Tragedy

“You will no longer see all those atrocious things I suffered, the dreadful things I did! No. You have seen what you never should have looked upon, and what I wished to know you did not see. So now and for all future time be dark!” (line 1520) Oedipus screams as he gauges out his own eyes in response to finding his wife (and mother) hanging in their bedroom. This is where the Greek tragedy finally earns it's title. As Oedipus finds out without a doubt who truly killed king Lauis and who he himself truly is, all goes downhill. He recognizes that even though it is his own life, a punishment must me given just as he proclaimed in the beginning. First came the eyes, a dramatic use of symbolism as he can not face the truth. His children he even calls his siblings, though can't bear to see the face that was given to them through incest. He does ask Creon to allow them to live a life safe from himself, as he wants them to never face the suffering he now endures. He believes that banishment from Thebos is the only way to atone. To live in Exile is what the gods want in his opinion, as death would be far too much forgiveness. He set out to find the murderer of their king, and he has, Now he must accept what has come to him, the punishment of Apollo himself, and leave Thebos and atone for what he has done. 

The Chorus

The chorus in Oedipus is like Oedipus’ friend. The chorus seems to, not exactly, take Oedipus’ side, but when Oedipus’ odds are not in his favor, the chorus doesn’t seem to stray far from his side. Oedipus even calls the Chorus his friends after the chorus goes to him and says “Dreadful, what you’ve done…” Talking about how Oedipus gouged his eyes out. Oedipus responds, “what love, what call of the heart can touch my ears with joy? Nothing, friends.Take me away, far, far, from Thebes, quickly, cast me away, my friends--”(l. 1475-1478). Oedipus feels like he can rely on the chorus for honesty and advice such as a friend would. The chorus told Oedipus, “how can I say you’ve chosen for the best? Better to die than be alive and blind” just like how one friend would be honest and tell the other friend that their decision might not have been the best and further input their opinion (l.1497-1498). Oedipus then pushes their opinion away when he says, “What I did was best--don’t lecture me, no more advice”(l. 1499-1500).

In general, the chorus was sympathetic for all the poor events that happened in Oedipus’ recent history.  After hearing that Oedipus was the killer, the chorus starts weeping, “now I weep like a man who wails the dead…”(l. 1346).  After seeing Oedipus with his gouged-out eyes, the chorus sadly realizes that Oedipus suffers twice, they tell him “you suffer twice over, the pain of your wounds, the lasting grief of pain”(l. 1457-1458).

Reflections

Oedipus is reevaluating his past actions. “What, Oedipus? What haunts you so?” (814). Jocasta questions Oedipus about what he is thinking about. At that point in time, Oedipus was flashing back his memory to the day he murdered men and how that day fit the description of Jocasta’s version of the murder of Laius so well. “Oh, but if there is any blood-tie between Laius and this stranger… what man alive more miserable than I?” (901). Oedipus believes he may have been the one to have murdered Laius. He is pondering his past doings and the oracle he once received from Delphi. The oracle read, “You are fated to couple with your mother… you will kill your father, the one who gave you life” (873-875). He is now placing hypothetical situations in his head that if he were indeed the murderer, was the prophecy given true?

                This past action factors into his present time events by possibly placing him to be the suspect of a cold blooded murder of a king. The city of Thebes is suffering badly from a plague and the only way to end the illness from spreading, according to the oracle, is to kill the murderer of King Laius. Oedipus recalling past memories, it may place him to be the murder of the King (the audience knows he is indeed the son and murder of Laius). He may be murdered and be put to shame if the public finds out he was the one who murdered the king.

Honor

Like many ancient peoples, the Greeks valued honor above all things. It follows that the tragic ending to Oedipus should be riddled with last-ditch attempts at preserving one's honor. Sure enough, both the protagonist and his wife (mother!) close out the story with a dramatic display of decorum.

Jocasta, for her part, realizes the truth before her son and husband. "You're doomed--" yells Jocasta in her final moments, just before fleeing, "May you never fathom who you are!" (1173-1174). She runs from the scene, and these lines convey her desperation. She is before long found hanging in her bedchamber, unable to cope with the life she has made for herself.

Rather than continue on as wife and mother of the same man--a man she once tried to kill--Jocasta takes her own life, thereby salvaging the shreds of dignity she still possesses. This action shows that she, as a typical Greek, values honor and reputation more than her own life.

Similarly, no sooner does Oedipus find Jocasta's body than he takes the pins from her robes and stabs his own eyes out, crying, "'You, you'll see no more the pain I suffered, all the pain I caused!'" (1405-1406). As Oedipus has been "blind" to the truth through the play, it is fitting that he should disable his eyesight so gruesomely. A true Greek tragic hero, he gives himself a punishment worthy of his crime.

Both Oedipus and Jocasta attempt to right things in the end by delivering to themselves fates of which they think they are deserving. In doing so these two protagonists display characteristics of tragic heroes and personify true ancient Greek culture and beliefs regarding honor.

