ipl-logo

Identity In Oedipus The King

1443 Words6 Pages

The three texts, Oedipus The King, Aias, and Philoktetes, define an identity as the uniqueness of a character such as the strength and skills, the representation of that character to other people, and the true heritage. However, an identity one spends his life to build can fall apart within a second by any illness, action, or sudden revelation who they actually are. Aias, Oedipus, and Philoktetes’ carelessness in identifying with their reputations and actions lead their individualities to shatter and change. When Aias, Philoktetes, and Oedipus are forced to undergo destruction or alteration of their identities, they use their physical suffering to cope with the psychological distress of losing their identities.
Aias encounters the loss of his identity as an honorable soldier when he decides to …show more content…

In Oedipus The King, Oedipus is introduced as a wise king who cares about the well-being of the people as he solved the Sphinx riddle and saved the country. He is praised as “a bird from the god, [he] brought good luck the day [he] rescued [the people]” (Oedipus The King. 61-62). He identifies himself as a good king, and a son of Polybos and Merope. However, during his investigation into Laius’ murderer, he finds out that he is in fact the culprit; “All! All! It has all happened! / It was all true. O Light! Let this / be the last time I look on you. / You see now who I am- / the child who must not be born! / I loved where I must not love! / I killed where I must not kill!” (Oedipus The King. 1336.1342). The understanding of his identity is completely shattered when he learns the truth. With the sudden shift in his identity, the life he lived seems like a lie, and he becomes confused about his own identity. His loss of his coveted former identity as a good king, and the discovery of his new and shameful identity cause emotional

Show More
Related

  • Yusef Komunyakaa Facing It Analysis

    914 Words  | 4 Pages

    Oedipus emphasizes how his whole identity had been built on false beliefs, believed to be a hero, the savior of Thebes, a man with noble birth. However, the truth is that he’s a murderer and a product of incest which disturbs his whole identity. This forces him to evaluate his beliefs and Identity and how accepting the truth challenges him deeply due to his past beliefs. Similarly, in Komunyakaa’s “Facing It” the speaker struggles to come to terms with the reality of war, his experiences, and finally the ultimate effect it has on his identity.

    Read More

  • Oedipus Vs Hurston

    1501 Words  | 7 Pages

    Oedipus’s duty as King is to resolve any conflicts, including the mystery of the murder of King Laius. His pride takes over, and Oedipus becomes very single-minded. His cynical stubbornness writes the story itself, “Let the storm burst, my fixed resolve still holds, / To learn my lineage, be it ne’er so low. / It may be she will all a woman’s pride /

    Read More

  • Blindness And Vision In Oedipus The King

    686 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oedipus the King is a tragedy that was written by Sophocles that emphasizes the irony of an irony of a man who was determined to trace down, expose and punish an assassin who in turn became him. Oedipus the King is also known as Oedipus Rex or Oedipus Tyrannus. The art is an Athenian play that was performed in ages approximated to be 429 BC. Oedipus the King would later in the play fulfill the prophecy that he would kill his father and later on marry his mother. There is a twist of an event in the play where Oedipus is looking for the murderer of his father to bring to a halt the series of plagues that are befalling Thebes but only to find he is in search of himself (Rado, 1956).

    Read More

  • Antigone Identity Quotes

    612 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sense of identity is important for everyday life but sometimes it can cause harm. In Sophocles’ play Antigone a woman, Antigone, fights against unjust politics in an attempt to honor her brother who died in war. Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart focuses around a man, Okonkwo, in igbo colony that gets invaded by colonists and how he fights back against colonization. In both Things Fall Apart and Antigone, Okonkwo’s and Antigone's senses of identity changed because of changes in rules and social customs, leading to their death.

    Read More

  • What Is Oedipus Fatal Flaw

    1053 Words  | 5 Pages

    Classical Studies professor, Peter T. Struck, argues that Oedipus’ “basic flaw is his lack of knowledge about his own identity. Moreover,

    Read More

  • Julius Caesar And Oedipus Rex

    1051 Words  | 5 Pages

    Oedipus as a king has hubris or excessive pride and sees himself as having superiority over all others. “I thought it wrong, my children, to hear the truth from others, messengers. Here I am myself—you all know me, the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus” (Lines 1-6). This sets up the view that exactly from the beginning of the story, Oedipus is worshipped as this highly renowned king. This sets up the dramatic irony that even though Oedipus is praised, the people reciting the story are the ones who along with Oedipus will discover the truth about his life.

