Examples Of Hubris In Oedipus

In the scene where Oedipus sends for Tiresias, the blind prophet, Tiresias says to him, “So, you mock my blindness? Let me tell you this. You with your precious eyes, you’re blind to the corruption of your life” (Oedipus Rex Line 468). It is pretty ironic actually, that a blind man can clearly see Oedipus’s corruption when, Oedipus himself is left unaware. In most cases of hubris behavior the individual believes they are so prideful, they actually believe they’re on the same level with God. It is clear that Oedipus has the same perspective of his life, and of his power. Hubris behavior is a tragic flaw, in which the individual is only setting themselves up in order to fall.

Hubris is Oedipus's tragic flaw. He is now overly full of himself because: he rescued the city of Thebes from the Sphinx, people admire him, the citizens worship him as if he were an idol, the citizens think of him as their hero, and the Thebans have such a high esteem for him, that they made him King. One instance that proves he is filled with overbearing pride is when he proclaims, "I, Oedipus, a name that all men know." (8) This statement also brings about irony. It is ironic because his name will be remembered and well-known everywhere--as a polluter, the

Throughout the play Oedipus the King written by Sophocles, there are many themes portrayed, however hubris appears to be a prominent trait. Oedipus, the main character displays such pride that impacts his ability to perceive and understand the past as well as interact with others. When pronounced King of Thebes, he is filled with pride from such honor. The citizens of Thebes glorify him and come to him for help and comfort in their time of need. However, Oedipus doesn't treat them with the same respect, referring to the townspeople as his "poor children" (Sophocles 65) even though they are all adults. Oedipus also believes he is more valuable than everyone else for "his suffering is greater" (Sophocles 67) and he "suffers the most" (Sophocles

Oedipus is the king of Thebes and unknown to him he is married to his mother Jocasta queen of Thebes. He does not realize that many years ago he had killed his real father without knowing it. Oedipus is seen as god like to the people of Thebes because it was him who solved the sphinxes riddles. In the play he is accused by Teiresias of killing the king and Oedipus blames his brother in law and kreon of trying to over throw him. Then his wife Jocasta comes into the scene and tells a story of how the king was killed. It is then that Oedipus learns of his childhood and becomes more suspicious then ever. He then calls a shepherd and a messenger to help answer questions. The people tell him to stop asking about the death because he may not like the answer but Oedipus makes the ultimate sacrifice and continues to

Hubris is defined by the Webster-Miriam dictionary as “Exaggerated pride or confidence” (Miriam-Webster Dictionary) in Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, In Oedipus The King, by Sophocles, the onslaught of pain assailing the protagonist is a result of his tragic flaw. Sophocles often used a characters’ flaw to alter or influence the outcome or future of the hero. Oedipus' hubris influences him to fulfill the oracle and further intensify his punishment from the Gods.

    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 the play, “Oedipus Rex”, many ironies took place, as well as fate playing a huge part in the story. “Oedipus Rex” is a story about a man that tries to overcome adversity but cannot escape his prophecy. His parents took him to a hillside as an infant, sliced his Achilles tendons and left him there. A shepherd soon came to his rescue. “King and Queen of Thebes, gave their infant to a shepherd in with orders that he be left on the side of the mountainside to die” (Johnson 1205). As he grew older and much wiser, he went to see the Oracle of Delphi. The Oracle informed him that his destiny was to kill his father and marry his mother. The main ironies in the play are the killing of Oedipus’s biological father, the odd relationship with his mother, and the inability of Oedipus to avoid his fate.

The theme of hubris can be seen throughout Oedipus The King, and is the reason for the downfall of more than one character. Oedipus’ parents, are the first to commit hubris; instead of letting destiny take its course, they acted as if they were more powerful. They attempted to destroy their child and change their fate. Oedipus’ adoptive parents also commit hubris, as they lie to him about his past. Like his parents, Oedipus’ believes that he can change his own destiny. His hubris leads to him being irrational, and jumping to conclusions without first analyzing things. This is what leads him to eventually kill his biological father. Oedipus might have been able to save his biological mother’s life, had he not been too

Oedipus the King was written by Sophocles and was is titled Oedipus Rex in Latin. It is one of the most well-known Greek tragedies. As is the case with Greek tragedies—or roughly most tragedies that make their way to stage—fate plays a key role in the events in Oedipus Rex. Oedipus discovers there is a plague on his city. The only way to lift the plague is by slaying the former king’s killer. As the play’s acts unfold one discovers about the prophecy concerning Oedipus. The prophecy states that Oedipus is destined to kill his father and marry his mother. But was this just by chance or his predetermined fate.