Blog Post 4

After seeing Jocasta committed suicide, Oedipus stabs his eyes out with the gold pins that held her robe together. By stabbing himself in the eyes, Oedipus blinds himself. He in essence becomes like the blind prophet, Tiresias, who earlier in the play he chastised. Tiresias says "I have escaped; the truth is what I cherish and that’s my strength."(404-405). Oedipus now has a newfound strength.  Without his physical sight, he is able to see more on the "inside". he has more insight like a prophet and is able to look inside himself. Despite "[tearing] the brooches—the gold chased brooches fastening her robe— away from her and lifting them up high [dashing] them on his own eyeballs" (1455-1458), Oedipus does not make mention pain at all. The chorus asks "Is he now in any ease from pain?" (1475). The psychological pain he endures outweighs the physical pain so much that he does not fell physical pain at all. He is now no longer focused on the physical world, rather the psychological pain that goes along with realizing the truth.  By realizing the prophecy about him is true, inadvertently Oedipus becomes more wise and in touch with himself. It is too late though.

Shameful Downfall of a True Leader

“To this guilt I bore witness against myself— with what eyes shall I look upon my people?” (1561-62). Decimated, humiliated, and confused, Oedipus cannot fathom the undeniable truth of being the murderer of his father, husband of his mother, and the product of adoption.  The irony Sophocles reveals at the end of this story is mind-boggling and rather inconceivable. Throughout the entirety of the story, Oedipus refuses to believe the prophecy of Tiresias.  When we finally discover he does the things Tiresias accuses him of, we are left in a state of awe and amazement.  The allegations Oedipus attempts to circumvent haunt him like ghosts in a graveyard; he cannot avoid them.  His reaction to this grief-stricken discovery is one of bitter remorse, for he decides to stab his eyeballs, causing eye damage and blindness. A leader who people envision as strong-minded and optimistic descends quickly to a weak and guilty suspect.  “I beg of you in God’s name hide me somewhere outside your country, yes, or kill me, or throw me into the sea, to be forever out of your sight” (1586-89).  Oedipus’s stigma delivers him a feeling of loneliness and embarrassment, for he asks for God to keep him out of his sight. He repeatedly requests for Creon to send him far away from Thebes, claiming that he does not deserve to remain in the city.  His shame outweighs all the positive contributions and accomplishments he holds in Thebes, and forges a sympathetic view of life for himself and the city. The quote, “Give me liberty or give me death” by Patrick Henry accurately describes the situation. Oedipus does not feel he deserves to live after the allegations are proven to be true. With his failure to prosper, he believes death is the best option.

Dramatic Irony

The plot of Oedipus the King depends heavily on dramatic irony fueled by two valiant attempts to change the course of fate. Jocasta is told that her husband would die at the hands of her son; in an attempt to prevent this from happening she abandons her child leaving his fate up to the gods. Oedipus is told that he would kill his father and sleep with his mother. As to prevent this from happening, Oedipus takes matters into his own hands and flees Corinth. Instead of running from fate, he inadvertently runs towards it. He leaves Corinth only to find that in doing so he has found his real parents and carried out the oracle's words. Both Oedipus and Jocasta prematurely exult over the failure of oracles, only to find that the oracles were right after all. Each character’s attempt to escape fate creates dramatic irony because the audience knows that they are in no way escaping fate but rather expediting the process. Each time a character tries to avert the future predicted by the oracles, the audience knows their attempt is futile, creating the sense of irony that permeates the play. Both Oedipus and Jocasta think that taking action will keep fate from happening, but as they will soon learn fate is bound to happen. 

Not only do Oedipus and Jocasta try to avoid the events that have been prophesied, they try to convince themselves and each other that prophecies are not true. Jocasta believes prophecies are false and convinces Oedipus the same, yet at the beginning of the very next scene we see her praying to the very same gods from which these prophecies originate. She "comes with prayers and offerings" giving the audience a sense that she may believe in prophecies after all (1008). 

Irony of Jocasta

Throughout Oedipus the King, Oedipus refers to Jocasta for advice. The advice that he seeks resembles a relationship between a son and a mother. Oftentimes, a child succumbs to their parents in effort to receive advice or information. Jocasta shows the amount of wisdom that a mother possesses and shares this with Oedipus. Although Jocasta is his wife, Oedipus is ironically the son of Jocasta. This complex relationship ultimately evinces itself by the end of the story.

Jocasta reveals that she is wise and dependable as Oedipus oftentimes asks her for help in understanding or making a decision.  In a time of discomfort and disbelief, Jocasta informs Oedipus that “even if [Teiresias] diverges from what he said then, he shall never prove that the murder of Laius squares rightly with the prophecy” (985-989). This shows Jocasta’s ability to serve as Oedipus’ mother and wife. Jocasta’s buoyancy of characterization presents Oedipus opportunities to seek advice and love her. Even though Oedipus is initially unaware of Jocasta being his mother, he gravitates to her for counsel. Jocasta ironically reveals her relationship with Oedipus as she says,  “I am terrified when I look at you” (864-865). This may be because Oedipus is actually her son, even though they marry each other.

