Oedipus Rex Research Paper

Ironically, Teiresias is blind, but he has the power to see what others cannot, and his wisdom goes beyond words. Moreover, Creon said to Oedipus “If he says that, you are the one that knows it! / But now it is my turn to question you” (542-543). Nobody but Oedipus has enough evidence to know if indeed Teiresias is telling the truth, but Oedipus refuses to accept it, and perhaps it is because he is afraid of that being his reality. The readers can also imply that Oedipus is driven by power, and he does not want to lose it. Power can be good or bad, in this case for example, it is bad because the ego and the desire to have that absolute power is what has Oedipus blind. In

Blindness can make us unable to view the other side of an argument. When Tiresias, the ancient and wise seer of Thebes tells Oedipus upfront that he is the source of the plague, Oedipus becomes hostile and sends him out immediately. Undeniably this demonstrates how Oedipus is too stubborn to accept his own prophecy. Furthermore, he was the one who willingly decided to call Tiresias over to figure out what is causing the town’s plague. From the moment he was he was summoned, his first words to Oedipus were, “Oh, what anguish to be wise where wisdom is a loss! I thought I knew this well. What made me come?”(Sophocles 18). He knew from this point that it would be like he were talking to a wall if he were to answer Oedipus’s request. Oedipus would not comprehend anything from Tiresias’s reply. Immediately after Tiresias’s explanation, he bellowed, “Nor I have ever summoned you if I knew you’d go foaming at the mouth.”(Sophocles 24). Without a doubt Oedipus is angry that the reply did not suit his train of thought and was accusing him for being the source of the problem.

Oedipus is living in a dream from which he is only just beginning to awake. In this dream, he not only believes that he is in control of his own fate but that he is in control of his own identity. He assumes that he has three virtues: wisdom, reason, and self-control. When he attempts to use these virtues, however, he discovers that he is mistaken on all three counts. His first mistake is believing that he is wise. From this wisdom he hopes to maintain control over the events around him, but true wisdom is actually surrendering to the fact that control is an illusion, a "seeming." His second mistake is believing that he is a rational man. Indeed, Oedipus has great cognitive

In Sophocles play, Odeipus The King, there are many types of universal themes to humans in society. The main character, Oedipus reveals traits that humans have. No one wishes to kill their father or marry their mother. However metaphorically speaking, we can relate to his emotions and behavior. His actions and how he reacts to certain situations, defines him as a worthy person.

Tragedies are defined by their morose plotlines, and Oedipus Rex is no exception. Throughout the course of the play, Oedipus’s world crumbles around him. At the most climactic moment, Oedipus learns that his family tried to kill him as a baby, he murdered his own father, and he has been sleeping with his biological mother, which fulfilled one of the many prophecies in the present in the play. After learning about this, Oedipus proceeds to stab his eyes out when he finds his wife/mother hanging. This plotline follows the traditional guidelines of a tragedy, wherein a powerful and influential protagonist is reduced to ruins via the hands of fate.

The gift of free will is an idea accepted by all people, but some, however, believe in it having strict boundaries. The ancient Greeks worshipped many gods, and along with this came obedience to them and their will. One who disobeyed the will of the gods was doomed to suffer a grave punishment. In the case of Greek tragedy, this was the downfall for many tragic heroes. Sophocles’ Oedipus the King follows the plight of a sovereign and well respected king, but whose good intentions led to his ultimate downfall. Oedipus’s steep demise is the result of decisions that he and other people consciously made in a futile attempt to change their grotesquely intertwined fates.

Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, is a play about how Oedipus lives his fate to kill his father and marry his mother, and both are extremely bad in the Greek society, although he thinks he will get out of it. The Greek notions of high power of the gods and fate, Oedipus' primarily the result of King Laius' and the things he has done also attempts to defy the gods, consequently Sophocles states prophecies from the gods of someone's fate should never be ignored. Prophecies from the Oracle of Delphi are said to King Laius and Queen Jocasta, and to Oedipus. Sophocles said prophecies should not be ignored for a reason and when King Laius went to the Oracle of Delphi and got a prophecy that his child, Oedipus, was going to kill him and marry his

The Greek myth of Oedipus is a story surrounding Oedipus, the king of Thebes in Ancient Egypt and his relationship with his family members, specifically his mother and father. There are many different versions of the myth written by Homer and other well-known writers from the Ancient world. Although Oedipus tried very hard not to, he ended up fulfilling a dangerous prophecy, that brought disaster to his family and the city.

