The Characteristics And Differences Of A Comedy In Oedipus Rex

The Greek drama “Oedipus The King” evidently leads to the unveiling of a tragedy. Oedipus, the protagonist of the play uncovers his tragic birth story and the curse he had been baring his whole life. Oedipus is notorious for his personal insight that helped him defeat Sphinx, which lead him to becoming the king of Thebes. He is admired by the people of Thebes and is considered to be a mature, inelegant and a rational leader. From his birth, his story began with a prophecy that Oedipus would grow up to kill his father and marry his mother. Through out the play numerous people, who tell him of his unknown past, visit Oedipus. Blind to the truth he casts them away until a blind man named Therisis gives a sight of truth to Oedipus. As Oedipus learns the truth he realizes the great evil his life carries. After finding his wife and also mother hung in her bedroom, Oedipus blinds himself with the gold pins that held Jocasta’s robe. Oedipus blind to the truth is finally able to see when the old blind man visits him and tells him the truth about his life. Both metaphorically and physically sight plays a significant role in understanding the irony of a blind man seeing the truth while Oedipus who isn’t blind doesn’t seem to the truth that’s right in front of him.

There are two excellent tragedies in world literature, Hamlet and Oedipus the King. Oedipus the King was written by Sophocles and Hamlet was one of the famous dramas of Shakespeare. There were some similarities and several differences between the two tragedies. Although the plays were both set in different time periods, they had similar themes about fate and free will. Their plots were also analogous. However, the two main character had a major vital difference that Hamlet is a tragedy of inaction and Oedipus is a tragedy of action.

A drama may be classified as comic or tragic. A comedy is a story in which the character controls their own fate. The choices, courage, and free will of the character will ultimately decide their outcome. Comedies may illustrate human faults and weaknesses and their effect, but deserved or undeserved triumph is always possible. Conversely, a tragedy is when a character has a trait or a tragic flaw which will inevitably cause their downfall. Comedies may bind us in a common humanity , or provide hope, but tragedies are most often used to teach a lesson to the audience.

It is a common human flaw to only see things that are pleasing and choose to ignore distasteful situations. Falling into this trap, Oedipus, the King of Thebes in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, finds his doom by choosing to turn a blind eye to reality. The king falls from his throne by choosing to live in an illusion and failing to recognize the power of fate.

Ancient Greeks cared deeply about the pursuit of knowledge. Although the truth was often a terrifying concept, they still saw it as a critical virtue. The theater was one way in which the ideas of knowledge and truth were examined.

To describe the world of Oedipus Rex I have selected the phrasing; “false sense of security”. Although it was not the concluding word on my tree, I realized that it was important to describe the play and its world as such. Having a “false sense of security” could be a feeling that the characters have but it could also be an underlying contribution to the play itself. Think of it as that feeling when the characters on stage assume they are overly secure but we, as audience members, start to realize that they are actually not. This describes the world in which the character, Oedipus, lives in. One filled with fate, denial, spirituality, dependence, fear, smugness, and blindness. All of these words which create a false atmosphere.

If Hamlet was written during a different historical period, such as the Cuban Revolution, and in a different geographical location, Havana, Cuba for instance, the story would differ remarkably.

One of the biggest qualities I thought both plays shared was the fact that they were both tragedies. In Hamlet you see throughout the play

Dramatic irony is defined as drama of information known by the audience but not know by the characters. In Oedipus the king dramatic irony is definitely a key part of the story, constantly keeping the audience on edge knowing such a huge thing Oedipus can’t figure out even when it is told right to him. The dramatic irony in this play is what makes it great.

One aspect of these genres that can be compared and contrasted is the narrative or plot. A comparison can be analyzed in that both begin with a problem. In Oedipus Rex, the play begins with a plague devastating the city of Thebes. In A Midsummer Night's Dream there is also a plague that is upon the land. However, a difference between these two beginnings is that in Oedipus Rex the citizen are effected by it to the point that they look towards Oedipus for a solution to their suffering; while in A Midsummer Night's Dream, the effects of the plague are never shown to the audience and it seems a minor detail. Another difference is the cause of the plague in the two plays. In the tragedy, Oedipus Rex, the hero ends up being the cause because he murdered the king; while in A Midsummer Night's Dream the cause is a fight between Titania and Oberon.

In the dramatic play, Oedipus the King, we as readers notice that Aristotle has implanted several instances of dramatic irony throughout the play. Dramatic irony occurs when the readers or audience recognize more as to what is going to transpire within the play than the protagonist realizes. In Oedipus the King there is notice of three different types of dramatic irony: verbal, situational, and tragic (dramatic). The copiousness use of these three different types of irony’s highlights Oedipus’ tragic flaw, and that is his over-confidence within his self.

The play, Oedipus the King by Sophocles, bases its plot around dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is a literary device in which the audience is aware of a series of events or characteristics that the characters themselves are not yet aware of. This device was used to shape the tone of the work and furthermore the reader’s reaction to it. In the play, dramatic irony is used to tell the story and affects the reader's perception of the protagonists. These characters especially include Oedipus and Queen Jocasta. The writer depends on dramatic irony to set up the tragedy.

In the play Oedipus Rex, Oedipus unknowingly murders his father and marries his mother. When Oedipus discovers this he is disgusted with himself and decides to go into exile. The Misanthrope is a play about the self-exile of the main character Alceste. Challenged in court, he refuses to take back the criticism of a sonnet written by a powerful nobleman. Alceste and Oedipus are both convicted by their knowledge of the truth. Although, the United States grants asylum to more refuges than any other country, there is one man who has decided to self-exile.

"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

Throughout Poetics, Aristotle describes what traits a tragedy must have to be successful. To support these choices, he makes use of a small analysis of many tragedies, including many of Sophocles’ plays; Oedipus Rex is one of the plays mentioned in Aristotle’s Poetics. Some of these traits include a successful plot structure, recognition scenes, and a correct choice for its hero. In Oedipus Rex, Sophocles fulfills all of these requirements.