The political cartoon represents a two-headed being that has two different roles in society. It resembles the irony in Oedipus the King in that Jocasta is actually the wife and mother of Oedipus. This relationship manifests through the plot of the story. Jocasta is very influential on Oedipus as a mother and wife, but exemplifies her qualities of a mother in the character of his wife.

Irony (Question #12)

An ironic moment in Oedipus, is at the climax of the play, when Oedipus finally realizes that he is in fact the murderer of Laius and the one who fulfills Tiresias’s prophecy. Oedipus realizes Tiresias speaks the truth when his wife, Jocasta tells him about a prophecy which said her and Laius’s son would murder Laius and sleep with her. Oedipus recognizes that this tale seems all too familiar to his doings. His mind immediately starts racing with “what if” thoughts and he starts asking Jocasta for more information, saying “Strange, hearing you just now…my mind wandered, my thoughts racing back and forth.” (800-802) and “Where dis this thing happen? Be precise.” (807). This moment is ironic because when Tiresias had told Oedipus that he was the one responsible for the murder of Laius, he was shocked that he could even suggest such an idea. Oedipus was offended that Tiresias claimed this was the prophecy because he had vowed to be the savior of Thebes, as he was their king. If this prophecy turned out to be true, it would mean that he had betrayed the people of Thebes. Oedipus had denied the claims made by Tiresias, saying he would never do such a thing but then he realized that he was right. This plot twist was clearly unexpected for Oedipus, realizing that Jocasta and Laius are his parents, as he stabs out his own eyes with Jocasta’s brooches. 

A Universal View of Pride

In the opening of the play, Oedipus claims, “the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus” (9). He is ready and willing to take on challenges and shout his successes. In the end, Oedipus comes to realize the prophecy is fulfilled and exclaims: “It’s mine alone, my destiny—I am Oedipus!” (1496). He begs Creon to kill or exile him. He uses the same phrase in the beginning and end of the play to reflect his view of himself from the beginning of the end of the play. We see Oedipus in the beginning, defining himself by his triumphs and successes, full of pride. By the end, he realizes that pride has contributed to his downfall and is finally humbled, defining himself by the downfall and the destiny that he could not avoid. In this manner, the play comes full circle, relaying the common message that hubris is to be avoided.

Pride is recognized as detrimental not only in Greek culture and religion, but in Christianity as well. Tragic Greek heroes are not the only people who are in danger of excessive pride; pride can be the downfall of anyone. Jesus relays this in a parable using a Pharisee and a tax collector as examples. The Pharisee was prideful while the tax collector was humble in prayer. The ultimate message is: “those who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (New International Version, Luke 18.14). Warnings about pride can also be found in the book of Proverbs, which reads: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16.18), showing that pride leads to destruction. This proves that the understanding that pride brings no good to man is a universal topic that is applied not only to Greek heroes, but all people.

This quote depicts pride as a cancer, which shows why it is a common theme in both Greek drama and Oedipus. Pride can so easily spread and blind a person, making it dangerous and a key contributor to Oedipus' fall.

Is Ignorance Bliss?

Is it true that ignorance is bliss? The only way to find out is to, well, stay ignorant. In Oedipus's case though, he wasn't given the option to stay ignorant. His know-it-all nature naturally prompted him to "solve the famous riddle with his brilliance (1433. 1679)", which lead him to discover he was indeed what Tiresias prophesied him to be. Many people tried to prevent the prevalent truth from shining through, including Oedipus's own wife (or was it his mother?) and the Shepard who originally knew about the whole love triangle-rectangle-pentagon from the very start. 

Indeed a father-killer and a mother-lover, Oedipus tries to cope with this realization, but proves quite unsuccessful. He wittingly lets out a few exclamations coinciding with his newly found familial relationships as he tries to wrap his head all that has been unveiled within the short period of time. He was truly "cursed in his birth (1420. 1310)" as well as "cursed in marriage (1420. 1310)" as he killed his own father and married and made love to his own mother. If Oedipus would have never been so eager to please and never so insecure to blindly believe a blind prophet, then he possibly could have lived his life as a brilliant ruler. Here lies his hamartia, the need to always be right and always prove he is the best. It launched him into a frenzy to find the truth to the prophecy, but in the end of solving the great riddle all the king was rewarded with was a deep set grief, a dead wife, and no sight.

(http://www.jantoo.com/cartoons/keywords/ignorance-is-bliss)

Blog Post #4 (Question #4)

     After Jocasta killed herself and Oedipus stabbed his eyes, it was declared that Oedipus will be exiled from Thebes. His actions after this decision was made show his true character and leadership abilities. Instead of being worried with who will be taking his role and leading Thebes, he is concerned with whether Creon will take care or his daughters or not, saying "But my two daughters, my poor helpless girls,/... Take care of them,/ I beg you." (1602,1605-1606). This shows that it is not possible to hold responsibilities to family (oikos) and responsibilities to the state (polis.) at the same time. In a time of crisis, where the stability of Thebes on Oedipus' family are at stake, we see that Oedipus cares more for oikos than polis.

