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.
Avoiding the Gods is unfeasible in Greek tragedies – a practical example is present in Oedipus the King. The line you stated above proves to be accurate in Oedipus’s situation, “Joy is not permanent and the Gods will always control all aspects of life.” In the beginning of the play, Oedipus believes he is capable of rescuing the land of Thebes and discovering the truth of King Laius’s killer, without aid from the Gods. Eventually, his mindset proves to be incorrect when he fulfills his prophecy and experiences a fall. From one moment to the next, Oedipus’s life goes from great, to okay, to awful. There truly is no way of escaping the Gods, especially when one possesses hubris as Oedipus does.
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