Free Will In Oedipus The King

Often one wonders whether their choices are consequential. Are we destined to an irrevocable destination or do we choose the path for our life? Oedipus Rex is a play that deals with this question. As a Greek tragedy, sadness ultimately is its end. However, the conclusion can be seen as foreordained or a result of poor choices. Sophocles probes his audience to think about their own life through the story of an unfortunate man. Oedipus Rex is established upon the foundation of fate versus free will.

Fate vs Free Will as it relates to the character Oedipus OR Adam and Eve. Consider: behavior, outcomes, how the choices were made, or were the choices made for them?

Determinism is based off this notion that all events are pre-determined, without influence by human actions. If this is true, we can imply that people do not have free will and thus are not responsible for their actions. In Oedipus the King we see that the dichotomy of fate and free will is hazed by the hyperbole of events, which can make it difficult, but possible, to determine if humans even have free will. Through Oedipus’s flaws and decisions and Sophocles use of the imagery of a crossroad it is apparent that free will can be exercised in a meaningful way.

Oedipus the King by Sophocles is the story of a man who was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. The story continues in the tradition of classic Greek plays, which were based upon the Greeks’ beliefs at the time. The ancient Greeks believed that their gods decided what would ultimately happen to each and every person. Since those gods destined Oedipus to kill his father and marry his mother, Oedipus’ life was definitely fated. However, the gods only decided where Oedipus’ life would eventually lead; they never planned the route he would take to get there. All the decisions that Oedipus made in order to fulfill his destiny, and the decisions he made after the fact, were of his own free will,

Oedipus was a powerful man that had his life ruined by his excessive pride and selfishness. The same qualities that helped him to rise and become the king of Thebes also caused him to feel a lot of pain. He lost everything that he had gained in a short period of time. Oedipus learned that having power was not all that he thought it was. His life had been a lie and he actually didn’t know anything about the place he was born until he was instructed to save it. Oedipus himself caused his downfall with his selfishness and pride.

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

Oedipus the King, was written by Sophocles between C.A.496-406B.C. In this play, Oedipus is a great example of Sophocles’ belief that fate will control a man’s life no matter how much free will exists.

Humans tend to be blind to how actions cause a certain course. We deny the fact that pain will show all the unknown things about ourselves. Making us block and protect our eyes from the pain each choice leads to. So we do not see what is ahead. Maybe a man’s path needs no preparation. What we do not see can not affect our future. The instinct to know ourselves chooses what decisions to go through with. Free will is the driving force for gaining self- knowledge. Through analyzing Creation of Anguish and Oedipus the King Nemerov and Sophocles suggest that free will helps achieve a certain destiny, man is oblivious to the pain these actions cause. Ultimately self-knowledge forces man’s protection to break evoking fate.

Oedipus’s flawed short-tempered and angry personality trait is one of the many ways he dooms himself to make rash decisions by free will. The best example of Oedipus’s rage can be observed when he kills his father Laius, saying, “‘I strike[ed] him in anger,’” (Fagles 891) revealing his only true motive for the murder: his annoyance with the late king. While most people would be likely to move out of harm’s way and allow the king to pass, Oedipus made a scene and certainly let his emotions get the best of him. The actions of Oedipus resulted in him being driven “‘...out of the land at once, far from sight…”

In Oedipus’s case, he does not have one single flaw that would have caused his downfall. There are moments when he is stubborn or ignorant, but in these moments he truly believes his thoughts or perceptive are the actuality of reality. Havi Hannah Carel argues that Oedipus cannot even be seen as prideful because he is a mortal trying to escape Apollo’s decree, but instead “there is no clear evidence of pride in his behavior; if anything, cowardice rather than pride is his mortal shortcoming, as for instance when he runs from Corinth” (101). Moreover, on close examination, it is unclear if Oedipus has committed an error. Throughout the play, Oedipus is portrayed as an honest leader of Thebes trying to free his city of a plague.

