Causes Of Oedipus

Oedipus’ pride and a heightened sense of confidence is very conspicuous throughout the play Oedipus Rex. From the beginning of the play, Oedipus accepts the idea that he can avoid the prophecy given to him by the gods. Oedipus is also seen interrogating Creon and attempting to banish him with Tiresias towards the end of the play because they are saying facts corresponding to the prophecy. He tries to become like a god himself by thinking he could control his own fate. Although Oedipus’ pride can be justified by his accomplishments of being king; the tragedy of Oedipus is the pure result of his overwhelming pride because he killed his father, mocked Tiresias, and blinded himself.

Humanity is by no means perfect, each person has a personal issue that seems to follow them wherever they go. For Oedipus it seems to be his impulsive short temper, which brings up the next evidence to claim that Oedipus is a tragic hero. Oedipus has a major human flaw of being impulsive on top of his short-temper. Almost every argument that occurs is escalated by Oedipus due to him coming to a quick conclusion that does not have all the facts, and when he is trying to get information out of the herdsman by giving him threats of torture off the bat without any lesser punishment beforehand. Other arguments that occurred was between Oedipus and Jocasta and Creon, where he is given some discredit and disapproval

Oedipus is very prideful, because of his role as King. He’s accustomed to his power and is spoken to with respect. Having someone assassinate his

Due to his arrogance and narcissism, Oedipus fails to take heed of Tiresias warning of whom Creon sent him and decided that the accusations that were being made against him are attempts to steal his throne. Likewise, Oedipus tells Tiresias when he was reluctant to tell Oedipus is Laius’ killer, “What then, thou knowest, and yet willst not speak!/Wouldst thou betray us and destroy the

In his excess of anger he fails to see what is blatantly placed in front of him and he ceases to use his brain or any rationale he commits acts in haste and has little to know patience for any reasoning. He strikes the man at the carriage for little or no reason which he does not know yet is his father; he has a murderous temperament. He dismisses Teiresias without ever giving him a chance to openly say what he wants too. He does not let Teiresias finish what hes saying because he gets too angry too fast with out even listening to everything with an open mind he jumps to conclusions and does not use or listen to any reasoning. When Teiresias calls him the cursed polluter of the land Oedipus immediately becomes enraged and tries to silence him at once with threats You are say it! Have you no shame at all? And do you expect to escape the consequence? (Sophocles, 35). Instead, if he had questioned Teiresias about what he meant by that statement or asked him for evidence. By having control over his anger Oedipus could have been knowledgeable to the truth sooner.

621 ln. 149-150) after Creon tells him why they stopped searching for Laius’s killer. Dramatic irony is present when Oedipus tries to skirt the horrible prophecy of him killing his father and coupling with his mother, because in fleeing Corinth to avoid murdering Polybus, he is actually taking the correct path to fulfill the prophecy. Again his overconfidence and pride contributes to his impending doom; in believing that he has outwitted the gods he challenges his fate. Although he has enough reverence to the deities not to assume himself to be an equal with the gods, but greater than them it is clear through the word usage that Oedipus perceives himself to be of a greater importance than the lesser mortals that surround him “One of you summon the city here before us, tell them I’ll do everything. God help us, we will see our triumph-or our fall” (p. 621 ln. 163-165). He is conceited to think that he can shape his own destiny and the gods punish him for this arrogance.

Talk about road rage! Oedipus is pushed out the way by a wagon, and he retaliates by killing almost everyone in the wagon, including his father! Sure, Oedipus was destined to kill his father anyway, but the manner in which he did so gives an insight into his demeanor. Oedipus could have killed his father in any number of ways, but to do so in a fit of rage set off by so seemingly trivial of an event is just not rational. Murder may not have been as big of a deal at that time, but if Oedipus had tried that in today’s world, he would have either been executed or have been spending the rest of his life in a mental institution. This incident goes to show that Oedipus is a very rash and impulsive man, and this carries over into his administration and decision-making.

Oedipus was also a very selfish man. There are many places in the book that show Oedipus really only cares about himself. King Lauis’ murder was just one. He did all of the investigating to find out who his parents were for himself. Not for Jocasta who could possibly be his mother. He only cared if something bad was happening to him. He made everyone who might have known anything about him drop everything they were doing and come to him to tell him their story. He thought he didn’t need the gods so he insulted them by talking about how they didn’t help with the riddle and he did it all by himself. He was extremely self centered. Oedipus also cared more about himself than he did his wife or children. He didn’t think about anyone but himself when he found out he was married to his mother. He stabbed his own eyes out not even thinking about his children or how they would survive. He just knew that he couldn’t handle what he had seen so he was going to take the coward’s way out. Oedipus also cared too much about himself to kill himself. Instead he wanted to be paraded around Thebes blind so the citizens would pity him and talk about him. He gave his children to Creon without a second thought and didn’t even think about how that might be a burden on him.

