Oedipus as leader is rather outstanding. Right as we are introduced to Oedipus, we are presented with his sense of justice and caring for his people. He is also very respecting towards all the towns people. For instance, when Creon returns from his encounter with the Oracle, he tries to be discreet, asking Oedipus if he wants to receive the news privately. Oedipus judiciously responds with the following: “Speak before all! My heavy load of care, more for their sake then for my own I bear” (Sophocles 4). In other words Oedipus is saying that he doesn’t want to hear the news privately, rather publicly because he rules for his people not himself. Another great characteristic of that Oedipus possesses are his tactful and quick responses to problems.
Odysseus is a fantastic leader, in battle and out. His qualities make him almost god worthy, and he is wondrous at problem solving with these qualities. Odysseus proves himself a significant leader because of his intelligence, loyalty to his men and home, and strength, both emotional and physical. Odysseus is a very intelligent man without a doubt. He knows how to command a military, and surpass challenges any normal man would die in.
Oedipus wishes for the best in for his subjects and for them to not be in misery, as later the reader learns from Oedipus, “I sent Creon/… to learn/ what I might do or say to save our city.” (lines 81-84) This displays Oedipus as a decent man and king worthy of ruling Thebes because he is compassionate and accountable for what happens in his kingdom. Next, the reader learns of Oedipus’s courage when the priest that Oedipus is talking to states, “You freed us from the Sphinx, you came to Thebes/ and cut us loose from the bloody tribute we had paid/ that harsh, brutal singer.” (lines 44-46)
The Odyssey, by Homer, is about Odysseus, the king of Ithaca. Odysseus fights in the Trojan War and wins. He travels towards Ithaca but does not reach it because he is not in favor of Poseidon, god of the sea, who prevents his return. For many years, Odysseus wanders the seas and has many adventures. Meanwhile, suitors attempt to marry Penelope, Odysseus’ wife, but she remains faithful to her husband. The gods pity Odysseus and assist in his safe return to Ithaca. Odysseus’ personal qualities of bravery, self-discipline, and intelligence also help him to survive. Though Odysseus has the help of the gods, his personal qualities contribute to his survival in the seas and the return to his family in Ithaca.
Oedipus displays to be a good leader one must understand what his people need and choose decisions that will benefit Thebes and the people whom live in it. By making decisions he was able to gain the support of the people and pursues to end the plague ravaging the city. Oedipus constantly seeked answers improve the city, he found out the reason Thebes was cursed with a plague was due to that they were sheltering the murderer of Laius, he then responded with a statement to all his people,“If any man knows by whose hand Laius, son Labdacus, met his death, I direct that man to tell me everything. No matter what he fears for having so long withheld it.” (Sophocles 211) Oedipus begs that if anyone knows who anything even the shortest of statements would suffice his current concern of the situation. What Oedipus doesn’t realize is how dramatically ironic his statement was, he was the one whose hands met Laius’s death, only one man knows the truth. Although, even if any man were aware of what had happened, Oedipus would not punish the man, he would probably as well reward the man with wealth and fame. A good leader would not punish or
At the beginning Oedipus is characterized as a great leader. For example, he solves the riddle of the Sphinx, which is the winged female monster that terrorized the city (Sophocles 487). Here we can see how Oedipus is clever and smart. In result the people of Thebes respect him for his cleverness and reward him as King. People even look at him as being almighty when it comes to handling problems such as, when there is a plague that is killing people, animals and made women give birth to nothing. They knew he would help as long as he was aware of the situation. “We’ve come because you are the best man at handling trouble or confronting the gods” (Sophocles 487). This statement shows how people depend on him and look at him as a great leader. It also shows how he is a man of action and looks after his people as a king should. With that being said, he is told to find the killer of Laios and either banish them or kill them to stop the plague. Likewise, he did what he is commanded to do, he obeys the god and search for the killer that killed the previous king. Furthermore, he follows instruction and is concerned for himself and the people of Thebes. “My heart grieves for you, for myself, and for our city” (Sophocles 487).
Oedipus Rex, an ancient Greek tragedy authored by the playwright Sophocles, includes many types of psychological phenomena. Most prominently, the myth is the source of the well-known term Oedipal complex, coined by psychologist Sigmund Freud in the late 1800s. In psychology, “complex” refers to a developmental stage. In this case the stage involves the desire of males, usually ages three to five, to sexually or romantically posses their mother, and the consequential resentment of their fathers. In the play, a prince named Oedipus tries to escape a prophecy that says he will kill his father and marry his mother, and coincidentally saves the Thebes from a monster known as the Sphinx. Having unknowingly killed his true father Laius during his
There are many facets of personality of a minor character that authors may utilize to supply contrast to the main character of their work. Some of these contrasts are extremely noticeable and some are not. One such facet is with the use of a neutral character; to not only showcase the main character’s flaws, but so not to detract from the moral of the story. Creon, from the play “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles is used for both of these reasons. Sophocles wished to show that one cannot escape fate, yet did not want to cloud this issue with a possible coupe against his main character Oedipus. He also showed how, at times one character can act completely irrational, while one remains calm in the face of serious accusations.