To begin, the poetry of the play sets up the atmosphere and understanding the audience will have throughout the play, which is why the diction of a piece is so important. Sophocles reveals information about characters through diction of other characters, thus creating thought provoking characters and an interesting timeline. Also, since the audience is usually aware of Oedipus’ fate the foreshadowing is almost comical. Throughout the play blindness is mention numerous times, such as, “With other me, but not with thee, for thou In ear, wit, eye, in everything art blind”(Sophocles). This line is exciting and dramatic for the audience because of their knowledge. Sophocles’ draws in the audience with the foreshadowing of

From the very beginning of Oedipus, one can see that the main character of Oedipus is very sure about who he is and where he has come from. One of the most important motifs of the story is the idea of metaphorical blindness, and how Oedipus claims that everyone else around him is blind, and he is the only one that can see. However, what Oedipus soon finds out is that he has no idea who he is, and that all along he has been blind himself. Sophocles makes Oedipus suffer because of the fact that he actually has no idea who he is, and almost avoids figuring it out. It takes a defining moment for it to dawn on Oedipus that he is not who he thought he was. Oedipus’ blindness seems to have been his downfall, but the more prevalent question that

Also, when Creon asks Oedipus the possibility that he is wrong when accusing Tiresias and himself, Oedipus disregards the needs and rights of other people in order to avoid the truth of the suffering that Tiresias has bestowed upon him: “‘What if you’re wholly wrong?’ ‘No matter-I must rule’”. Oedipus became rash and selfish when faced with suffering when he threw away the rights of the citizens for his own self pleasure despite the lack of evidence and reason to do so. Therefore, when Oedipus is faced with suffering, he blames others for his own fate to avoid the truth until it is right in front of him. Therefore, unlike Tiresias and King Laius, Oedipus is more hasty and selfish when faced with suffering.

Originally, Oedipus is blinded to the truth because of his selfishness and ignorance in order to preserve his throne as king. As a matter of fact, Oedipus thought Creon was plotting against his him, he states

4. What attitude toward the gods does Oedipus exhibit after learning of Polybos' death? Again in light of ode 2, what is foreshadowed by Oedipus' statement? What effect upon the audience might the similarity of reactions of Oedipus and Jocasta have?

Sophocles Oedipus the King is a tragic play which discusses the tragic discovery of Oedipus that he has killed his father and married his mother. The story of Oedipus was well-known to the Athenian's. Oedipus is the embodiment of the perfect Athenian. He is self-confident, intelligent, and strong willed. Ironically these are the very traits which bring about his tragic discovery. Oedipus gained the rule of Thebes by answering the riddle of Sphinx. Sophocles used the riddle of the sphinx as a metaphor for the 3 phases of Oedipus' life and to further characterized him as a tragic man. The Sphinx posed the following riddle to all who came to obtain the rule of Thebes: “What is it that walks on 4 feet and 2 feet and 3 feet and has only one voice, when it walks on most feet it is the weakest?” Oedipus correctly answered “Man” and became the king of Thebes. This riddle is a metaphor for the life of Oedipus. As a child man crawls on his hands and knees this is the four feet to which the Sphinx refers. Also, man is at his weakest as a small child. He depends solely on others for his nourishment and well-being. Oedipus was the child of Jocasta and King Laius who was taken to the mountain by a Shepard to be killed so the omen of the god Apollo that Laius' son would kill him and lay with Jocasta would not come true. Oedipus was the weakest of his life at this point.

Oedipus the King by Sophocles’ is intertwined with many powerful themes and messages, establishing what real vision and real sight are. Sophocles’ play also demonstrates that sometimes in life we have to experience great loss in order to rediscover our true selves. In Oedipus’s quest for truth, lack of self-control, ignorance and tragic self-discovery prevail. Physical vision does not necessarily guarantee insight, nor impart truth. Intertwined with dramatic and cosmic irony, all of these elements contribute to the major theme of blindness and sight, depicting wisdom