ipl-logo

Suffering In Sophocles 'Oedipus The King'

1229 Words5 Pages

A Fate of Suffering The truth can be an excuse someone uses to justify their actions. It can be a positive force that drives someone to excel and answer complicated questions that have been avoided in the past. However, it can also be the force that initiates a series of destructive actions in order to find answers. In the play Oedipus, by Sophocles, and the tragedy Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, curiosity instigates several murders and harmful acts due to the curiosity that two prophecies give the main characters. In these tragedies, both of the main characters are challenged when their fate is revealed. Oedipus’ prophecy causes him to suffer a greater tragedy because the prophecy forces him to run away from his home, murder his father, …show more content…

Oedipus discovers his fate when he meets with an oracle after a man brings suspicious thoughts to Oedipus’ mind about his family. Oedipus is greatly disturbed when the oracle unveils his future by saying, “You are fated to couple with your mother, you will bring/ a breed of children into the light no man can bear to see-/ you will kill your father, the one who gave you life!” (Sophocles 205). This prophecy causes Oedipus to panic, so he leaves his home and family in order to protect his mother and father. However, Oedipus does not know that the king and queen of Corinth are his adopted parents, so he unknowingly puts himself and his real family in danger. Similarly, Macbeth receives a prophecy from three witches. After a victorious battle, Macbeth begins his long journey back to his home. When Macbeth encounters the three Weird Sisters, they tell him “All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis/ All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor/ All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (Shakespeare 1.3.51-53). Unlike Oedipus, Macbeth’s initial foretelling is honorable and positive and is told that he will become king. Macbeth accepts the challenge after a messenger makes him Thane of Cawdor, just like the prophecy predicted. Oedipus and Macbeth both gain insight about the surprising fortunes of their future, but Oedipus’ causes him to suffer more than Macbeth because his prophecy creates darkness and fear due to the fact that he is destined to destroy his

Show More
Related

  • How Does Macbeth Control The Future

    553 Words  | 3 Pages

    The witches prophecy that Macbeth will become the Thane of Cawdor and later the King of Scotland. Instead of letting fate take its course, Macbeth becomes obsessed with these prophecies and tries to ensure that they come true. He first becomes the Thane of Cawdor through a combination of chance and manipulation, and later kills King Duncan to ascend to the throne.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Sophocles 'Oedipus Tyrannos'

    287 Words  | 2 Pages

    Furthermore, it was mentioned many times that Oedipus was fated to commit these crimes and actions, indicating that he had little to no control over whether the action or crime occurred. For example, the instances in which he killed his father and married his mother were both predicted by the oracle, which indicates

    Read More

  • The Similarities Between 'Head-On Cahit And Sibel's'

    837 Words  | 4 Pages

    The theme of confinement prevails throughout the play. He did whatever was in his limits, but, was still imprisoned by the fate that had already his destiny. Likewise, in the play “Oedipus the King”, the main message that the play portrayed was that no matter how much one try to run away from the fate, it always follows and even succeeds. The father of Oedipus, when found out that his own son was going to kill him, abandoned him, to prove the fate wrong.

    Read More

  • Thematic Essay On Sophocles 'Oedipus The King'

    200 Words  | 1 Pages

    The prophecy stated that Oedipus would kill his father and marry his mother. When his parents sent him away to be killed he was not. Instead

    Read More

  • Consequences Of Free Will In Macbeth

    626 Words  | 3 Pages

    King Duncan is already Thane of Cawdor, so it makes Macbeth think that he has to do something to make the prediction come true. Later in the story, the witches make more predictions for Macbeth, but these predictions are used to mess with Macbeth’s head. The second apparition that the witches’ summon says, “Be bloody, bold, and resolute; laugh to scorn

    Read More

  • Examples Of Prophecies In Macbeth

    457 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout Act I of Macbeth, Macbeth encounters three witches who give him three prophecies. These prophecies state that Macbeth will become Thane of Glamis, Cawdor, and king. “All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth!

