The Pride of Oedipus the King Essay

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.

Considered one of the greatest dramas of all time, Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King follows the tragic life of Oedipus, king of Thebes. Considered a Satyr play, the Oedipus trilogy is perhaps the most famous of Sophocles’ plays. Oedipus the King, is an Athenian tragedy that was first performed somewhere around 429 BC in Athens, Greece. Originally, the Greeks referred to the play as simply “Oedipus,” as that was what Aristotle referred to it as in the Poetics. Perhaps what makes this play so memorable, is Sophocles’ uses of the tragic hero as the main theme. Sophocles uses characterization and conflict to portray Oedipus as an Aristotelian tragic hero.

Hubris is Oedipus's tragic flaw. He is now overly full of himself because: he rescued the city of Thebes from the Sphinx, people admire him, the citizens worship him as if he were an idol, the citizens think of him as their hero, and the Thebans have such a high esteem for him, that they made him King. One instance that proves he is filled with overbearing pride is when he proclaims, "I, Oedipus, a name that all men know." (8) This statement also brings about irony. It is ironic because his name will be remembered and well-known everywhere--as a polluter, the

Throughout the play Oedipus the King written by Sophocles, there are many themes portrayed, however hubris appears to be a prominent trait. Oedipus, the main character displays such pride that impacts his ability to perceive and understand the past as well as interact with others. When pronounced King of Thebes, he is filled with pride from such honor. The citizens of Thebes glorify him and come to him for help and comfort in their time of need. However, Oedipus doesn't treat them with the same respect, referring to the townspeople as his "poor children" (Sophocles 65) even though they are all adults. Oedipus also believes he is more valuable than everyone else for "his suffering is greater" (Sophocles 67) and he "suffers the most" (Sophocles

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.

Sophocles gives the readers many different views of the play Oedipus the King in which we can take and analysis accordingly to things we are most interested in. Throughout the play Oedipus personally changes. He starts off as a being a smart leader, calm, and determined, but at the end of the play it reveals how he is angry, irrational and is blind to certain aspects, which becomes his downfall.

“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

Oedipus was a great king to his city. He was devoted to helping find a cure from the people, he was a family man and he always stuck to the rules. All these great qualities about Oedipus, and yet he was still very flawed. Oedipus was very stubborn and hard headed, he mostly never listened to anyones opinion and believed he was always right. He was also prideful and had a temper. All of these qualities get the best of him as the play goes on.

Sophocles's Oedipus Rex is probably the most famous tragedy ever written. Sophocles's tragedy represents a monumental theatrical and interpretative challenge. Oedipus Rex is the story of a King of Thebes upon whom a hereditary curse is placed and who therefore has to suffer the tragic consequences of fate (tragic flaws or hamartia). In the play, Oedipus is the tragic hero. Even though fate victimizes Oedipus, he is a tragic figure since his own heroic qualities, his loyalty to Thebes, and his fidelity to the truth ruin him.

The Sophocles authored a play about Oedipus Tyrannus, a king, that was admire as a hero and beloved by his people, however, he was filled with tragic prophecies by oracles & Gods that later will question his destiny. He was foreseen to be a strong and intelligent man that loved his kingdom; but soon his life starts to unravel with act of crimes of secrets and intentions. A tale of a tragic hero. Now according to the author, they described the character as a “tragic hero exhibits intransigence, strength of will, stubbornness, harshness, and he is easily angered and opened. Isolated, the hero refuses to compromise, setting his own conditions for existence. Often, death is the only solution. Through the hero’s loyalty to his nature humanity achieves its true greatness." (Sophocles 36). Throughout Oedipus’s case of events it involved sacrifice, loss, and love, that formed acts of heroism.

Oedipus displayed his faulty character throughout the play by showing how he is filled with ill-temper and pride, especially during his confrontation with Apollo’s blind prophet, Tiresias. He allowed his own hubris to take over him, eventually leading to his disaster at the end of the story. Now, some critics may argue that Oedipus did not actually go through a downfall in the play, but when looking back at the definition of a tragic hero, it can be seen that there are evidence to prove that Oedipus is a tragic hero.

When contemplating the character of Oedipus in Oedipus Tyrannus, it would be easy to dismiss him as merely a tragic character with only a cursory glance. One must dig deeply into Oedipus to fully understand him as a man. Aristotle understood this when used Oedipus as his example of a tragic hero. It is through deep analysis that one fully grasps that while Oedipus is a tragic character, he is also heroic in his being and his actions.

Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex is one of the most well- known tragic plays in existence. Oedipus, the King of Thebes, is the victim of a curse in which he must suffer the tragedy of his own unchangeable fate. The tragic heroism of Oedipus befalls him because of his heroic qualities and his loyalty to his Thebans and to himself. His unchangeable destiny affects so many others throughout the play. These others’ subsequent suffering that Oedipus brings upon them helps contribute to the tragic vision of the work as a whole.

Oedipus was a great man, and ruler but he was too cocky which was why it was so hard for him to accept the truth that lead to his tragic death. He gave the audience a preview of his arrogance when he first introduced himself as “the famous” as he was referred to even by those around him. However, because of his impacting image to everyone he was hard on himself when he let his people down by finding the truth of his birth and the life he had been living. Due to his feeling of letting his people down he felt that he disappointed his people who believed in him the most which was why he was so hard on himself. He was so uneasy that he caused harm to his own body and wanted everyone to disown him for which he already knew they would do. Although, Oedipus was overly confident he was a good and brave man who would do anything for his people even if

In the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus is a man doom to marry his mom and kill his dad. There is a plague that is destroying his people and to end the plague he must find the killer of the previous king Laois. Throughout the play Oedipus’s personality changes when the truth is revealed to him. He starts off as being a smart leader, calm, and determined, but at the end of the play he is angry, irrational and is blind to certain aspects, which becomes his downfall.