The tragedy of Oedipus Rex exemplifies the corruption of the higher classes and the differing values of the Athenian society. The play represents the enduring themes of the flawed nature of humanity as well as the limits of free will. Oedipus, the new king sought to prevent the disturbing prophecy from occurring, in the processes accidently fulfilling the inevitable; murdering his father and marrying his mother. Through the twisting plot of the play emerged with themes that defined the era, the beliefs and ideas of the Athenians are shown in the ideas of corruption, knowledge, and fate.

Oedipus like some other understood Greek legends was blameworthy of comparing fleeting accomplishment with purity. In this way regardless of the prescience of Apollo, Oedipus inspired himself into the very destiny that was pre-appointed for him, while he was purposely overlooking the negative greetings. He didn't regard the prescience trusting that nobody and nothing could annihilate him, yet he himself brought pulverization upon himself by his merciless means and his egotism. This unnecessary pride and presumption is known as hubris and this was the lamentable blemish of Oedipus that prompted to his defeat. It is a direct result of this that Oedipus gets to be distinctly profound visually impaired and later turns into the reason for his physical

In the Greek play, “Oedipus is the hero for aiding in keeping off Thebes’ plague through solving the riddle, He is also the false hero and the villain,” (Ferdous, 2017). Oedipus unknowingly has cursed the entire town of Thebes. He was cursed to kill his father and marry his mother but never knew who his true parents were. As a result of him escaping from the town he was sent off to, he did exactly what was prophesied, killing his own father and marrying his mother, without knowing who his parents were. His father was the king and his mother the queen of Thebes. Oedipus would then best the Sphinx and he would move to the throne after the vacancy he made when he killed his father. Now king, Oedipus married his mother, unbeknownst to him, and had several children. This cursed the city because the killer of the king, King Laius, was set free and not executed. “He is also determined to discover the truth about himself,” (Zachrisson 2013). Oedipus was told that he murdered the king before him by Tiresias, the blind prophet that could only see the future. The outcome of Oedipus receiving this information, he lost his temper on the blind prophet. He could not believe it. He said that everyone that pointed towards him with the truth were liars. He has so much pride and self-righteousness

Fate and free will shows up in many stories, and plays a vital role in building up a character, or leading to their downfall. Fate and free will is a big theme in Oedipus Rex, and is the building bone to many of the characters lives. In Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles, Oedipus becomes king of Thebes. Before Oedipus came into power, the previous king of Thebes, Laius, was mysteriously murdered. A Sphinx came into power as the city had no king. However, Oedipus is able to save the city by answering the riddle told by the Sphinx, which no one else could figure out. The people of the city praise him for freeing them and Oedipus becomes king, and marries Jocasta. He is a strong and brave leader who is respected by the people of Thebes. However, after

In the story, Oedipus The King, written by Sophocles, two important aspects of Oedipus’ character that lead to his demise are his determination to find the truth of his origin, as well as his anger. These are flaws that negatively affect the tragic outcome at the end of the plot. Oedipus first shows signs of anger when he does not want to hear what Tiresias has to say about the murderer of Laius, even after the ruler begs for the truth. Oedipus yells, "Enough! I won’t listen to this sort of talk from you. Damn you! My curse on you! Get out of here, quickly. Away from this house, back to where you came from!" (25) He goes into a fit of rage when Tiresias explains, in the form of riddles, the evils that the king is living with. The prophet mentions a curse, in which he hints that Oedipus marries his mother and kills his father. Tiresias also reveals that the king is the murderer of Laius. The ruler of Thebes believes that Creon set Tiresias up to convey this accusation, stating: “Was it Creon, or you, that invented this story?” (23) Because of his short-temper, without even considering the validity of Tiresias’ statement, Oedipus becomes irate and is unable to control his emotions, shouting: “(….) I tell you, you will pay in tears for this witch-hunting—you and Creon, the man that organized this conspiracy!” (24) It is understandable that anyone would be upset and shocked after hearing such shocking claims. Yet, as a ruler of Thebes,