    Read More

  • Identity In Odysseus Of Homer's Odyssey

    463 Words  | 2 Pages

    Upon Odysseus arrival to Ithaca, Athena hides his identity to help him defeat the suitors. She turns him into a very old beggar to conceal his identity from everyone, most importantly the suitors. Odysseus reveals himself to his son Telemachus, cowherd and the swine herd. The nurse Eurycleia recognizes him because of a scar he got years ago by a boar’s white tusk. Penelope doesn’t recognize Odysseus at first sight because of the disguise.

    Read More

  • Oedipus Pride Quotes

    657 Words  | 3 Pages

    When the people of Thebes find out Oedipus is the killer of Laius, the former king, Oedipus goes through his tragic downfall of great suffering. Oedipus boosts himself up and degrades others, but it turn he ends up suffering greatly and pitying himself for it. Oedipus’ display of pride throughout the story causes him to feel great pity for himself as he suffers his ultimate downfall.

    Read More

  • Mood Messengers In Oedipus Rex

    1252 Words  | 6 Pages

    But when the messenger reveals the true identity of Oedipus in the latter part, a reversal of mood is produced. The mood indeed lightened up after Oedipus heard the death of his dad: “So! Why then, Jocasta, should we study Apollo’s oracle, or gaze at the birds screaming over our heads-----those prophets who announced that I would kill my father? He’s dead, buried, below ground. And here I am in Thebes----I did not put hand to sword.”

    Read More

  • Tragic Flaws In Oedipus The King

    1159 Words  | 5 Pages

    Introduction The story of Oedipus the king is gloomy, yet captivating. Going from a child bond around the feet and abandon by the mountainside, to marrying his mother, his story is intriguing. In search of the truth about the prophecy and putting an end to a plague Oedipus, search for king Laius’s killer, did somethings inadvertently, making him a tragic hero. His search for truth in the death of Laius the king, as well as his birth led to the ultimate destruction and downfall of his life.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Blindness In Oedipus The King

    700 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oedipus, King of Thebes, has sight but is blind to truth. Since he is born Oedipus was living in the lie. He never knew who were his real parents and what was the real story hidden behind his entire life until it was reavealed to him. Oedipus was born to be a king. Being a king in a certain way helped him discover the truth about his life.

    Read More

  • Who Was Responsible For Oedipus's Downfall

    571 Words  | 3 Pages

    He told Tiresias that he was lying and was just trying to help Ceron become ruler. Oedipus also had too much pride this also contributed to his downfall. He was telling the people that they would find the murderer and have him exiled. He was too blind to see that he killed the king.

    Read More

  • Oedipus Strengths And Weaknesses

    1085 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the play Oedipus is the only one that is able to solve the sphinx’s riddle which leads the city to making him their next king. Oedipus was there for the city in a time of need and shows his intelligence by solving the riddle. This act is what categorizes Oedipus as a hero, after saving the city from a crisis it shows he is willing to do anything in order to keep the city going and look after his people. He also does not like to keep secrets from his people, for example when Creon wants to tell Oedipus the oracle in private, Oedipus insists on making the news public to the people. Doing so shows that he wants the people to trust him and wants make it known to everyone that he can be in fact trusted.

    Read More

  • Oedipus Tragic Flaw Essay

    577 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oedipus was a tragic hero he was seen as a great man and was king,but he fell to misfortune because of his disability to see past his pride and anger which led to his demise. By not being able to see past his pride and anger Oedipus was not able to to avoid his prophetic destiny. He was blinded by his pride and anger so much that it became his tragic flaw ultimately leading him to his

    Read More

  • Oedipus The King Research Paper

    1224 Words  | 5 Pages

    Oedipus the King is one of the most ironic plays ever written. Sophocles, the author, is a famous philosopher of the ancient times The Play is about Oedipus, the king of Thebes, who kills his father and marries his mother. An oracle warned Laius, the king of Thebes prior to Oedipus, that his son would murder him. Accordingly, when his wife, Jocasta, had a son, he exposed the baby by first pinning his ankles together. The infant, who was adopted by King Polybus of Corinth and his wife was then brought up as their very own.

    Read More

More about Identity In Oedipus The King

Open Document