Oedipus As A Tragic Hero

Sophocles presented the world with Oedipus around 2500 years ago. Never-the-less, the story remains among the most riveting of all time. Unfortunately, today when we hear the mention of the name Oedipus we place negative connotations around it. Oedipus, after all, had an unnatural sexual relationship with his own mother! In actuality, however, this relationship emerged entirely innocently. Oedipus was not some misguided sexual pervert of an earlier time. He was, in fact, a man that was driven by a very high internal moral standard. It was that internal moral standard that ultimately entwined him in a sequence of events

In the play Oedipus the King we identify the classic tragic hero. The character Oedipus Rex plays the role of the tragic hero perfectly. He shows the three main characteristics being talented and of noble birth, possessing a tragic flaw that causes the downfall and pain of everyone, and the recognition of responsibility.

Abraham Lincoln once pronounced, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” In Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus tries to escape his fate by fleeing from his adopted parents in Corinth. Instead, he becomes responsible for triggering the destruction that leads to his eventual demise. A tragic hero is of noble birth characterized by a personality flaw and fated by the gods for doom (Santora). Oedipus is classified as a tragic hero by his tragic and heroic qualities, his responsibility for his fate, and his enlightenment.

"A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall." -Aristotle No one wants to be a tragic hero. A great or virtuous character, but sadly they are destined for downfall because of their own judgement. Sophocles’ Oedipus exemplifies Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero.

“The greatest griefs are those we cause ourselves”, quote by Sophocles. Sophocles is a ancient Greek writer who created multiple plays including the tragic and heartbreaking play called Oedipus the King. Oedipus the King is a tragedy about a young king, Oedipus, who tries to help his land from disease by finding the murderer of the former king. But by solving this mystery Oedipus unravels a tragic truth about his family and fate. Over past years, they’ve been controversy of whether Oedipus is known as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is someone who makes a mistake or error that eventually leads to someone's downfall. Although there are many ways supporting Oedipus as not a tragic hero, there are multiple characteristics that define Oedipus as a

The purpose of a tragedy is to bring catharsis within the audience and purge the audience with pity and fear for the tragic hero. Key characteristics that comprise a tragic hero in relation to Aristotle’s idea of one include a destiny filled with great potential but ending in inevitable failure, a fatal flaw called hamartia, and an honorable death. These types of heroes are not completely bad nor are completely good; however, they are the ones responsible for their own fate. This is due to their disregard for divine warnings and lack of adherence to the laws of the land. In Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus, Sophocles displays how Oedipus is an example of a tragic hero, as defined by Aristotle, by exposing his internal attributes that contributed to his inevitable fate, leading to his tragic ending, through the use of various literary devices.

A “Tragic Hero” as defined by Aristotle, is a literary character who makes a judgmental error that in the end leads to their own destruction. The character endures immense amounts of hardships, and obstacles; is destined to fail, has basic human flaws, has judgment issues, thrives to do the right thing, but forces their own demise, and in the end, shall die honorably. Throughout the tragedy of Oedipus, composed by Sophocles, the author manipulates Oedipus to correlate with Aristotle’s definition by using a person who thrives to do the right thing, but an uneventful fate befalls them. Oedipus is a tragic hero, a character who is neither bad nor good who is always supported despite his flaws until the end of his journey, which is typically a welcomed death.

The character Oedipus in oedipus the king is a tragic here by definition, according to Aristotle. There are five specific features a character must possess to be a tragic hero in Greek Theatre. The first is the character must have have a noble birth, ( add info )

Oedipus Rex, or Oedipus the King is Sophocles’s first play of “The Theban Cycle.” It tells the story of a king that tries to escape his fate, but by doing so he only brings about his downfall. Oedipus is a classic example of the Aristotelian definition of a tragic hero. Aristotle defines a tragic hero as a basically good and noble person who causes his own downfall due to a flaw in his character.

King Oedipus, was a flawed leader with many issues due to his past which plagued his city and his life. To save his people and free himself, he needed to go back to the very beginning to learn the cause of this curse to correct the future. On this journey, new information was revealed to Oedipus about his life which he would try to repress each time he learned something new until he couldn’t hide it any longer by blinding himself; therefore, consumed by his knowledge. Hence, he confronted his destiny which predicted that he would kill his father Laius and marry his mother Jocasta (Sophocles, p. 34). A tragic hero would describe his upbringing. With unfortunate circumstances birthing his future, he fought the gruesome fight to the ignorant

In Sophocles' captivating ancient Greek tragedy play widely known as Oedipus Rex, which was performed at the Dionysiac Festival that was in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry a.k.a partying. Sequentially, Oedipus Rex is the first in a trilogy, that encompasses of Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone. During Sophocles lifetime, the plays were performed by three actors who played all of the characters. In fact, Sophocles before his plays were staged , ancient Greek plays only used two actors. The protagonist of Oedipus Rex is Oedipus, and he is condemned for destruction. This play is set in ancient Greece, specifically the city of Thebes and Oedipus's palace. Oedipus is indeed a tragic hero, who's life seems to be filled

What is a hero? In traditional play write the hero is someone with pure qualities sent by either an unforeseen force, destiny, or a quest to save someone or a country. The word “hero” can be a loose term today, but the result is the same. The hero completes his mission, brings happiness to all, and continues living. In some tales, the hero does not make it, but still becomes a beacon of hope or falls valiantly causing an up roar by society to take matters into their own hands. The result? Happiness, a completed objective, what was wrong is now right by societal standards. This “hero” would be the ideal character, someone fated to bring happiness to a world without one. However, on the other hand, a tragic hero is not. A tragic hero is fated by unwritten law and by divine intervention of achieving said happiness. Instead the tragic hero incites pity and fear to the utmost degree. Turning a blind eye to the truth, and the limits of free will, are all tested and proved fruitless in the end by the power of the unwritten law by the gods. Thus, making Oedipus the ideal tragic hero.

A Greek tragic hero is a character who is destined for downfall or destruction. In King Oedipus, Oedipus is a Greek tragic hero. Three of the characteristics that he fits into are being a middling character, having a moment of recognition, and having a reversal of fortune. These characteristics prove that Oedipus is a Greek tragic hero.

In the Greek tragedy, Oedipus the King, Oedipus struggles to accept the truth and he lets his temper over power him. Throughout the tragedy, he displays all the necessary elements to be categorized as a tragic hero as defined by Aristotle. His refusal to accept the truth led to Oedipus’ downfall. A tragic hero, as defined by Aristotle, “is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction.” Based off this definition, Sophocles’ Oedipus clearly exemplifies Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero.

The American author F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, “show me a hero and I will give you a tragedy.” In the Athenian tragedy, Oedipus The King, written by the dramatist Sophocles Oedipus, the king of Thebes, sends his brother-in-law, Creon, to the house of Apollo to ask the oracle how to end the plague. Oedipus makes it his mission to find out the truth behind the murder of their former king Laius. However, upon doing so he is challenged by fate and unfortunately meets his downfall. Oedipus is exemplified as a tragic hero because although he follows through with his duties as king his inner flaws such as his ignorance and pride inevitably lead to his demise.