     The image below is a quote from the 14th Dalai Lama, a monk who promotes physical and mental peace. This quote can be related to the impact that the Gods have on Greek tragedies. The characters in most of these plays believe that the Gods control the world and everyone's fate. That is why these characters so often find themselves in terrible positions. Instead of making decisions based on their own observations and what they believe is right, they follow the apparent beliefs of Gods and the messages the prophecies relay to them.

post #4

At the end of the story Oedipus has fulfilled the prophecy that was foretold to him, despite his best efforts to attempt to avoid them. even though all his actions led him to fulfill the prophecy like leaving his kingdom to attempt to avoid his true parents but he than finds himself in his birth city where he runs into his parents, killing his father and marrying his mother. once he realized what he has done than he blinds himself in attempt to avoid the physical pain that is to be seen. overall in doing so he almost in a way transforms himself into the bind prophet that told him his prophecy in the beginning of the play.

Blog Post #3 Oedipus' Downfall

             Towards the end of the story Oedipus’ wrongdoings are revealed to everyone. The results lead to chaos and heartbreak. Jocasta kills herself because of the shame and Oedipus gouges his eyes out because of the pain. Oedipus goes insane with guilt and shame and lets the Chorus see this. He says “Curse him, kill him! If I’d died then, I’d never have dragged myself, my loved ones through such hell (1487-1489).” He wails of all the things he has done wrong and all of his regrets. He wishes he was killed when he was born so his family didn’t have to go through this pain.

             The end of the play is Oedipus’ downfall. He goes insane and is replaced as king by Creon. Oedipus is exiled from the kingdom and sees his kids for the last time. In the beginning, Oedipus thinks he knows everything when he doesn’t know anything. He doesn’t know that he is the murderer of Laius and the son of Jocasta. He thinks he is right even when Creon tells him he is the culprit and refuses to believe anyone. This makes the end much more ironic as he hits rock bottom. He finds out everything in the end and realizes he was wrong all along and is pushed into a tragic state of shame. The whole play is a paradox also as there is a huge contrast between the beginning and the end. Oedipus is totally confident and in the end he is an insane and wrecked man ready to face exile. His hubris may have heightened his despair as his love for his mother is magnified and all of his wrong assumptions are pointed on him. 

The Fall of Oedipus

All Greek tragedies were written with the idea that all humans were meant to suffer and no matter how powerful they are they are still below the gods. This common theme throughout many tragedies was very present in this play.

In the beginning of this play Oedipus was introduced as Thebes' savior. Life could not have been going better for him. He had just defeated the Sphinx and become King of Thebes, but now there is a plague and it is his fault. Things to start turn very fast for Oedipus as he learns that he "came from the house... of Laius" (1282-1283), has killed Laius and married is mother. When Jocasta realizes what she has done she flees the palace "ripping her hair out with both hands" (1371) and hangs herself "high in a woven noose" (1396). Oedipus now seeing "his wife, no wife, his mother" (1387-1388) hanging gouges his own eyes out proclaiming "You, you'll see no more the pain i suffered, all the pain i have caused" (1405-1406).

Oedipus not only is dealing with his own pain but the pain he has caused to the people around him. He has lost Creon's trust, drove his mother/wife to kill herself, and now all of this is reflected upon his children which he stresses at the end of the play. After all action is ceased, the chorus comes on and states "count no man happy till he dies, free of pain at last" (1684). This is the message which this play is conveying to the audience. Joy is not permanent and the Gods will always control all aspects of life.

Lesson Learned, Avoid Hurbis

             Immediately after Tiresias warns Oedipus about his fate, Oedipus’s first reaction is denial. In his mind, there is no possible way that he could have possibly killed his father, and married his own mother. Jocasta, his wife/mother, enters the room during his breakdown and attempts to calm him down, telling him that all prophecies are invalid.  Oedipus continues on about how he is need of more proof, so he sends out a search for the only man who had survived the battle at the crossroads. The man who had survived gives Oedipus the news that a man did kill King Laius during the battle, and Oedipus instantly begins to convince himself he is the murderer. He refuses to believe this, so he demands for more information. Jocasta begs Oedipus to stop investigating, but at that moment, she realizes Oedipus is her son, and she has committed the sin of incest. This eventually leads to Jocasta hanging herself, and Oedipus blinding himself with his mother’s gold pins.

Hubris was the cause of these tragic events during the remainder of the play. Oedipus refuses to accept the truth because, in his mind, he is a god – a man who contains no flaws. “Do not seek to be master in everything, for the things you mastered did not follow you throughout your life.” (1721-1723). He has too much pride in himself to accept his wrongdoings and the fact that he has caused the plague that reigns over Thebes. Many Greek plays pertain to the audience, teaching them a lesson that no mortal can outsmart the gods. The chorus makes it clear to “count no mortal happy till he has passed the final limit of his life secure from pain” (1727-1728). In the end, hubris, once again, has consumed another victim.

“There's a disease that young writers are susceptible to, which is, I will do this because I can - hubris, I suppose - without stopping to work out why.”

-          David Mitchell

The man in the cartoon is so "full of himself", believing that he has no flaws. This man symbolizes Oedipus, for Oedipus has too much pride in himself. The quote also correlates with the overall idea of hubris.

