A Few Good Men

The author of Oedipus, Sophocles, introduces a worthy rival to the main character Oedipus.Tiresias, who considers himself to be an equal to the Great King. Tiresias admits, “You are a king. But where the argument’s concerned // I am your man, as much as a king as you.// I am not your servant, but Apollo’s.”(Sophocles) While simultaneously trying to defend his honour and bring justice to Thebes, Oedipus argues about the integrity of Creon’s source. Tiresias retorts Oedipus’ impulsive accusations, in a studious, and King like manner.Tiresias’ diligent retaliation is dramatically significant because it develops Oedipus’ character; Oedipus is humanized and revered less as a God because of his flaws. The power dynamic shift causes the audience to become more judgemental of Oedipus since someone is holding him accountable for his behaviour. Additionally, the passage adds to the mystery of the plot and creates suspense, through Sophocles’ use of paradox, and imagery which cause the mood to change and creates a compelling story. Both of these elements cause the audience to pay attention to the drastic changes in character, and mood, to highlight the major theme of pride, power, and fate. Ultimately, the passage is intended to show the ignorance of Oedipus, and the awareness of Tiresias, who are symbols for the pervasiveness of fate.

Leaders have unique character traits that ultimately determine how he or she act when faced with a difficult situation. Oedipus and Creon are noble leaders in the city of Thebes. Oedipus is the king, and Creon is the queen’s brother. Both of these men care dearly about the city of Thebes. Despite the similarities between Oedipus and Creon, they differ greatly in a number of important ways.

     At first glance, Oedipus and Creon are two very different people. But as time progresses their personalities and even their fates grow more and more similar. In Sophocles’s play “Oedipus the King”, Oedipus and Creon are two completely opposite people. Oedipus is brash and thoughtless, whilst Creon is wise and prudent. In “Oedipus the King”, Oedipus effectively portrays the idea of the classic “flawed hero”. He becomes arrogant and brash. He accuses Creon and Tiresias of treachery. Even worse however, Oedipus goes against the gods. This causes them to punish him severely. Creon is the exact antithesis of Oedipus. He thinks before he acts. Creon is wise and loyal. In Sophocles’ other

Throughout the tragedy by Sophocles, the king Oedipus relies on his personal glory to attain long lasting fame and balks when confronted with anything that might shatter this perception that he is the best. While both characters have done marvelous deeds in the past, their inherent arrogance, which is part of the tragic flaw of each of the characters,

As Susan B. Anthony once said, “I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.” Sophocles presents Creon as a leader who thinks he knows what the gods want, but is making decisions for the good of himself. He disguises himself as a strong and trusting leader, but later reveals his real self to the citizens of Thebes. In “Antigone,” Sophocles uses the conflict between leaders and their people to expose the danger of trusting a strong leader.

Sophocles gives the readers many different views of the play Oedipus the King in which we can take and analysis accordingly to things we are most interested in. Throughout the play Oedipus personally changes. He starts off as a being a smart leader, calm, and determined, but at the end of the play it reveals how he is angry, irrational and is blind to certain aspects, which becomes his downfall.

    The first two plays of the Oedipus trilogy, Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus, were written by Sophocles around 430 BC. The first story is about Oedipus, the king of Thebes and the prophecy that leads to his downfall. The second is about the events leading up to Oedipus’s death. Oedipus’s brother-in-law, Creon is a major supporting character in these retelling of the Oedipus legend. In these plays, Creon undergoes a transformation from a loyal, diplomatic, and logical patron of Oedipus to a manipulative, aggressive, and ambitious antagonist.

In Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, the character of Oedipus is arguably irrational, which leads to his hot headed temper revealing itself, resulting him in being naive to his faults. This adds up to show that he is a poor leader who refuses to see the truth.

In the two plays written by Sophocles (Oedipus the King and Antigone),Creon displays hypocritical mannerisms in Antigone, the sequel of Oedipus Rex. In the First play of the Oedipus Cycle, Oedipus the King Creon acts humane wishing peace from the Gods and eluding controversy with their punishment of the plagues. He listens more than

Sophocles’ Oedipus the King and Antigone, depict what it is like to live in a society where the citizens have no freedom of choice because of the rule of a powerful and oppressive king. Oedipus and Creon have an overwhelming sense of their own, individual authority and try to convince the citizens that their decisions for the city are right even if it does not follow the laws of the gods. Throughout both plays, they encounter many troubles which they must fix but choose to do so in an unjust and hubristic way. A good king does what is right for the citizens in order to maintain a stable, just, and well-ordered society. Both Oedipus and Creon are tyrants because they came to power as a result of their own qualities rather than automatically

Kempton McCarty Per 6 TITLE NEEDED Oedipus Rex and Antigone by Sophocles tell the stories of two kings and how their political mistakes lead to their respective downfalls. While Oedipus is a fair and compassionate king who wants the best for his people, his tragic downfall is ultimately caused by his short temper, blindness to the truth, and defiance of fate, despite the fact that he receives warnings of these potential flaws from his citizens. Similarly, King Creon faces a tragic downfall in Antigone because of his refusal to listen to his citizens; however, Creon’s downfall is mostly attributed to his harsh tendencies and brutal ruling. In both Oedipus Rex and Antigone, Sophocles depicts the ideal government as a just and fair system, and an ideal

In the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, Oedipus can be seen as the “leader” of his society. As can be compared to today’s society being a leader doesn’t make you superior or a good person. As a matter of fact a leader usually establishes more negative things than positive for their society. Being a leader can lead to fueds due to someone having too much power. Additionally, leaders can develop to show too much hubris, which is known to be a terrible characteristic. Not only that but being the head of a society also leads to major impacts between small groups such as family. This can occur by simply trying to do something for the better. The play shows numerous negative traits of a leader that can be compared to today’s society.

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.

The once arrogant, prideful Oedipus is now humble and helpless. In the previous part of the trilogy Oedipus was in a constant search for himself and later blamed himself for his fate. In contrast in this part of the trilogy Oedipus no longer blames himself for his fate, instead he blames the god for his tragic life. Theseus is a kind, proud, and loyal he is very likeable and is seen as a hero in the play. In contrast Creon is seen as cruel, disloyal, and tyrannical, he is viewed as a villain.

Through the character of Oedipus, Sophocles shows the consequences of defying the divine order. Oedipus served Thebes as a great ruler, loved by his subjects; but, like most in the human race, he slipped through the cracks of perfection. Oedipus had many faults, but it was primarily the tragic flaw of hubris, arrogance from excessive pride, which doomed his existence, regardless of the character attributes that made him such a beloved king. He was doomed for downfall since his very beginning, because "to flee your fate is to rush to find it" (Oedipus Rex).