Through history, everyone is trying to rise to the top. However, the ones at the top are not always the most suitable. This becomes evident in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, where Oedipus becomes the ruler of Thebes after defeating the Sphinx. Throughout the story, Oedipus fails to meet the characteristics of a good leader, including: humbleness, selflessness and patience.
In the citizen’s eyes, Oedipus is seen as a good leader. He demonstrates great leadership through several events. When the Oedipus learned of the plague, he “sent away [his] brother-in-law, son of Menoeceus, Kreon, to Pythian Apollo’s shrine” to hear from Apollo on “what [he] might do or say to save our city.” He notified the people that he understands their pain and suffering for the “soul inside [him]
In the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, Oedipus can be seen as the “leader” of his society. As can be compared to today’s society being a leader doesn’t make you superior or a good person. As a matter of fact a leader usually establishes more negative things than positive for their society. Being a leader can lead to fueds due to someone having too much power. Additionally, leaders can develop to show too much hubris, which is known to be a terrible characteristic. Not only that but being the head of a society also leads to major impacts between small groups such as family. This can occur by simply trying to do something for the better. The play shows numerous negative traits of a leader that can be compared to today’s society.
Oedipus first demonstrated his ability to be a good leader in his helping the city escape the Sphinx. He continued his leadership in the same manner, doing good things for the city and winning esteem in the eyes of the citizens. The premise for the book is that he was trying to rid the city of a second plague. He showed no hesitation to give it his best effort, saying "Indeed I'm willing to give all that you may need; I would be very hard should I not pity suppliants like these" (Sophocles page #). Displaying this willingness to help his citizens and earning such lofty acclaim as being called "great" or "greatest," Oedipus could not have been a poor ruler or a tyrant. If Oedipus had ruled his subjects poorly then they would not have addressed him as "great," so he should be viewed as a good leader, one who cared for his charges, one who ruled justly. In this light, Aristotle would have judged Oedipus to be a good man, or more precisely, a good ruler because Oedipus' labor was "for the benefit of others," one of Aristotle's characteristics of a good ruler.
Oedipus’ strength most contributes to the fulfillment of his fate. As he tried to run away from destiny, he ran into it. On his way towards Thebes he stumbles upon King Laius and his attendant. Both were trying to get by, however no one wanted to move. After the attendant decides to kill one of Oedipus’s horses, Oedipus kills both of them. If Oedipus did not have strength he would have not been able to kill his own father, King Laius. However, Oedipus was not aware King Laius is his real father. As a result, Oedipus married the widowed queen, Jocasta, his mother. Oedipus has a lot of strength to do this because he was only trying to get away from his evil fate. One day he kills the King of Thebes, the next day he is the King of Thebes and married
"Oedipus the King" is a tragic play showing a shift from the belief of fate to freedom of choice. Therefore, Oedipus the king is a great example of those who run from fate ends up fulfilling their fate
Oedipus the King is a Greek tragedy play written by Sophocles, and it made its first debut
Oedipus the King by Sophocles is more than just a basic tragedy. It contains a complete combination of all the features of a tragedy. I find Sophocles' King Oedipus interesting. Not because of the whole incest thing, the killing of the father, and the sleeping with the mother. I am still too naive to appreciate the significance of that. I find Sophocles' King Oedipus fascinating because as I read it with attention, I realized how amazingly hard it was to write. Even though it’s a Greek tragedy and the reading is a little hard to understand. But, once someone gets inside the story line, its captivates one’s attention. I admit I enjoy less the content of the play than Sophocles' writing skill. When to retell a well-known story, one has to make the story enough convincing without relying on the end of the story. one must dislocate the point of the story from its end to rest. By doing that the story will not lose its appeal. One has to be a creator. So, you have to twist the whole story in such an irresistible way that it is compelling despite the fact that the outcome of the story is known. How do Sophocles solve this problem? By making King Oedipus the central character and unintentionally the architect of his own downfall. The strengths that once lead him to solve the riddle later served as his own destruction. To make a story more appropriate to the stage, which is dealing with flashbacks, forward-moving energy of the story must accommodate with the backward references that