2. Reflection

Reflecting on the past is a pass time people often practice – especially in Greek drama. In Socrates’ play, Oedipus, the protagonist dives into his past occurrences with the aid of a few other servants and friends, and discovers he is the pollution harming Thebes. Oedipus experiences anagnorisis towards the conclusion of the tragedy; he begins to realize he is possibly the killer of King Laius rather than another unfaithful man. “O God, I think I have called curses upon myself in ignorance” (862-863). Jocasta, the messengers, and herdsman all contribute tidbits of information from King Laius’s killing and Oedipus’s prophecy. Hearing all the information forces Oedipus to reflect on his past and brings forth familiar images and occurrences. The crossroads in which King Laius was killed proves to be the same crossroads Oedipus defends himself on. “I thought I heard you say that Laius was killed at a crossroads” (842-843). All of this familiar information leads Oedipus into realizing there is no doubt he is not the killer of Laius, who is also his father according to prophecy.

Oedipus’s past actions ultimately lead him to banishment and suffering. Creon takes charge and states, “let go the children, then, and come” (1719). In attempts to avoid the prophecy of killing his father and sleeping with his mother, Oedipus leaves the land of Corinth along with his “parents”. Oedipus arrives in the land of Thebes which his true home. “And as I journeyed I came to the place where, as you say, this king met with his death” (931-932). Defending himself against armed strangers Oedipus “killed them all” (946-947). Oedipus reflecting on his past is very significant in that he reaches anagnorisis and the audience learns a lesson on what not to do throughout life. Ultimately, prophecy and the Gods are unavoidable.      

Blog Post #4

Creon is now the ruler of Thebes, but how will he do as a king?

In the beginning of the play, Oedipus puts a lot of trust into Creon. Oedipus sends him to Delphi to learn how to save Thebes. This shows that Creon is respected and capable enough to do important tasks. Creon genuinely wants to help people, and compared to Oedipus, Creon can better control his anger. When Oedipus accuses him of treachery, Creon says, “Hear me out, then judge me on the facts” (609). Creon thinks rationally which will later benefit him as a king. When Oedipus is no longer a king, Creon shows compassion towards Oedipus. He tells him that “I haven’t come to mock you, Oedipus, or to criticize your former failings” (1557-1558). 

However, Creon still has flaws. At the end of the play, Creon tells Oedipus that he “tries to say what [he] means” (1671), but this statement seems to be proven false. Earlier, he tells Oedipus that being a king is “hardly to [his] taste” (662), but Creon hastily replaces Oedipus’s spot as king. Creon also seems to be secretive at times. Unlike Oedipus, Creon wanted to tell the news of the oracle to Oedipus in private. Creon separates himself with the people of Thebes and prefers to keep things confidential. This leads to question of how Creon will rule as a king. He exhibits some quality traits that will make him a good ruler, and he does not try to defy the gods — learning off of Oedipus’s mistake. (He will only exile Oedipus if the gods approve). But the fact that Creon says he tries to always tell the truth may foreshadow that he actually does not.

The End

As the new king of Thebes, Creon hopes to get the approval of the
gods to determine Oedipus's fate. Just like the cartoon above, the man
in the middle is the only one who controls the fate of the man in the
cage. The two men surrounding them give different opinions on what
to do with the man. Nevertheless, both the man in the middle and gods
decide the fate of the little man and Oedipus respectively

Unfortunately for Oedipus, he unknowingly fulfills his prophecy which results in a downfall of his reputation. The man who the people acknowledge as their hero and king suddenly becomes a tragic hero who “tore the brooches - the gold chased brooches fastening her robe - away from her and lifting them up high dashed them on his own eyeballs” (1455-1458). Driven to madness by the disclosure of his oblivious actions, Oedipus deliberately blinds himself as his way of taking control of the pain that torments him. The violence empties and exhausts Oedipus’s rage, “shrieking out such things such as: they will never see the crime I have committed or had done upon me” (1458-1460) to which he accepts his fate.
The pity and horror aroused by Oedipus' tragic fall brings about a catharsis, the realization that the power of fate cannot be overcome by will — even by the will of a king. The role of fate shapes the individual and determines the human life. Fate represents a terrifying and unstoppable force. Although King Laius and Queen Jocasta manage to get rid of baby Oedipus to “aye through fear of evil oracles” (1350-1351), Oedipus still conducts his prophecy mistakenly. Oedipus’s fate leads him to be a tragic hero rather than a monster in the play’s final moments. Throughout the play, Oedipus behaves willfully and proudly as well as being earnest and forthright in all of his actions. Oedipus’s punishment of his blindness and his exile have been inflicted by himself, no one else. The reign of the great Oedipus ends abruptly as fate has been known to be unavoidable.

