing a lack of humility away from his home, thinking that his problems would be solved. Later on, he gets into a tumultuous fight with a passerby on the road to Thebes. Enraged, he kills the man and his servants; this turned out to be a big mistake. After saving the city of Thebes from the Sphinx, he marries and then passionately sleeps with the queen. Towards the end of the play, he realizes that he has indeed killed his father and married his mother, thus echoing the lack of humility that first drove him away from his adopted parents.
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 let 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. Oedipus was filled with hubris and this angered the gods. He believed he was more that a man. These beliefs cause him to ignore the limits he had in being a man. Oedipus needed to look at Teiresias as his window to his future.
References to eyesight and vision, both literal and metaphorical, are very frequent in all three of the Theban plays. Quite often, the image of clear vision is used as a metaphor for knowledge and insight. In fact, this metaphor is so much a part of the Greek way of thinking that it is almost not a metaphor at all, just as in modern English: to say “I see the truth” or “I see the way things are” is a perfectly ordinary use of language. However, the references to eyesight and insight in these plays form a meaningful pattern in combination with the references to literal and metaphorical blindness. Oedipus is famed for his clear-sightedness and quick comprehension, but he discovers that he has been blind to the truth for many years, and then he blinds himself so as not to have to look on his own children/siblings. Creon is prone to a similar blindness to the truth in Antigone. Though blind, the aging Oedipus finally acquires a limited prophetic vision. Tiresias is blind, yet he sees farther than others. Overall, the plays seem to say that human beings can demonstrate remarkable powers of intellectual penetration and insight, and that they have a great capacity for knowledge, but that even the smartest human being is liable to error, that the human capability for knowledge is ultimately quite limited and unreliable.
The use of alcohol by adolescents is widely viewed as disobedience in American society. Although, alcohol use is technically illegal until the age of twenty-one (in 19 states the consumption of alcohol in not specifically illegal for people under the age of twenty-one), there is still an excessive use of dinking in teenagers today. Since alcohol is associated with all three leading causes of death among teens, it can also have less life-altering consequences such as a drop in academic performances and a decline of friend and family relationships. Also, mental disorders like anxiety, depression and behavioral issues as in loss of temper, an argumentative personality, being easily angered, and blaming others for mistakes. Alcohol is the most commonly abused drug in teenagers and society contributes to abuse by linking drinking to sophistication and good times. (“Alcohol Abuse and Youth” 1)
One has nothing to fear but fear itself. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, fear coexists with the boys throughout the entire novel. The feeling of fear occurs immediately as the group of boys land on the deserted island. They experience fears of whether or not they will be able to survive on the island, the fear of losing power, as well as the ‘beastie’. Altogether, the fears pile up for the group, causing a struggle to subsist long enough for the chance to be rescued. Therefore, it is essential that fear is conquered in order to survive.
Teenagers are constantly being educated on the seriousness of alcohol and the vast amounts of negative impacts it can have meaning every teenager understands the consequences to do with alcohol, however as we can see it hasn’t stopped underage drinking and I believe this pattern will continue into the future.
Underage drinking is problematic in many communities. If you spent one day at any High School, in Love County, I can almost guarantee by the end of the day you would know which students drink, who supplies the liquor, and the location of the next party. Regrettably, underage drinking runs rampant in Love County and many other regions in the United States. “Alcohol use remains extremely widespread among today’s teenagers. Nearly three quarters of students (72%) have consumed alcohol (more than just a few sips) by the end of high school, and more than a thir...
Alcohol is a drink that is a common social norm in our society today. Alcohol is rising concern for not only adults, teenagers too. This is not a new situation and the concern has existed for years. Teenage drinking has become one of the largest social issues among young people in America today. There is simply no way of preventing underage drinking although it is illegal, there are ways to inform teenagers the effects and harm it does to your body. You simply can not tell college kids they can’t drink, it is unenviable, but again teaching the consequences and concerns can further their education with alcohol related substance and situations in which they encounter.
From the cradle to the grave, every person has experienced the trembling feeling of fear. A child might fear being in the ocean or the dark; on the other hand, an old man might fear losing mental capabilities or even life. All fears are dreadful, but what if the fear was over something unknown? William Golding, both veteran and Nobel Prize winner, depicted his view on humanity into his book, Lord of the Flies. The book describes a group of British boys stuck on a deserted island who try to govern themselves with failing results. The boys also had fears, but in their case, it was a hidden beast. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies displays how fear of the unknown is a paralyzing and destructive force that can change one’s identity to a more
In the movie The Notebook, it essentially came down to a woman, Allie, played by Rachel McAdams, having to choose between “what is good for you” and “this is crazy, but this is love”. What is good for you was represented by the social status of another man, wealth. While love was represented by Noah, a regular man trying to get by in the life by barely even making minimum wage. Class playing a significant, conflicting role throughout this film.
Young people grow up seeing their parents and other adults make toast of wine and champagne at special occasions, as well as casually enjoying a few beers at a picnic. Today alcoholic beverages are frequently as common at business lunches as they are at college frat parties. Underage drinking is a huge problem which everyone must face. Underage drinking not only has devastating effects on those who drink but also on our society. "Young people illegally consume almost 3.6 billion drinks annually which is 10 million drinks each day."