Oedipus The King

Therefore, he sets himself once again responsible for uncovering the truth about his past. Now Oedipus was seeking justice for himself and for the citizens of Thebes. Oedipus wanted to know who were his biological parents and obtain knowledge about his past and his connection to the murder of King Lauis. After he obtains the identity of his true parents, he realizes that the prophecy the old man told him, “you should kill your father and marry your mother,” had come true. The news of what Oedipus had unconsciously done, impacted those that surrounded him greatly. As a result, Jocasta committed suicide as she realized that she had married her son, and Oedipus chooses to live his life blind as he is exiled from

The city of Thebes happens to have a plague and it's people are very worried. In order to end this plague, Oedipus has to decide if he wants to help or not. When it came to making such decision, Oedipus showed justice by looking for the killer of the king that ruled before him. He took to an understanding that in order for his to be well, he had to get justice from the horrible man that did such thing.

The story of Oedipus is about a man who helped the people who resided in Thebes, which was located in Greece. He heard of the troubles that are affecting the city he asks Teiresias who explains it is his fault that there are disasters going on in Thebes. Only to find out he is the reason why there is problems in Thebes and banishes his self from Thebes.

The play opens in the middle of Thebes. Oedipus exits his castle, to be met by almost the entire kingdom. Oedipus knows immediately that something is wrong and it is this singular event that paves the way for the subsequent events that lead him to his downfall. Everyone-young and old, sick and healthy- had gathered in the middle of town seeking deliverance from an unknown evil. This evil is quickly determined to be a plague that had ravaged the land. The people of Thebes are highly religious as stated in “So, with the help of God,/ We shall be saved -Or else indeed we are lost “(148-149) The plague itself was interpreted as a punishment inflicted by the gods, to get the people of Thebes to drive out the

In the end, Tiresias explains that Oedipus is to blame for Laius’s death, for he is the murderer. Oedipus naturally denies the claim and accuses Creon and Tiresias of conspiring against him, so that Creon can gain power. Even though Oedipus is in denial, he still adamantly seeks the truth held by the shepherd. He sends for him, and upon arrival the shepherd was timid to reveal the truth. Oedipus responded by calling to the guards, “Twist his arm back, quickly! (line 1269)” In the end of this scene Jocasta, wife of Oedipus, realizes the truth behind who her husband really is, and that the prophecy had been fulfilled and runs away. Oedipus then continues to question the shepherd further because he still fails to see what is right in front of him.

It is difficult to hear bad news and often people will do whatever it takes to change the outcome. Most women do not want to lose their husband or their child. When the priests of Apollo came to Jocasta and claimed, “Laius was fated to die by the hand of his son, a son to be born to him and to me,”(Sophocles 41) Jocasta naturally wanted to save the man she loved. Jocasta gave Oedipus to her servant and told him to leave him out on the mountain with his ankles pinned together. She believed she had defied the Gods and thwarted the prophecy by killing her son. As she tells the story to Oedipus she says, “Don’t pay any attention to prophecies. If God seeks or needs anything, he will

In Sophocles’s Oedipus Rex, the Chorus alters its view of Oedipus from initially comparing and identifying him as a god and heroic leader to then realizing he induced the plague upon the city; moreover, the Chorus eventually articulates its belief that Oedipus deserves his punishment, juxtaposing their original thoughts of Oedipus which later highlights his fall to instability. A murderer travels through the streets of Thebes, causing the Chorus, represented by the citizens and suffering a dreadful plague because of the wrongdoing, wants the killer captured; however, Oedipus, the king, wants to find who committed this crime, proving ironic because of prophecies revealing his responsibility in the misconduct. After Teiresias and Creon accuse Oedipus of

The city is represented by the chorus which comprises of Theban citizens in both plays. The chorus enter the stage almost at the beginning of the plays (line 169) in Oedipus the King and line 117 in Antigone) and do not leave until the very end of each play. Thus they witness most of the events and revelations that happen. However their function within the context of the plays does differ.