Oedipus Rex is one of the oldest playwrights in Greek theater history. It was written around 429 BC (the Old English era) by Sophocles. The play is about how Oedipus killed his father, Laius, and married his mother, Jocasta. However the entire time Oedipus was unaware that it was his father he killed and his mother he married. When Oedipus found out in agony he says “How dreadful the knowledge of the truth can be…” (Sophocles). Once Jocasta found out was happened she believed that her only justice would be to hang herself. When Oedipus discovered that Jocasta killed herself overcome with guilty Oedipus believed the right thing to do was stab his eyes out. Shortly before he stabbed his eyes Oedipus said “How terrible-- to see the truth when the truth is only pain to him who sees!” (Sophocles). For greek tragedy plays it was very common for the main character

In the play Oedipus Rex, the author Sophocles depicts Oedipus as a tragic hero by giving him the hamartia of, hubris which leads to his downfall. For example, Oedipus proclaims “Whoever killed King Laius might-who knows?-Decide at any moment to kill me as well.” (Line 142) Oedipus’ hubris is illuminated in this quotation because he believes that the “killer” will come after him since he is as noble as the former king. Further, Oedipus does not even consider the possibility that he may be the killer of King Laius and he believes someone else is responsible.

Humbleness is a trait that Oedipus lacks. Oedipus does not possess an ounce of humility in him and is very unaware of his surroundings, causing him to make scenes. This is displayed in the play when Tiresias says to Oedipus, “You yourself are the pollution of this country” (Sophocles 19). Tiresias is hinting at the fact that Oedipus is the actual killer of the King. Shortly after this has been said, Oedipus bursts into rage, claiming that Tiresias and Creon were conspiring to overthrow him. By making a scene, he is admitting that he cannot be humble and shows his arrogant side. If Oedipus would have continued to rule, he would be a king without any subjects since he would distance himself from those closest to him.

“Oedipus Rex” or “Oedipus the King” is a tragedy play written by the ancient Greek playwright, Sophocles. This play told a story of King of Thebes, who discovered that he has unwittingly killed his own father, Laius, and married his own mother, Iocasta. Over the centuries, “Oedipus Rex” has been considered as the Sophocles’ masterpiece (Mastin). On January 1, 1957, a filmed version of Oedipus Rex directed by Tyrone Guthrie, was released by Motion Picture Distributors, Inc. The film was based on the translation and adaptation done by William Butler Yeats. In this film version, Oedipus’ costume was designed significantly different from other characters. In all scenes before the exodos part, the costume of Oedipus properly framed his characteristics as a powerful,

The interesting thing about this play was that Oedipus Rex managed to be static. The King of Thebes was reluctant to listen to the truth about the prophecy from the Oracle. “Now my curse on the murderer, whoever he is, a lone man unknown in his crime or one among many, let that man drag out his life in agony, step by painful step.” (280-283). “Fear? What has a man to do with fear? Chance rules our lives, and the future is all unknown. Best live as we may, from day to day.”(Oedipus Rex, line 140) This quote proves the Oedipus was not afraid of anything that stood in his path of his goal. “All! All! It has happened! It was all true. O light! Let this be the last time I look on you. You see now who I am-the child who must not be born! I loved where I must not love! I killed where I must not kill!” (Oedipus Rex, line 1336-1402) this scene is a great example of traumatic irony because everything Oedipus disbelieved came true. One might call Oedipus a tragic hero even though he was the high authority, strong, and smart; he made decisions without thinking, was short tempered, and ignorant to the truth. Those factors made him a weaker character and was the reason for his

Oedipus has a tremendous amount of hubris because he feels he is always right, in Thebes there was a plague killing the people. The citizens of the town came to Oedipus’s door to ask for his help and this is when Oedipus comes onto the stage. He then turns to the crowd pridefully and he responded “Here I am myself- you all know me, the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus.” (Sophocles, lines 7-9). Oedipus concludes that everyone should know who he is, that he is famous. He announced “the world knows my fame” , which shows that he feels everyone should know who he is, showing how much hubris he has. Another instance in OTK is when Oedipus and Tiresias are talking about who the corruption of the land is. Tiresias tells Oedipus whom exactly the corruption was. The correction was Oedipus according to Tiresias, which mad Oedipus mad, he foresees that Tiresias is lying. So Oedipus rumored “You, shameless- aren't you applied to start up such a story? You think you can get away with this.”(Sophocles, lines 402-404). Oedipus gathers that he is so innocent, that he could never do anything like that. Out of anger Oedipus tells Tiresias that Tiresias was the corruption of the land. When Oedipus says “aren't you applied to start up such a story’, he’s saying that he also thinks what Tiresias is