Oedipus The King: An Analysis

In his essay, “Introduction to Oedipus the King”, Bernard Knox supports free will by stating that Oedipus’ downfall was not caused by fate. According to Knox there is not a doubt that, “Oedipus is the free agent who, by his own self-willed action, discovers that his own predicted destiny has already been fulfilled” (86). He clearly states that Oedipus is responsible for his free actions during the play. He insists that Oedipus’s made the decisions to discover the truth about himself.

Charles could see Erik giving up as sharply as he felt it, the small spark that he’d come to label in his own mind as ‘life force’ dwindling to an ember and extinguishing. He was stepping forward before he could stop himself, blooding rushing in his ears against time as he spoke. “Dēsístite!“

     Throught Oedipus Rex, Oedipus displays his heroism many times. From the Prologue of the play to the moment in which he leaves Thebes, Oedipus' heroics are extremely apparent; however, at the same time, the decisions which make Oedipus a hero ultimately become the decisions which bring him to shame and exile.

The theme of sight and blindness is undoubtedly important to notice while reading Oedipus the King. The number of times the words “see” or “blind” are in the play make it make it undeniably obvious that they are significant. The theme is developed throughout the dialogue, through characters such as Tiresias and Oedipus, and also directly in the irony of the play. It is important in a play about the truth because almost every character was “blind” to the truth. All of the characters, except one, can physically see, but mentally cannot see the truth.

In Oedipus the King, Sophocles uses his protagonist, Oedipus, to explore his pursuit of knowledge, which leads to his tragic destruction. Oedipus is a favorable king who is determined to end the curse that has been brought upon the city because the murderer of his predecessor, Laius, still lies in the city. Ironically, Oedipus delivers the curse to the city because he murdered his father, Laius. Oedipus’s desire to gain knowledge and bring the murderer of Laius to justice, results in his downfall, which causes the people around him to be greatly affected as well.

Throughout all of history, a common theme found in literature has been the idea of whether or not humans have the ability to determine their own futures or if each person has their life predetermined and nothing can be done to change that. The ancient Greeks were no different, and the play “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles has this idea intertwined throughout the entire plot. The play revolves around a king named Oedipus who rules over the land of Thebes. Oedipus deals with a prophecy about him that he does all he can to avoid, but in doing so he inadvertently causes his fate to become reality. The play “Oedipus the King” demonstrates the fate versus freewill conflict based on how Ancient Greek culture viewed prophecy, and Oedipus’s prophecy and his attempt to prevent it which was ultimately unsuccessful.

Do people believe in destiny? Nowadays, some people will laugh at the type of questions like it. However, destiny plays an significant role in the Greek mythology. Especially in Oedipus the king, this is a story about how human try to fight against the destiny and gods. Oedipus became the king of Thebes after answered the monster’s riddle correctly, he then married his mother Jocasta, which was the dead king’s widow. However, even though he escaped from the country where he grew up, but he could not avoid the terrible curse happened. Laius, the father of Oedipus, tired to avoid have any children, and later told his servant to abandon Oedipus in the mountains in order to stop the curse by the death of his child. What Laius did not think of was,

Many ancient Greek dramas have similarity. The story begins with the prophecy from the Gods. And the end of the story always comes out in tragedy. In addition, all Greek drama also contain the chorus in between the scenes in the story. The chorus has many purposes that affect the main character and audience’s appreciation and perception of the play. One of the famous drama, Oedipus the King which is written by Sophocles. In between the scenes of the story Oedipus, there are the choruses. The chorus provides short information before the scene starts to audiences in order to make them understand the events that are going on the story. And the chorus giving an impression of the next scene to the audiences.

Since the beginning of time, people of various cultures have striven for greatness. The basic model of heroism is one with generosity, strength, and courage. A few examples of modern day heroes and people of prestige are first responders, military members, and Nobel Peace Prize winners. Although one philosopher, Aristotle, has created a more advanced standard of excellence in his essay “The High-Minded Man”. He lays out the temperament and characteristics that are vital to achieving perfection. One can use Aristotle’s philosophy to determine the righteousness of another. One example is Oedipus, a character in the widely known Greek tragedy Oedipus Rex. He possesses a multitude of the key traits introduced by Aristotle. Oedipus is open with his emotions, brave (but not reckless), and values truth more than anything else. According to Aristotle, these morals qualify Oedipus as a high-minded man.

Many plays have grand plots only to be matched by the grand settings these plays take place in. However, in many plays portraying every action relevant to the plot on-stage is simply impractical for the materials/time required for the play and for the story itself. Off-stage action are important to the play in Oedipus the King so that the story can be portrayed in a more efficient manner without constant scene changes and ridiculous amounts of props and backdrops, for the audience to better understand the limited perspective of the characters, and to maintain secrecy and confusion throughout the play.

Oedipus Cursing His Son, Polynices is a great work of art created by Henry Fuseli, in 1786. This painting was created in Fuseli’s homeland, Zurich, Switzerland. This painting has a powerful and dramatic purpose to it, and is very interesting to look at.

The tale of Oedipus and his prophecy has intrigued not only the citizens of Greece in the ancient times, but also people all over the world for several generations. Most notable about the play was its peculiar structure, causing the audience to think analytically about the outcomes of Oedipus’ actions and how it compares with Aristotle’s beliefs. Another way that the people have examined the drama is by looking at the paradoxes (such as the confrontation of Tiresias and Oedipus), symbols (such as the Sphinx), and morals that has affected their perceptions by the end of the play. Nonetheless, the most important aspect is how relevant the story is and how it has influenced modern ideas like that of Freud and other people of today.

"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

Aristotle, in his work The Poetics, tries to delineate the idea of a tragedy. Throughout his work Aristotle says that the hero, or at least the protagonist in a tragedy must be substantially good, almost godlike. This hero must bring upon themselves their downfall, due to their fatal flaw. If the hero is not at a high point, an audience will not care about them, and won’t notice their fall. One must fall a long way in social class in order for it to be noticed by the outside man. Oedipus perfectly exemplifies a tragedy, in relation to modern society, effectively showing how too much pride can often lead to downfall or doom.