Irony

Irony is a major theme throughout Greek drama. In Oedipus, Oedipus’ dynamic character change from the beginning of the play to the end is very ironic. In the beginning of the play, Oedipus was arrogant, prideful, and quick to anger. He had everything: a reputation, a family, and a kingdom; it was easy to be cruel when he held all the power. At the end of the play, Oedipus lost everything: his wife (mother), his children, his sight, his kingdom, and his pride. His fate forced him to humble himself. In his arrogance, he once told Creon, “I want you dead” (698), but now Oedipus must put aside his pride and beg Creon to fulfill his dying wishes. This ironic moment reveals how power and the truth can change a person. When Oedipus was king, it was easy to throw insults at Creon, telling him he didn’t have “a shred of decency” (637) but at the end, he had absolutely no state of power. This is where his change of heart is shown, when he pleads Creon saying “Please… my king. Grant it with all your noble heart” (1608); emphasizing the irony of how power changes his actions and thoughts.

Oedipus’ ironic character change after learning the truth about his mother and father impacts the overall plot because it emphasizes the Greek themes of having everything to having nothing and how there is no way to avoid prophecies. Oedipus’ dynamic character affects individual characters such as Creon and the Chorus. Creon is now the king and is merciful and just once Oedipus is humble, as Creon has shown by fulfilling his dying wishes. The Chorus can “count no man happy till [Oedipus] dies” (1684) because then the “plague-storm” (114) will be lifted and people will be happy again. They will remember Oedipus as a great man because he is down-to-earth at the end, but he must still die for the kingdom to be rid of the plague. 

Riches to Rags

      Finally towards the end of the play we witness the anagnorisis. Oedipus has finally realized he has made a horrible error in judgement. When the Shepherd and Messenger finally come together and tell Oedipus the truth, he falls apart. “O god… I stand revealed at last- cursed in birth, cursed in marriage, cursed in the lives I have cut down with these hands!” (1305, 1310-1311). Oedipus finally realizes he is the curse of Thebes. He is the one who killed Laius, he is the one who slept with his mother and he unknowingly fulfilled his prophecy. 
     This is tragic because Oedipus did everything he could to avoid his prophecy from coming true. The story is also tragic because Oedipus cursed the killer of Laius, which is him. “And all these curses I- no one but I brought down these piling curses on myself!” (906-907). Oedipus’ fate is now turned over. This is known as the perpetia. He can no longer be the king of Thebes since he cursed himself. Being the killer, he is “alien… no word to [him] in public, driven out of every hearth and home” (903-905). The curse bands him from his own city. He is the man who went from riches to rags. He is the man who went from being Thebe’s savior, to the man who cursed the land. A man with good intentions ended up making everything worse. No matter what Oedipus did he was doomed from the beginning. No matter what he did his horrible prophecy would be fulfilled. This makes Oedipus a tragic hero.

False Sense of Security

     Oedipus gains a false sense of security when he learns of the death of Polybus. After hearing from the messenger that "a light tip of the scales put old bones to rest"(line 1051), Oedipus rejoices that his fears have been relieved- or so he thinks. He declares "all those prophecies I feared... They're nothing, worthless."(lines 1062-1064). Oedipus is still wary that he will somehow, against all odds, sleep with his mother if he travels back to Corinth. After learning that Polybus was not his true father, a messenger tells the tale of how Laius was the one who left Oedipus on Mount Cithaeron all those years ago.
     If Oedipus had learned of his true bloodline when he was young, he would have not feared to go to back to Corinth in his later years. This false sense of security was only temporary, for as soon as he learned that Polybus was not his true father, Oedipus spiraled out of control. I feel that the reason he gouged out his own eyes is so that he could not see the prophecies unfold any longer. All his life he wanted to avoid them, only to be caught in the tangled web of prophecy in a world where "Nothing I could see could bring me joy."(line 1473)

     In typical Greek fashion, fate played a major role in this play as Jocasta and Oedipus did everything in their power to defy the prophecy from coming true. Despite the valiant effort of Jocasta taking the baby far away, the prophecy prevailed. Upon realizing the harsh truth of the incest, Oedipus committed, he begins to breakdown and feels an overbearing feeling of guilt as hey says, "I have done such things to the two of them, crimes too huge for hanging." (1503-1504) Unlike Jocasta, Oedipus refuses to hang himself as he feels like being hanged is not a just punishment for what he has done. Hanging himself would not suffice for the sins committed. As for Jocasta, her hanging says a lot about her character. Instead of facing reality and owning up to what has happened, she chooses the easy way out which is suicide. She doesn't have to deal with public banter or living with the humiliation of sleeping with her son. In fact, the choice by Oedipus to not hang himself tells the readers a lot about his character. This shows that Oedipus is in fact an honorable man who does not run from scrutiny or deserved punishment. Oedipus turns to Creon and says "Drive me out of Thebes, in exile." (1667). He begs to receive punishment for his sins he committed. Irony plays a huge role in this play as the drive and curiosity of Oedipus lead to his own demise as a king. This is a major example of curiosity killing the cat.

