Sophocles 'The Plague In Oedipus The King'

Due to his arrogance and narcissism, Oedipus fails to take heed of Tiresias warning of whom Creon sent him and decided that the accusations that were being made against him are attempts to steal his throne. Likewise, Oedipus tells Tiresias when he was reluctant to tell Oedipus is Laius’ killer, “What then, thou knowest, and yet willst not speak!/Wouldst thou betray us and destroy the

Oedipus uses Tiresias as a counselor since he is a soothsayer, however the two have a very strained relationship, Oedipus summons Tiresias since he wants to learn who killed Laius and save Thebes, essentially forcing Tiresias to provide Oedipus counsel. Tiresias proceeds to reluctantly reveal the murderer bluntly by “[saying] that you are Laius’ murderer” then by reiterating it in a more cryptic form (Sophocles 14). However, Oedipus was too prideful to realize the truth and that he fits the prophecy he has heard his entire life that Tiresias recites. One of the problems in the relationship is that they strongly dislike each other and say hateful comments to each other. For example, Oedipus calls Tiresias the “worst of traitors,” while Tiresias calls Oedipus “the abominable

The beginning of Oedipus the King the city of Thebes is under a terrible plague with many hardships. Its people and priest have

“Oh my children, the new blood of ancient Thebes, why are you here?” said Oedipus when addressing his people during his first appearance (1-2). Flamboyant, yes, well in Oedipus the King, the main character Oedipus is a boastful and pompous character faced with troublesome pasts and future predicaments. In actuality, he is king of Thebes and the rightful ruler, but when a plague strikes he is quickly led into a misfortune of events that ultimately leads him to dig his eyes out in attempt to relieve him from the truth he discovers. It then becomes a revelation to distinguish the characteristic fault which leads Oedipus through such tragedy. Only to become apparent, Oedipus’s excessive pride is the main culprit behind his tragic ending. In

Luckily for Oedipus, he has both. Though he is portrayed as a great king, he can also be seen as prideful and easy to anger. Knowing the truth of King Laius’ death, Tiresias councils Oedipus not to search for Laius’s killer, which only provokes the king’s anger. After quarreling back and forth for quite some time, Tiresias finally reveals what he knows in an enraged outburst. “I charge you, then, submit to that decree you just laid down: from this day onward speak to no one, not these citizens, not myself.

() This quote suggests that Oedipus feels as if he is better than the gods and is the only one who can help the people. “Not you! You don’t have this, since you are blind in your ears and mind and eyes.” () In this salient quote Oedipus insults Tiresias stating that the prophet is unable to see the truth and later accuses him of being a conspirator to Laius’s murder. Another significant quote from Tiresias indicates the

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).

At the beginning of the play, Oedipus uses verbal violence to threaten Tiresias. A plague has struck the city of Thebes, and Oedipus learns from Kreon that the plague will only end when the murderer of Laius has been caught. When Oedipus asks Tiresias for help, Tiresias initially refuses to share what he knowns and instead comments about Oedipus’ inability to see the truth. However, Oedipus becomes infuriated and insults the blind prophet. “Now I see it all. You helped hatch the plot…with your own hands…Old man. You’ve lost your power, stone-blind, stone-deaf- senses, eyes blind as stone” (103-104). The quote is an example of verbal violence because Oedipus curses and insults Tiresias, accusing the prophet of conspiring against him with the help of Kreon. Tiresias then introduces another riddle, telling Oedipus that the murderer of Laius is both the father and sibling to his incestuous children, and also the son of his beloved wife. When Oedipus mocks Tiresias for answering only in riddles, Tiresias responds with, “Ah, but aren’t you the best man alive at solving riddles?” (105). As described here, Oedipus presents himself as extremely confident in his ability to untangle puzzles, but this ultimately leads to his own downfall. Given these examples, it is evident that Oedipus’ use of verbal violence against Kreon and Tiresias accurately illustrates his

In Oedipus Rex, Tiresias was a blind seer. When Oedipus called upon Tiresias for wanting to know who killed king Laius and cursing the land, Tiresias knew who caused it and how to stop it. Unfortunately, when Tiresias told Oedipus it was him who had killed the king, Oedipus did not believe him. Oedipus was ignorant and foolish towards Tiresias blaming him for killing King Laius and in Oedipus’s blind anger, he said “And if you were not blind, I should aver the act was your work only!” (Sophocles 13). This was not true, and Tiresias knew this, and he tried to make Oedipus understand by showing him the truth even though Tiresias was literally blind.