The main conflict is when Tiresias tells Oedipus that he is responsible for the plague, and Oedipus refuses to believe Tiresias. The point of attack is when Creon returns from the Oracle at Delphi with the message that the source of the plague is the murder of the old king, Laius. The rising action occurs when Creon returns from the oracle with the news that the plague in Thebes will end when the murderer of Laius is discovered. The climax is when Oedipus learns that he is the man responsible for the plague that has stricken Thebes which means he is the man who killed his father and slept with his mother. This leads to the falling action consisting of the consequences of Oedipus’s learning that he is the man who killed his father and slept with his mother. This causes Oedipus to poke out his own eyes, drives Jocasta to hang herself, and Creon to banish Oedipus from

Oedipus’ dedication about fighting the plague and controlling fate demonstrates that he is heroic. After the priest lets Oedipus know about the plague on the city of Thebes, Oedipus says, “ I sent Menoeceus’ son Creon, Jocasta’s brother, to Apollo, to his Pythian temple, that he might learn there by what act or word I could save this city” (Pg.13, L.69-73). Oedipus’ full attention is about finding information about the plague. Oedipus displays commitment in helping the citizens in his town by doing everything in his power to defeat the plague. Oedipus’ commitment is presented clearly and the citizens respect him for his actions and view him as a hero. Next, after Oedipus talks to an oracle and learns his fate about killing his father and marrying his mother, he says, “ when I heard this I fled” (Pg. 45, L. 794). Oedipus left Corinth to try to change his destiny, and entered the city of Thebes. As Oedipus entered Thebes, a Sphinx was eating the citizens and to win the hand of Jocasta, he answered the riddle. Soon after the Sphinx left, Oedipus was crowned king and was known as the hero of Thebes because he saved them from the vicious Sphinx. Lastly, after Oedipus finds out he is the cause of the plague, he says “ Take me away, and haste-to a place out of the way! Take me away, my friends, the greatly miserable, the most accursed, whom God too hates above all men on earth” (Pg.69, L. 1340-1343). Oedipus is asking Creon to exile him from the city. Oedipus feels really guilty and does not want to be seen by anyone so he wants to leave. Also Oedipus asks Creon to exile him so the plague will stop harming the city because he cares

After Oedipus didn’t heed Jocasta’s warnings of leaving the past behind, which causes Jocasta suffers from Oedipus’ hubris as the sins of Oedipus come to light. As Oedipus tries to figure out who killed King Laius, Oedipus gets closer to the truth but in turn get closer to the

Jocasta tells Oedipus about her baby to make him not believe in the Oracle. The detail of Jocasta's story that catches Oedipus’s attention is the death of King Laius at the crossroads. Oedipus begins to suspect that he probably is the killer of King Laius. Oedipus and Jocasta send for the only survivor of the caravan.

Oedipus has been a good leader to Thebes for many years even though he sometimes can be a bit conceited. When Thebans go visit Oedipus to ask for help since they are experiencing a deadly plague, he says: “Each of you suffers in

King Laius was married to Jocasta, a distant cousin. He was expected to be killed based off Apollo’s oracle. Apollo’s oracle stated that King Laius were be killed by his son. To rid of this oracle once his son was born he tied his feet together and left his son on a mountain by himself. King Laius was killed and everyone thought that it was five robbers who killed him. One of the robbers lived. Oedipus arrived in the country of Thebes to leave his “father” Polybus who again was expected to be killed by his son. Polybus was Oedipus’s father after his real father gave him up. When Oedipus come to Thebes he solved the riddle that was unsolvable. Sphinx, a monster

Since many Thebans are distraught by the plague, it is Oedipus’ duty to bring peace in his city. He is penned as a character, who is reverenced and viewed upon as a god-like person, a ray of hope to many Thebans. They firmly believe he is capable of eradicating their agony as he is the one who freed them from the Sphinx by solving a riddle: they reckon his skill as their salvation, Thebes call him the savior, and they persuade him to be remembered “ as the King- god like in power, who gave [ them ] back [their] life...(25)”. Oedipus is overwhelmed by the way Thebans praise him. Life has always been invaluable to mankind: the ability of saving the lives of