Similarities Between The Odyssey And Oedipus

428 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: The role of the gods in Oedipus

Oedipus is very similar to The Odyssey in many ways. First of all, they both involve Greek Gods and Goddesses. In both stories it is the Gods are what cause the main characters to take a journey to find something important. These journeys bring great pain and sorrow to the main characters and their families in both stories.
Oedipus gets his name from the fact that when he was three days old he was left in the mountains with his ankles pinned together. This injury leaves Oedipus with a large scar for the rest of his life. The injury symbolizes the way in which his fate had been sealed since he was born. That being that he causes his own downfall by listening and following what the Gods say will happen.
Throughout the play, Sophocles uses the …show more content…

With a third-person dramatic view, the author only provides information on the setting and plot, but does not provide the thoughts and emotions of the characters. The thoughts of the characters are created in the dialogue. This point of view is common in a lot of dramatic plays because it helps move the action along without any interruption by feelings and emotions.
Oedipus is full of striking and extremely descriptive imagery. One of the best examples of imagery is given to the reader towards the end. It is when Oedipus finds his mother/wife, Jocasta, hanging dead in her room. Due to extreme anger, Sophocles describes the way Oedipus tears Jocasta dress and uses her pins to stab his eyes. Afterwards, there is a vivid description of the aftermath of the stabbing.
Sophocles creates a sympathetic, tragic, and ironic tone in Oedipus. Due to the play not having a narrator, the tone is created by the Chorus. The Chorus expresses sympathy towards the characters and their situations they are facing, yet at the same time they seem somewhat aware of the events occuring. Throughout the beginning there is foreshadowing towards the outcome. The reader knows who killed the king and that Oedipus is the son of Jocasta and Laius through the dialogue from the characters and the

Show More
Related

  • AP Open Response, Oedipus Rex

    514 Words  | 2 Pages

    Insuring the portrayal of his theme, Sophocles targets the tension of his tragic play, Oedipus Rex, through the growth of the main character, Oedipus, rather than the mystery. Utilizing literary devices such as dramatic irony, soliloquies, and foreshadowing, Sophocles reveals to the audience the conclusion to the mystery of Oedipus before the hero has solved it himself; forcing the audience’s attention towards character growth of the hero, over the actual development of the mystery.

    Read More

  • Comparing and Contrasting Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannus and Rita Dove's The Darker Face of the Earth

    1365 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sophocles style of plot structure was usually to begin in media res. This is particularly true of Oedipus Tyrannus. When the reader or audience is first introduced to the main character, Oedipus is already a grown man and king of his country. In the first few lines, talk of a "fiery plague ravaging the city" is mentioned (Sopochles 3). In the very early stages of the play the reader begins to feel pity for Oedipus and recognizes his suffering. The time span is also another important factor to consider when analyzing the plot structure. The play in its entirety takes place within a one to two day period. The flashback scenes into Oedipus' childhood give the audience a better sense of the big picture, but can be misleading when focusing on the time aspect element.

    Read More

  • Homer’s Odyssey and O Brother, Where Art Thou?

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...journey that is taken by a man. Throughout both tales, the audience is habituated with the sense that both characters are on this journey. The journey, in both cases, is fought for family, which is indeed quite noble. Of course, human nature is a key similarity as well, as both of these men go great lengths in order to finally make it back to where they came from and to find true happiness. And as said before, both “The Odyssey” and “O Brother Where Art Thou?” can be thought of as stories of a man coming home, with all of the characters playing their parts to create a true epic. The small details are not what make these two tales similar. Instead, the creators used broad, yet powerful concepts about friendship, hardship, and love. And in the end, this pays off very well, giving the audience a great opening into a true world where human emotion and nature rule all.

    Read More

  • A Comparison of Homer's Odyssey and Oedipus the King

    892 Words  | 2 Pages

    won) fighting a war against the city of Troy and has been held captive by

    Read More

  • Sophocles' Oedipus the King as Nothing More Than a Detective Story

    1986 Words  | 4 Pages

    This can lead to problems though, as shown by the character Jocasta, who shows that having guidance from a God or an Oracle doesn’t always help you in your future. Due to the way that “Oedipus the King” seems to incorporate all the things I have discussed, it would seem that this play is an example of. Greek tragedy at its best. The play stirs up the emotions and rouses sympathy for the characters and their protagonist. It motivates the audience and readers by asking questions, and using devices that utilise the suspense and the effect of dramatic irony.

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King: The Tragic Flaws Of Oedipus

    1052 Words  | 3 Pages

    The great Sophoclean play, Oedipus Rex is an amazing play, and one of the first of its time to accurately portray the common tragic hero. Written in the time of ancient Greece, Sophocles perfected the use of character flaws in Greek drama with Oedipus Rex. Using Oedipus as his tragic hero, Sophocles’ plays forced the audience to experience a catharsis of emotions. Sophocles showed the play-watchers Oedipus’s life in the beginning as a “privileged, exalted [person] who [earned his] high repute and status by…intelligence.” Then, the great playwright reached in and violently pulled out the audience’s most sorrowful emotions, pity and fear, in showing Oedipus’s “crushing fall” from greatness.