The Black Plague is going around Thebes and citizens are begging king Oedipus for help with the plague. Oedipus has previously dealt with solving the riddle from the monstrous Sphinx. Oedipus sends Creon, his uncle and brother in law, to the oracle of Delphi to get help from Apollo.

Throughout the play, characters like Tiresias and King Laius respond to suffering in a way that protects others. On page 177, Tiresias is reluctant to share Oedipus’

The author of Oedipus, Sophocles, introduces a worthy rival to the main character Oedipus.Tiresias, who considers himself to be an equal to the Great King. Tiresias admits, “You are a king. But where the argument’s concerned // I am your man, as much as a king as you.// I am not your servant, but Apollo’s.”(Sophocles) While simultaneously trying to defend his honour and bring justice to Thebes, Oedipus argues about the integrity of Creon’s source. Tiresias retorts Oedipus’ impulsive accusations, in a studious, and King like manner.Tiresias’ diligent retaliation is dramatically significant because it develops Oedipus’ character; Oedipus is humanized and revered less as a God because of his flaws. The power dynamic shift causes the audience to become more judgemental of Oedipus since someone is holding him accountable for his behaviour. Additionally, the passage adds to the mystery of the plot and creates suspense, through Sophocles’ use of paradox, and imagery which cause the mood to change and creates a compelling story. Both of these elements cause the audience to pay attention to the drastic changes in character, and mood, to highlight the major theme of pride, power, and fate. Ultimately, the passage is intended to show the ignorance of Oedipus, and the awareness of Tiresias, who are symbols for the pervasiveness of fate.

At the beginning, Oedipus is ignorant and is constantly avoids and ignores the truth in order to protect his reputation. Oedipus’ unwillingness to open his ears to the truth develops when Tiresias reveals that he killed Laius and one of his responses is, “Your words are nothing-- / futile” (416-417). Although Oedipus begged to hear Tiresias’ words, he was not willing to pay attention or open his eyes to the unfortunate idea. Oedipus pushes aside the words Tiresias says, refusing to believe that he could be the one who killed Laius, the one who must be cursed. Later, Tiresias brings up Oedipus’ ignorance saying “you’re blind to the corruption of your life” (471), and telling him a few lines later that “No man will ever / be rooted from the earth as brutally as you” (488-489). Oedipus was put in his place and blatantly told that he is ignorant but his rise to knowledge will also bring his demise. Sophocles foreshadowed using Tiresias in that way, but Oedipus was so into avoiding any confrontation with the truth at the beginning that he would respond calling Tiresias’ visions “absurdities” (494). Therefore, even though the truth has been revealed to him, Oedipus still chooses to remain blind to the truth in order to remain good in the eyes of his people.

But as Oedipus is faced with these challenges, he turns away from them and presents no solution to the people of his town. Oedipus makes a cry to his people in the beginning and says, “Ah! My poor children, known, ah, known too well, / The quest that brings you hither and your need. Ye sicken all, well wot I, yet my pain, / How great soever yours, outtops it all” (Prologue). As Oedipus shows sympathy for his people as they suffer by saying “My poor children” (Prologue), he also demonstrates that he has no courage to face the plague that has taken over his kingdom.

When Oedipus stated “I know you are all sick, yet there is no one of you, sick though you are, as sick as myself. Your several sorrows each have single scope and touch but one of you. My spirit groans for the city and myself and you at once.” On page 471, lines 68-73, he is talking about how he is also sick, just not physically like the rest of Thebes. He isn’t happy in his current situation and he has to put on a brave face and find a cure for the plague. This ties back into the unhappy life and fate of Oedipus because he tries many things in order to get Thebes back to its healthy state, but he is unaware of the sacrifices he will have to make in order to get things back to normal. He is unmindful of his own fate and is in denial of what his situation