    Read More

  • Oedipus Rex Research Paper

    1108 Words  | 5 Pages

    Then following that an shepherd takes him away on basically the opposite side of which his parents are. Then he hears his prophecy, which is kind of irony seeing that if he never heard the prophecy, it would've never came true. After hearing his prophecy he journeys past the crossroads, where he kills his father ( not the adopted one, but the one who was king) then solves a riddle by the monster Sphinx, to which makes him king, to which he marries the now widowed queen ( his mother) and has multiple children with. Oedipus admits this was his in a long monologue on page 12 (897-968) to his wife which, after hearing the news, kills herself. Now that's just bad luck.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Alliteration In Macbeth

    902 Words  | 4 Pages

    After hearing the witches’ initial prophecies, Macbeth writes a letter to Lady Macbeth, stating: “These weird sisters saluted me, and referred me to the coming on of time with 'Hail, king that shalt be!' This have I thought good to deliver thee, my dearest partner of greatness, that thou might’st not lose the dues of rejoicing, by being ignorant of what greatness is promised thee” (1.5.1). Macbeth is ecstatic when he “finds out” he will become King and believes that there is great joy in store for

    Read More

  • Oedipus Hero's Journey Analysis

    614 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the realization of his demise, Oedipus tries to protect himself from punishment and shame by gouging out his own eyes and exiling himself out to die in the place destiny prevented him from dying originally. After many years of luxurious living, Oedipus’s predestined fate tears his life apart and returns him to the place he should have died as an infant, the mountain. Through the use of, departure, initiation, and return, Sophocles displays the journey of Oedipus. Not only is Oedipus the King evidence of the use of the hero’s journey throughout many famous plays, movies, and books across all cultures and time periods, but it also seen as a perfect tragedy, in which the audience experiences both pity and fear for the main

    Read More

  • The Role Of Fate In Macbeth

    781 Words  | 4 Pages

    Macbeth fate started of when he met the witches at the battle field after winning the battle against Macdonwald. The three witches predicted that he will become the Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth believes their prediction “ If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me Wthout my stir”

    Read More

  • What Role Does Fate Play In Macbeth's Destiny

    414 Words  | 2 Pages

    He tells his nobleman to announce that Macbeth will now become the new thane of Cawdor! The witches exclaim “All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor. ”(cite) They also announce he, “Shalt be king hereafter!”

    Read More

  • Effects Of Macbeth

    1731 Words  | 7 Pages

    Macbeth is a catastrophe by William Shakespeare thought to have been initially performed in 1606. It performs the harming physical and mental impacts of political aspiration on the individuals who look for force for its own particular purpose. A courageous Scottish general named Macbeth gets a prescience from a trio of witches that one day he will get to be King of Scotland. Devoured by desire and impelled to activity by his better half, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish position of authority for himself. He is then wracked with blame and distrustfulness.

    Read More

  • Success In Sophocles 'Oedipus The King'

    776 Words  | 4 Pages

    Whether success follows the character’s dreams becomes irrelevant, considering the campaign they endured gives them opportunities that otherwise could have not materialized, emphasizing that one should follow their aspirations regardless of the consequences. Oedipus from Oedipus The King is a prince who was abandoned by his royal parents due to the prophecy which preceded him, of him killing his father and marrying his mother. Oedipus eventually became king and thus kills his father and marries his mother in the process, a fulfillment of the prophecy. A synopsis of his life is given near the end of the play, “Oedipus,- Him who knew the famous riddles and was a man most masterful; not a citizen who did not look with envy on his lot- see him

    Read More

  • Sight Vs. Blindness In Sophocles Oedipus The King

    1063 Words  | 5 Pages

    This personal tragedy for Oedipus was discovering the truth and becoming blind because of it. It completed the prophecy that Oedipus had received from Tiresias, the blind prophet. Tiresias told Oedipus that he had come into Thebes with his sight but would leave Thebes without it. The physical blindness that Oedipus had also left him with wrongs of his life, with nothing to look at Oedipus was forced to think about his life, wrongdoings, and what had happened. Essentially he was forced to deal with it.

    Read More

  • Oedipus The King Research Paper

    1224 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the earlier years Oedipus visits Delphi and learns that he was fated to kill his father and marry his mother. He then planned to never return to Corinth. In the play "Oedipus the King", the author presents us with several

    Read More

More about Suffering In Sophocles 'Oedipus The King'

Open Document