He is consumed in hubris as he disbelieved the oracles, and sealed his fate. Although he was cursed at birth for his father's misdeeds, his godlessness paired with vain pride leads him deeper into tragedy. Prophecy foretold that Oedipus would kill his father, and marry his mother. Jocasta, without belief in the gods, prays to them. She only prays to them at her own convenience. She prays to the altar of Apollo requesting that Oedipus doesn't learn the truth of the situation. Jocasta thinks that her prayer has come true. A messenger walks in, and reveals that Oedipus' dad has died. She doesn't want Oedipus to find out who his true parents are. Polybus was believed to be Oedipus' father. He was relieved to hear of Polybus' dying a natural death as a sign that the oracles are false. “PAGE 26/40 OEDIPUS...the oracles are dead-- Dust, ashes, nothing, dead as Polybus. JOCASTA “Tell me Oedipus, didn't I tell you this would happen a long time ago?” But Jocasta was just praying to those same 'powerless' gods. Despite the brief relief of his dead father, he refused to visit his mother. He feared the other half of the prophecy, for he was scared of scorn from the Gods. He constantly questions if it can be true, and wavers on the line of deception and truth. Oedipus lives in deception. He lives in constant sorrow and unease, for he is sacrilegious and hypocritical. “PAGE 26/40 OEDIPUS If only my mother

           He becomes convinced that Tiresias and Creon are plotting to overthrow him, though he has no evidence to prove it and thus insults the seer which was a great crime at that time because he let himself be ruled by his anger. When Teiresias announces to Oedipus that

In short, Oedipus is a poor leader. He is irrational which leads to him being hot headed, and ultimately leads to him being naive and blind to the truth. The irrationality of this character shows readers that negative actions will lead to someone’s

The final discussed characteristic that Oedipus possesses is that his punishment was not wholly deserved. There are three main punishments that Oedipus has to go through because of his crime. Those punishments are his exile from Thebes, the suicide of Jocasta, and the loss of his sight. However, the punishment that pushes everything over the edge is when Oedipus strikes out his own eyes. When he appears to the Chorus he comes out and speaks of how horrid he feels for everything in saying, “The blackest things/a man can do, I have done them all!” (1541-1542). During this very scene the Chorus speaks, not to Oedipus directly, but to each other and the literally shrink away from him. It is obvious that they don’t believe he deserves this through their words, “O the terror--/the suffering, for all the world to see/the worst terror that ever met my eyes,/what madness swept over you?” (1432-1435). The Chorus continues to

When Oedipus hears that he is the killer, his pride is wounded for he cannot accept the truth. His judgment is so blurred that he also begins to view Creon as a traitor for using Tiresias. Creon’s words sum up Oedipus’s rage when he said, “Oedipus, your husband, he’s bent on a choice of punishments for me, banishment from the fatherland or death” (715-717). Jocasta is even surprised with Oedipus’s unusual character, as she said, “For the love of God, Oedipus, tell me too, what is it? Why this rage? You’re so unbending” (767-769). The reason why Oedipus pride is so wounded can be because his negative experiences with the Gods. As a baby, he was condemned to death, yet he survived and learned the horrible truth of his prophecy. In attempt to escape that life, he lost belief in the word of the gods because he refused that the prophecies should come true. This struggle between God and Oedipus only tears his moral beliefs as he has to be stone cold to survive his tribulations. This meant giving no consideration against people who presently posed a great threat to him.

However, in spite of all of his positive qualities, he is a man that is prone to arrogance and impulsive behaviors. At the opening of the play, when he addresses the city about the plague, he tells them not to worry for “Here I am myself...the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus” (7-8), implying that he can solve any problem simply because of who he is. Oedipus also shows his arrogance by comparing himself to the gods. After hearing the chorus’ cries to the gods for help he tells the city of Thebes to “Let [him] grant [their] prayers...listen to [him]”(245-246). Oedipus displays his quick temper after the prophet Tireseas declines to tell him who Laius's murderer is; he hastily becomes infuriated at the prophet, telling him he is "scum of the earth . . . [a man who] would enrage a heart of stone" (381).

One moment, Oedipus is brimming with hope; the next, he’s sure that he is the killer of his father, King Laius. Every time Oedipus thinks that it can’t possibly be him, evidence proves otherwise. His wife, Jocasta, attempts to prove his innocence but “lets out part of the dire secret by her allusion to the ‘triple crossroads’” (Haigh). By attempting to assist Oedipus, she