Motherfucker. This word has been used as an insult for hundreds of years, implying the receiver of such an insult has partaken in one of the most taboo actions of all time: having sex with one’s own mother. In Sophocles’ Greek tragedy Oedipus Rex, the protagonist does just that. In the play, characters such as Laius and Oedipus are presented with their destinies as if it were fact. However, the same work supports the idea that destiny can be overcome by no longer running from problems faced before them but approaching them as only one of many possibilities. Oedipus and Laius believed in the essential part of destiny as the operator that controls and decides their lives. Though, if for instance, Oedipus who was so prideful of himself to outthink fate, why did he so desperately run off from Corinth when it was revealed to him? Oedipus is King of Thebes, gaining fame for answering the riddle to kill the Sphinx that was destroying the city. As a reward he assumed place as King and married the widowed Queen, Jocasta. …show more content…
He attacks the stature of which his brother-in-law Creon is coming from and thus has his wife reaffirm that prophecies aren’t true. “And Laius be slain by his own son. Such was the prophet 's horoscope. O king, Regard it not. Whate 'er the god deems fit, To search, himself unaided will reveal,” (722-725). Another instance when this prophecy has been blatantly shown to both the audience and Oedipus. He could no longer fight this prophecy but he would cling onto any glimmer of hope, being told by a Corinthian messenger that his ‘dad’ had passed away and would want him to claim the throne. After his prophecy being learned in Corinth, and then by another prophet in Teiresias, and lastly this instance of his own wife saying it, he needed to give up running away from the problem and admitting it so his family can prosper and so can the plagued citizen of
Oedipus fails to overcome the fate that has been set out for him by the gods. Though the case was different for him, as unlike Hamlet, Oedipus really couldn’t have done anything to avoid his fate of killing his father and marrying his mother. He believed that his real parents were in Corinth and the best way to avoid his fate was to flee the city. Unfortunately for Oedipus, what he had not known was that he was adopted, and his real parents lived in Thebes, the city he fled to. It was nearly impossible for him to have avoided his fate.
The prophet, Teiresias, reveals Oedipus’s curse of murdering his father and sleeping with his mother. “To Delphi, and Apollo sent me back / Baulked of the knowledge that I came to seek. / But other grievous things he prophesied, / Woes, lamentations, mourning, portents dire; / To wit I should defile my mother’s bed / And raise up seed too loathsome to behold, / And slay the father from whose loins I sprang” (Oedipus, 791-797). This is Oedipus’s true reality, but his acerbic attitude denies the possibility of its legitimacy.
Oedipus shows destiny because it was said that Oedipus would kill his father marry his mother and have
Great point, the parents are ultimately responsible for the prophecy being fulfilled. Oedipus’ parents arranging to have their child to be killed as a means to save themselves from the prophecy, these sets mechanism that sets events in motion. Each member of the family having a fault that leads to their own suffering.
Also in Sophocles’ play Oedipus finally understands what Teiresais was explaining to him and how his prophecy came true, which went like this “O Light, may I look on you for the last time” (4. 1120). What these symbolic forms mean is that Teiresias was trying to inform Oedipus that whatever is done in the dark will come to light and everyone will know the full truth about you. Then his prophecy came true and he does not like the effect it has on him. Therefore, Oedipus himself cannot believe he found out that he had married his own mother and had children with her.
After finding his mother, Oedipus blinds himself and begs to be banished, which he is. Thus the prophecy became fulfilled. According to litcharts.com, “Oedipus, a man of action, describes blindness as an inability to see. Tiresias, the seer, describes it as an inability to see the truth. In calling Tiresias a false prophet, Oedipus shows his willingness to fight against any prophecy he disagrees with” (Study Guide).
After Oedipus realizes that he fulfilled his fate of killing his father and marrying his mother, Oedipus declares,”I have been saved for something great and terrible, something strange. Well let destiny come and take me on its way”(323). Then Oedipus gouges out his own eyes so that he cannot look upon his parents in the underworld, his children, or the city he once ruled. He then asks Creon to return him to the place he should have died as a young child, the mountain. The statement reveals that Oedipus fulfilled his fate and that Oedipus truly believes destiny set him on the path of destruction.
