In Death of a Salesman and Oedipus Rex, pride plays an integral part to the development of the

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.

Often the past will present answers to questions about the future as well as questions of the now, and in Oedipus Rex, Oedipus’ past plays an integral role in his pursuit of righting the wrongs that are affecting him in the present. In the play, Oedipus must identify who has killed Laius in order to exile them to solve the qualms of his people, and in a dialogue with Jocasta, who happens to be his wife as well as his mother, she reveals to him details of the death of Laius that seem far too familiar for his comfort (Sophocles 27). This revelation of information acts as a catalyst that forces Oedipus to make the connection between his past and what Jocasta is telling him. This realization that he may have been responsible for Laius’ death exposes him to the weight of the pursuit of justice sometimes hold for humans. Through this dialogue, Oedipus comes to fear that he is the culprit of the scandal that is plaguing the situation, thus putting him in the position of a criminal who will face the due punishment for the crime. This internal conflict that Oedipus experiences creates and

This denial causes him to make decisions that only lead to his downfall and further deterioration. He himself leads to his own downfall through his foolish beliefs. To further, Oedipus makes more destructive decisions when he summons the Sheppard to reveal who the murderer of Laius is. Oedipus says, “I must pursue this trail to the end, till I have unraveled the mystery of my birth” (Sophocles, 113), illustrating his mental deterioration considering that this obsession to deny his position as the murderer is consuming his life. Oedipus forces the Sheppard to tell the ill-fated truth and is told: “I hadn’t the heart to destroy it, master” (Sophocles, 118), demonstrating that Oedipus was the cursed baby who was sent to his death, but as fate had planned, Oedipus lived. Not only did he live, he went on to accomplish each revelation the Oracle declared he would. At the end, once the truth has been revealed, Oedipus reaches his breaking point and cannot bear the truth. His mental deterioration from discovering the truth consequently influences him into literally blinding himself, resulting in his downfall. These examples establish how Oedipus’s internal madness played the role of influencing him into believing he could alter the will of the Oracle. He displayed madness when he continuously denied the truth despite the evidence that went against his beliefs. He was blinded by madness into

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

God help you! God keep you from the knowledge of who you are” (57 Sophocles). Jocasta pleads to Oedipus not to pursue any more knowledge because she fears the worst days of her son will soon arrive if he continues. Jocasta’s lunacy after she perceives the truth causes her to complete the truth because she commits suicide. Oedipus is held responsible for Jocasta’s death because his persistence to find out the truth about himself has caused his mother to become so wretched that she kills herself in misery. Oedipus’s ignorance is clearly evident throughout the novel because many people have known his life story, and as a result made gruesome decisions.

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.

Throughout the play, Oedipus goes to Tiresias, Jocasta, Creon, The Messenger, The Oracle, and The Shepherd for information regarding his life. Each character in one way or another refused to give him the answers he seeked to know. As Oedipus got closer to the answer, another character tried to put a stop in his journey. Oedipus continues moving forward even though people requested that he didn’t. “Oh no, listen to me, i beg you, don’t do this…..Listen to you? No more. I must know it all, see the truth at last” (Sophocles 195). His desire for the truth kept him going to continue his search to find himself, leading to his downfall. Although he had the capability to discontinue the plight, he made the independent decision to continue.

People lie to themselves all the time. Their pride is blinding them to the harsh truth. Pride, the sin that is the root of many others, deceives a person without them knowing it because they are prideful. Pride: “Inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, accomplishments, rank or elevation in office, which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others” (Webster). Pride can be a powerful influence in one's life, Oedipus the King resembles this blinding pride. Sophocles shows that in Oedipus the King, pride blinds people to the truth through the veracity of prophecy, irony, and symbolism.

Finding out who his true father is seems important for someone who has just been told he will kill his father. Nor is Oedipus particularly intelligent about the way he conducts himself. Even though he did not know that Laius and Jocasta were his parents, he still does kill a man old enough to be his father and marry a woman old enough to be his mother. One would think that a man with as disturbing a prophesy over his head as Oedipus would be very careful about who he married or killed. Blindly he pursues the truth when others warn him not to; although he has already fulfilled the prophesy, he does not know it, and if he left well enough alone, he could continue to live in blissful ignorance. But instead he stubbornly and foolishly rummages through his past until he discovers the awful truth. In this way, Jocasta 's death and his blindness are his own fault.

When Oedipus originally embarks on his journey for the truth Jocasta advises, “Do not concern yourself about this matter; listen to me and learn that human beings have no part in the craft of prophecy” (line 813-815). However, as Oedipus progresses further into his investigation, Jocasta implores to Oedipus, “I beg you—do not hunt this out—I beg you, if you have any care for your own life” (line 1207-1208). Later in the play, Jocasta begins to suspect the truth about the relations between her and Oedipus. Since Oedipus’ quest would ultimately expose that she did not, in fact, escape the prophecy and that she is his wife and mother, she desperately pleads for him to abandon his search. Her desperation can be attributed to her hubris: iIf the truth were to be revealed, the stigma of incest would wreck havoc upon her life, pride, and reputation.

What I am suffering is enough.” (pg 57, 1.1060-2) Oedipus let his arrogance make his decision and wouldn’t let it go until he figured everything out. The begging of his wife, couldn’t even stop him. He called for the shepard and interrogated him till he discovered the horrifying truth that he is the killer of King Laius and Jocasta is his mother.

Moreover, Sophocles’ insightful word choice is used to further explore the themes of free will and fate. While Jocasta is trying to convince Oedipus to go no further in his quest to learn his lineage, she tells him in her dialog, “You’re doomed --/may you never fathom who you are!”(4-5). Sophocles’ choice of the word “doomed” is again a word implying an inescapable fate. However, since Jocasta knows the prophecy has already been fulfilled the ill-fated future that she foreshadows is Oedipus’ tragic fall. Thus it is of significance that with her next line in the script in response to Oedipus calling to a servant to fetch the shepherd, Jocasta says to Oedipus, “Man of agony--/ that is the only name I have for you,/ that, no other-- ever, ever, ever!”(10-12). This is a turning point for Jocasta, not only has her speech become reduced to short clauses, she has also come to the conclusion that Oedipus has inflicted his physical and mental trauma on himself by his choices. As Jocasta exits the stage to commit suicide after

His pride and self confidence is so excessive that it blinds him to the truth, preventing him from making sound decisions. This factor is what leads him on a path to his own destruction. Oedipus’ hubris is first seen in his ordeal to discover the truth about his past, while enacting a blind view towards the reality of his situation. For example, Tiresias impulsively discloses that Oedipus is the murderer of the late King Laius and that he is: "'the unholy defilement of [the] land'''(Sophocles, 21). This statement enrages Oedipus and wounds his pride because Tiresias said something he didn’t like.

Throughout the play Oedipus is given clues to his past and the fate that is to come, the moment that he gouges his eyes out shows these clues that he has missed. Jocasta says wildly, “In the name of heaven, don’t proceed! For your own life’s sake, stop! And I’ve been tortured long enough.” (59) This shows a moment of caution for Oedipus to not continue to seek the truth. The dramatic irony of this situation illuminates the horrors that are to come because of fate as well as Oedipus’ free will. Oedipus: “Laius was killed—I thought I caught the words—where three highways meet?” Jocasta: “So they said. That is how the story goes.” (41) Oedipus is first hearing the true story of the late king’s murder and seems to be beginning to realize that it was he who did the killing. Even though this could be his illuminating moment, Oedipus is unwilling to accept this fact and must hear

Oedipus possessed an excessive amount of pride, otherwise known to the Greeks as hubris. This was necessary for