Would you LOOK at that

The hero of Thebes may have gorged his eyeballs out of their sockets, but does that make him truly blind? Every direction Oedipus has seen has lead him to the wrong destination; "nothing [he] could see could bring [him] joy"(1473). When his eyes were fully intact, he was searching for something more. He felt as if he couldn't see every angle of his situation, and when he finally did, he proclaimed " O light--now let me look my last on you!" (1307). He was oblivious to the world around him when he had his sight, but once his vision vanished, his perception of life was clear. Other characters, as well as Oedipus, have shown poor problem solving capabilities all throughout the story, and each solution followed the path of ignorance.  Jocasta and King Laius pinned their sons ankles together and sent him to be killed as a solution to a prophecy; if the baby was dead, they could avoid the problem all together! How simple is the path of ignorance? Jocasta kills herself when she discovers the prophecy has come true instead of facing her shame, which only makes the situation worse for everyone that is involved. The action that Oedipus takes to pry out his eyes is what opens his eyes to the truth, but also shields him from facing it. He isn't blind to his actions anymore, but he is evading his consequences, which is cowardly. Since the path of ignorance was blocked by a huge traffic jam of truth and reality, Oedipus had to take a detour, and he has no clue where he's going.

Irony and Paradox

Iin the case of Oedipus, a sense of Irony befalls the entire tragedy. He, being the new ruler of the kingdom, declares he will find justice for whoever killed King Laius in order to save his people. However, we are taught that not only is this ironic, but it is a clear paradox. We learn of the prophecy of Oedipus and his wrong doings by ways of his wife Jocasta. She tells him that there was a prophecy stating her son would kill Laius and then sleep with his mother. Due to this prophecy, Jocasta and Laius had their son killed. However, Oedipus discovers more about himself, as he was an adopted baby. And just as Jocasta's son was prophecised, he was as well, being told that he would kill his father and marry his mother. Now you have to be pretty ignorant to not put two and two together. This entire circumstance is that of Irony, as a two people, once falling victim to a falsely ended prophecy, have now gotten together, only to then complete the prophecy. Both had hoped to take measures against this curse, and thus felt safe from it. But only when they felt the most secure did fate take it's course. Fate being another commonly used Greek play device, may play in the whole prophecy idea, but not as much as irony. Being the highlight of the plot, Oedipus' quest for revenge then is affected by this irony and thus finding revenge against himself thus creates the paradox.

Irony

Tiresias claim that Oedipus was the murderer of Laius sparked an angry dispute with Oedipus. Oedipus aggressively protests against Tiresias accusation and insults him by saying, “It does but not for you, old man. You’ve lost your power, stone-blind, stone deaf—senses, eyes blind as stone” (420-422). This shows the character development of Oedipus as he expresses his high temper and lack of maturity as a leader. After Tiresias says that he was trusted by Oedipus’s parents, Oedipus is intrigued and confused on what Tiresias was trying to say. “Parents—who? Wait… who is my father?” (498).

Dramatic irony is brought forth when Oedipus enters the palace and Tiresias states, “He sowed the loins his father sowed, he spilled his father’s blood!” (522-523). The audience now knows that Oedipus’s real father was Laius and his mother is Jocasta, who is disturbingly also his wife. However Oedipus is still clueless on whom his parents really are. Sowing the same loins as his father means that they both slept with the same women.

Revealing this truth adds to the plot by giving it a twist and more fuel for a dramatic downfall of Oedipus. When the truth is finally revealed, the results will be worse than before. The characters that will be affected most upon discovery on this news will obviously be Oedipus and Jocasta. The realization from Oedipus that not only had he killed his biological father, but he has had sex and kids with his biological mother and that can psychologically impact Oedipus. Jocasta will mostly likely feel shame and disgusted.

Prophecy

Prophecy is of uttermost importance to the Greeks. Gods are very important to Greeks and since prophecies are like the words of their gods, the Greeks take prophecies to the next level of importance and go to extreme measures to prevent bad or unwanted prophecies from happening. In example, in Oedipus you don’t find out until later that Oedipus’ mother was trying to prevent him from killing his father by ordering him to be killed, but he was never killed. Oedipus was so bewildered when the Shepherd told him that, he asked how and the Shepherd replied, “she was afraid--frightening prophecies”(l. 1296).

This impacts both Oedipus and Jocasta. After discovering the prophecy was fulfilling, Oedipus ran to find Jocasta, “the woman hanging by the neck, cradled high in a woven noose spinning, swinging back and forth”(l. 1395-1397). Oedipus then took the gold pins from Jocasta’s robe and dug them into his eye sockets, crying, “You, you’ll see no more pain I suffered, all the pain I caused”(l. 1405-1406). This completely fulfils the prophet. He has already killed his father, made love to his mother, and he was now blind. Just as the prophet said, “...your father’s curse will whip you from this land one day, their footfall treading you down in terror, darkness shrouding your eyes that now can see the light”(l. 476-479).

The quote that relates best to this part of the story is this one, by Johnny Depp. In the quote, Johnny Depp says that “you can close yours eyes to the things you don’t want to see,” which relates to how Jocasta was closing her eyes in the face of the facts that showed Oedipus was the killer. And the second part of the quote, “...but you can’t close your heart to the things you don’t want to feel” relates to how Oedipus could not deny that he was the killer and he would be willing to admit to it once he found out it truly was he who was the killer.

Turning Point

Oedipus has thought himself nothing but a flawless, confident ruler throughout the opening of the play. He feels he can do no wrong, declares he will end the plague and find Laius' murderer, and goes as far as to deem himself  "Apollo's champion." (155).