Oedipus’ blindness, figuratively speaking, was based on his perspective. He may not be entirely at fault for the reasons behind the plague on Thebes, but it was due to his ignorance which led him to his downfall. In Oedipus’ perspective, it was logical to leave Corinth after hearing about the prophecy due to the fact the he believed that his parents were the king and queen of Corinth. His blindness to the idea that they were not his
It is often said that an anti-climax work is more admired than its counterparts. For reasons, the struggle of humans, the ultimate failure of a hero, and the corruption of mortal spirit have always hold its ground against classic comedy. From the ages of Oedipus Rex, a tragedy carries the irony of an egoistic giant trapped in predestined downfall. Oedipus was almost certain that he had escaped the arranged destiny. This confidence led him to pursue the murderer of Thebes until, at the end, he made the horrible discovery that his wife was his mother, and that his daughters were instead, his sisters.
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.
In many people’s eyes, it is seen that fate is something that one can not escape. In Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles, Oedipus gives a speech to the citizens of Thebes, about the murder of their previous leader, Laius. And in this speech, he explains the hardship that the murderer will have to eventually face. In Oedipus’s speech from Oedipus Rex, Sophocles uses the literary device of dramatic irony to develop the central idea that fate is destined to happen, and can possibly bring more intensified consequences when avoided. If one tries to escape their fate, the conflicts that occur can be more severe than they were supposed to be. One can infer that what Oedipus is stating will eventually happen to him in the end of the play, if he is classified as the murderer.
The Freedom of Oedipus is the Freedom of Thebes: Why Oedipus Cannot be Free Until the Truth is Exposed In Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus, the theme of human fate versus free will is explored in the age-old tale of the king of Thebes who inadvertently murdered his father and married his mother. The play opens with Oedipus, a strong man and compassionate leader whom the audience can easily admire. By the closing of the play, a journey of self-discovery has lead Oedipus to his fall from kingship and exile from the city he loves, as well as the suicide of his wife and his self-blinding.
When considering “The Tale of Sohrab from the Shahnameh, and Sophocles’ work Oedipus Tyrannus, each contain two main male protagonists who undertake parallel tragic journeys which highlights the perils of absent parenting, which lead to death in each tale. Son and Father Oedipus and King Laius of Oedipus Tyrannus, and Sohrab and Rostam of Shahnameh have fungible qualities that, at times make them mirror images of each, though each of their fates are different, they share the same message, actions have consequences. Beyond the obvious father-son conflicts within these two works, there are deeper similarities that make these four characters interchangeable, each man is willfully blind to the consequence of their own hubris and impulsive actions which leads them each to their downfall or death. First is the act of blind hubris by King Laius, Oedipus, Sohrab, and Rostam. The least obvious character in this comparison is King Laius, already dead in Oedipus the King, but it is the hubris behind actions which led to his death, and is the catalyst for Oedipus’ tragic journey.
The destiny that Oedipus was attempting to avoid, was the destiny that he was also fulfilling. Fate is defined as a destined outcome; nothing can alter that no matter what is tried. Anyway, it was too late for Oedipus to do anything about it, for the many factors that contributed to his death were irreversible and dormant until the very ironically tragic end. Oedipus tried to master fate and it ultimately mastered him.
The Queen, Jacosta, Oedipus’ wife tells him not to believe in the prophet, because they’ve been wrong before, she then tells Oedipus about how she and King Laius had a son who was prophesied to kill Laius and sleep with her but since the child was supposedly dead the prophecy couldn’t be true. Oedipus becomes a bit weary because as a child an old man told him he was adopted and that one day he’d kill his real father and sleep with his mother, Oedipus did also kill a man at a crossroads which sounded like the way Laius died. Oedipus continued questioning the messenger and found out that he was the man everyone spoke of and Jacosta then comes to the realization that Oedipus is her son and kills herself.