    Read More

  • The Real Identity of Oedipus

    612 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prompt: How does Oedipus see himself? How do others perceive him? Explain how the author uses this juxtaposition to communicate theme?

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King: Characterization

    2442 Words  | 5 Pages

    The ineffaceable impression which Sophocles makes on us today and his imperishable position in the literature of the world are both due to his character-drawing. If we ask which of the men and women ofGreek tragedy have an independent life in the imagination apart from the stage and from the actual plot in which they appear, we must answer, ‘those created by Sophocles, above all others’ (36).

    Read More

  • Use of Irony in Oedipus the King

    310 Words  | 1 Pages

    Sophocles makes use of many situations involving dramatic irony. In fact, the entire play could be said to be an example of dramatic irony. The audience becomes aware of Oedipus’ prophecy from the very beginning of the play. The reading from the Oracle stated that Oedipus was destined to murder his father and marry his mother. Although Oedipus is unaware of his fate, the reader knows the tragic future of the character. This use of dramatic irony allows the story to avoid the typical Greek tragedy structure and keep the reader intrigued as the events unfold.

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King and Aristotle's Poetics

    861 Words  | 2 Pages

    Aristotle says the plot must be composed of “clearly defined problems for characters to solve.” The main set of clearly defined problems laid out for the character Oedipus, is that he must find a way to avoid the prophecy. His actions afterwards then spur the plot which leads to other problems down the road. The plot is to be in chronological order and have actions that happen both on and off stage. Events that happen off stage are to be passed on by using narrative. In Oedipus, a messenger is used to recount the events that have happened off stage.

    Read More

  • Oedipus The King

    960 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sophocles use the self-realizations of his characters to underscore the themes of his tragedies. He uses the character transformation of Oedipus and the plot, to highlight the theme in Oedipus the King. Oedipus changes from a heroic king at the beginning of the play, to becoming in denial in the middle, to a fearful man, then to becoming a humble man because of his tragic fate. Oedipus become a confident and determine hero in the beginning of the play, during the situation when he solve the Sphinx’s riddle.

    Read More

  • Oedipus The King Tragedy Analysis

    1733 Words  | 4 Pages

    Irony used from beginning to end and with each statement made by Oedipus about finding the killer of Laius. Although the audience is familiar with the story they are fully invested in Oedipus. Because Sophocles uses irony in his play it makes the audience empathize with the protagonist. Oedipus becomes human, a tangible character that experiences the same emotions as everyday people. The thing that makes Oedipus even more human is that he is a victim of a fate assigned to him before he was born. He unknowingly carries out the prophecy destined for him which leads to the discovery that he was abandoned at birth by his biological parents; with this discovery a sense of his identity is taken from him. A character so arrogant normally does not receive empathy from the audience, however, he is still very much an innocent fragile human being punished for his father’s defiance. Sophocles used irony to bring a new twist to a familiar story. The use of irony keeps the audience ahead of the protagonist yet still eagerly awaiting his reaction to the obstacles before him; even though they know his fate the audience wants to see how he deals with his unfortunate

    Read More

  • The Role of Fate in Oedipus Rex

    809 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...s you wonder if Jocasta and Oedipus had not run from their fate, what other way Sophocles would have made it happen. Also, just when the characters think they have nothing to worry about, just when they think they avoided their fate, it comes back to bite them. Sophocles makes it interesting in this way. This approach definitely keeps the reader interested because we wonder what other way he will use this writing technique in his play.

    Read More

  • The Perfect Aristotelian Tragedy: Oedipus the King

    1421 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oedipus the King by Sophocles has the ingredients necessary for a good Aristotelian tragedy. The play has the essential parts that form the plot, consisting of the peripeteia, anagnorisis and a catastrophe; which are all necessary for a good tragedy according to the Aristotelian notion. Oedipus is the perfect tragic protagonist, for his happiness changes to misery due to hamartia (an error). Oedipus also evokes both pity and fear in its audience, causing the audience to experience catharsis or a purging of emotion, which is the true test for any tragedy according to Aristotle.

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King as a Tragic Hero

    954 Words  | 2 Pages

    .... They fear the real identity of Oedipus and they do not want him to discover it. Moreover, the pity is associated with his downfall at the end. These emotional of pity and fear lead to the emotional purgation of the audience, which is the main aim of tragedy according to Aristotle. He is very appropriate to arouse such feelings because he has all the qualities of the tragic hero.

    Read More

More about Similarities Between The Odyssey And Oedipus

Open Document