Quotes From Oedipus To Creon

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.

Oedipus perceives such acts as offerings for him which causes him to think he is greater than those who surround him. The townspeople pray and worship Oedipus, allowing him to consider himself their "world-renowned king" (Sophocles 10). With the belief of having such high power, Oedipus believes he can determine his own fate. This causes him to be blind of his past and oblivious to the facts. With the mindset of being higher than everyone, Oedipus' arrogance blinds him intellectually from figuring out who his real parents are. Instead of analyzing his childhood in attempt to figure out the truth, he does not question the past and sprites those who challenge him. Oedipus is aware that when he was three days old his "ankles [were] pierced and pinned/ together, gave it to be cast away/ by others on the trackless mountain side" (Sophocles 726-28). He is also aware that the oracle of Thebes declared that one day he would "slay his father and wed his mother" (Sophocles 1). However, his hubris personality prevents him from realizing that he, in fact, is Laius's son. Instead, Oedipus refer to himself as "Fortunes favorite

Furthermore, he then try to exaggerate his victory over the sphinx for no purpose other than self satisfaction and raising himself above Tiresias. Similarly, he accused Tiresias of conspiring with Creon in order to take his throne. Essentially, Oedipus’ reaction was fueled through his narcissistic and haughty personality.

Creon, who is Iocasta’s brother, claims in Oedipus the King that he does not wish to have the power and responsibility of being king. Towards the beginning of Oedipus the King, Oedipus has announced that Creon is to be banished from Thebes. Oedipus was exiling Creon because he said that Creon and Tiresias were trying

Creon finally apprehended that everyone he had loved is shed in blood while all he had left was what he called his

Oedipus settles on a careless choice of choosing to say that he needs Creon, his brother by marriage, dead. The citation above shows how Oedipus is an awful pioneer - on the grounds that he shows a somewhat antagonistic conduct towards the issue that he is confronting at this moment. In spite of the fact that we can say Oedipus may be a target lord with made perspective out of occasions, the announcement he is making are some that he would without a doubt lament later on. Additionally, to the Shepherd, Oedipus demonstrates a fairly brutal conduct to him - despite the fact that the shepherd can be his second father. At the point when the two meet once more, this is the manner by which Oedipus treats his second

It was only after counseling with Teiresias that Creon changes his view on his rule. At first, Creon rejects all of the seer’s insight and views him as wrong and idiotic. Teiresias knows that Creon cannot escape his doomed, predestined fate and later prophecies”...strange noise of birds...harsh and dissonant impetus...murderous talons; for the whirr of wings” (Sophocles 54). Understanding the gods, Tiresias comprehends they are angry and they sense corruption in the city of Thebes and in the leader. Creon reconsiders his foolish actions and obeys the wise seer and sentinel. After he leaves, he gives Eteocles a proper burial and returns to the tomb where he realized his mistakes too late and his son and Antigone commit suicide.

Oedipus was also a very selfish man. There are many places in the book that show Oedipus really only cares about himself. King Lauis’ murder was just one. He did all of the investigating to find out who his parents were for himself. Not for Jocasta who could possibly be his mother. He only cared if something bad was happening to him. He made everyone who might have known anything about him drop everything they were doing and come to him to tell him their story. He thought he didn’t need the gods so he insulted them by talking about how they didn’t help with the riddle and he did it all by himself. He was extremely self centered. Oedipus also cared more about himself than he did his wife or children. He didn’t think about anyone but himself when he found out he was married to his mother. He stabbed his own eyes out not even thinking about his children or how they would survive. He just knew that he couldn’t handle what he had seen so he was going to take the coward’s way out. Oedipus also cared too much about himself to kill himself. Instead he wanted to be paraded around Thebes blind so the citizens would pity him and talk about him. He gave his children to Creon without a second thought and didn’t even think about how that might be a burden on him.

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.

In the play Oedipus has qualities such as caring and being loyal to the people of his city. The play begins with a plague in which the people of Thebes are encountering. Oedipus who is the king is well aware and worried of this terrible event is trying to do whatever it takes to find a solution. The people in Thebes believe in their king since they’ve already witnessed how he rescued their city in an occasion. “Oedipus, we need now the great power men everywhere know you posses. Find some way to protect us learn it from a god’s whisper or a man’s” (pg. 487). Oedipus knows his people are counting on him and as a result his attitude is one of a leader, arrogant, authoritative, confident, intelligent, determined, and compassionate. Once Oedipus uncovers the solution to end the plague is to find the murdered of former king Laios he is determined to do this and no one will stop him. Tiresias the prophet offers an answer to Oedipus’ quest, but his response to the prophet’s prophecy is a disbelieving and offensive one. “Wealth and a king’s power, the skill that wins every time how much envy, what malice they provoke. To rob me of power, power I didn’t

Oedipus’ obsession to unravel mysteries is a factor in his fall. In fact, an ignorant Oedipus would have been far better off than a knowledgeable Oedipus (Will 44). During his stay in Corinth, a visitor calls him a bastard. His curiosity takes him to an oracle to seek an explanation, where he learns about his fate. On the other hand, Oedipus would not have embarked on this journey for ‘self-discovery’ if he had dismissed the drunkard’s remarks. Oedipus, as king of Thebes, learns from his wife that they had disposed off the son who was to kill his father; therefore, there was no possibility of the prophecy’s fulfillment. Regardless, he becomes even more determined to dig deeper. He states that he will start afresh and, once again, unravel the mystery (159-160). Indeed, Oedipus takes a step closer to his fate with every piece of information he gathers. Thus, his unyielding desire to unravel truths that could have been better left buried, leads him to the tragic revelation about his

Teiresias: “You’ve thrown down to those below someone from up above- in your arrogance you’ve moved a living soul into a grave, leaving here a body owned by god's below- unburied, dispossessed, unsanctified.” (Lines 1196-1200). Teiresias has given Creon insight on how he drove his fate to its edge. In Antigone by Sophocles, Creon is portrayed as a tragic figure who functions as a tool for suffering because he had brought a series of unfortunate events to those who were close to him by not allowing his emotions to surpass his overwhelming power and taking drastic actions towards Antigone and Haemon leading to unwanted deaths.

621 ln. 149-150) after Creon tells him why they stopped searching for Laius’s killer. Dramatic irony is present when Oedipus tries to skirt the horrible prophecy of him killing his father and coupling with his mother, because in fleeing Corinth to avoid murdering Polybus, he is actually taking the correct path to fulfill the prophecy. Again his overconfidence and pride contributes to his impending doom; in believing that he has outwitted the gods he challenges his fate. Although he has enough reverence to the deities not to assume himself to be an equal with the gods, but greater than them it is clear through the word usage that Oedipus perceives himself to be of a greater importance than the lesser mortals that surround him “One of you summon the city here before us, tell them I’ll do everything. God help us, we will see our triumph-or our fall” (p. 621 ln. 163-165). He is conceited to think that he can shape his own destiny and the gods punish him for this arrogance.

Evidently, Oedipus is confident and truly feels expected to do this for his people, when in reality, he has the choice to not do anything at all. It was his decision to support his people despite people like Teiresais advising against it. Oedipus’s determination to solve the problem of his kingdom ended up with him realizing that he was the problem. As king, he stayed true to his word and banished himself from the land for the betterment of his people.

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.