However, Oedipus' entire demeanor changes when he realizes he might, in fact, be the killer. This reversal creates a major turning point in the play. "Oh no no," cries Oedipus when he first makes the connection. "I think I've just called down a dreadful curse / upon myself--I simply didn't know!" (819-821). (Here, he refers to the curse he declared earlier: "Now my curse on the murderer. Whoever he is...let that man drag on his life in agony...if by any chance he proves to be an intimate of our house...may the curse I just called down on him strike me!" (280-287).)

It's Jocasta's recall of Laius' death which leads Oedipus to suspect his own involvement. She tells her side of the story and Oedipus shares his, insisting he "killed them all"(898) but did not know "they" were Laius' entourage. "If there is any blood tie between Laius and this stranger..." worries Oedipus (899-900), but we as the reader can infer: the stranger was absolutely Laius--and Oedipus has married his mother.

Oedipus' realization changes the entire track of the story line. Before, Oedipus was well on his way to seek out the killer and end the plague. However, the minute he begins to suspect himself, everything changes. This pivotal moment serves as a turning point in the play and leaves the reader to ponder what may happen next.

Denial

Oedipus agrees to see the blind prophet, Tiresias, to ask him about the identity of King Laius’ murderer. While speaking with the prophet, Oedipus denies his identity as the murderer, calling Tiresias “blind in his craft” (442). The chorus chimes in shortly after with a promise from the people of Thebes that they would never convict Oedipus of murder.

            A similar and connected instance of denial can be seen later in the play when Jocasta reveals an encounter her late husband, King Laius, had with an oracle. When the oracle said that Laius would perish at the hands of his son, he abandoned him. Laius and Jocasta threw away their son in order to escape the fate that became a reality in the end. Jocasta denies that Oedipus could be her abandoned son or her husband’s murderer and questions the ability of the oracle to foresee the future, saying “nothing human can penetrate the future” (782).

            Oedipus questions Jocasta for detail about the murder of Laius and there is a turning point in his mind when he realizes there is a possibility he was the one who killed Laius where Oedipus says, “I have a terrible fear  the blind seer can see” (823). After, Oedipus recounts an instance where he encountered a warning from Apollo that he would kill his father and marry his mother, and he ran away from it.

Denial and efforts from neither Oedipus nor Jocasta can fully ignore or defy fate’s influence. Each time a person attempts to outrun and deny fate’s influence, the very act of running is what brings him to fulfill it. The efforts of Laius and Jocasta to elude fate come full circle with Oedipus’ denial of the validity of his own fate and the unknowing fulfillment of it.

Just as the characters in Oedipus attempt to deny the truth about the future, the man in the cartoon is blinded  by his own denial of a current issue--climate change. 

Revenge in Oedipus

     The gods take revenge on the murderer of King Laius by sending plague and famine to the streets of Thebes. The entire city is being punished for the actions of the murderer. "Thebes is dying, look, her children, stripped of pity... Generations strewn on the ground" (205-207). The only way to end the famine? Murder the murderer, a form of justice deemed righteous by the gods. This is seen as revenge in a more non-traditional sense, from an other-worldly power taking its toll on mortals in Thebes.
     The gods are able to exact revenge because, even though they are divine beings, their actions are not perfect, making revenge seem human-like. This form of justice is taken due to the fact that there would be a lack of people wanting to find the murderer if a plague was not cast on Thebes. Oedipus, the merciful King, does not truly want to "find" the murderer of the former king, he only seeks to end the plague that has been exacted on Thebes as a form of revenge by the gods.

Imagery in Oedipus

Sophocles effectively incorporates imagery into Oedipus, providing the story with descriptive text and sensory details that makes the plot rather enticing and intriguing.  Instead of simply stating situations as they happen, he adds spice to the format of his writing with the use of appropriate sensory details. To enlighten the scene where Oedipus hears through the prophecy that he is the killer of his father, Sophocles implements vivid writing. Oedipus says to Teiresias “you are blind in mind and ears as well as in your eyes” (429-30). He then goes to say “Great store of jealousy fill your treasury chests”, making reference to his belief that Creon and Teiresias are attempting to dethrone him (445). This serves as a prime example of where Sophocles includes sight imagery in Oedipus.

Not only is the sense of sight a vital piece to the story’s puzzle, but the senses of touch and sound also play significant roles. Using a blend of the senses of sight, sound, and touch, Sophocles creates a surreal feeling to make the situations much more interesting.  From the beginning of the story, it is apparent the text encompasses scenic wording.  In the beginning, Oedipus states “the town is heavy with a mingled burden of sounds and smells, of groans and hymns and incense…”, painting a picture that makes readers want to continue reading (2-4). The way Sophocles depicts the town places the audience in a precise figment of Thebes, forging a subliminal relationship between themselves and the setting of the story.

In the political cartoon below, President Obama receives a prophecy for his future and discovers his future is not bright. Thus, he portrays a long, disgusted facial appearance. Much like this cartoon, the news Oedipus hears from Teiresias does not please him, and he gets angry.