Confidence In Oedipus The King

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Cocky and confident are two very different traits. They both have one thing in common which is to be successful. The major difference between the two are when one is cocky, one is overconfident and has a big ego. The one with confidence has more of a humble personality and has assurance with every challenge that waits upon one. Confidence overpowers cockiness. The cocky trait is heavily represented in the story “Oedipus the King” (c. 430 B.C.) by Sophocles. In the story, Oedipus the king of Thebes has the cocky trait and it results in torture for life. Oedipus’s arrogant personality shows throughout the story as he tries to find the killer of the former king of Thebes, his father. Oedipus tends to deem himself as a god throughout the story …show more content…
Oedipus’s choice of words reveals a repellent characteristic within himself. Oedipus yells, “Nothing! You, you scum of the earth you’d enrage a heart of stone!” (381-382). Here, Oedipus is arguing with Tiresias but takes the heat of the moment to another level by causing Tiresias to feel disgust. Oedipus calls Tiresias “the scum of the earth” over exaggerating how he feels about Tiresias. David M. Galens emphasizes on Oedipus’s choice of words by saying “Oedipus is also said to suffer from a character flaw known as hubris, or pride and his cruel treatment of Tiresias [...] evidences this trait.” Here, Galens shows that Oedipus’s pride carries over to the way he speaks towards people. With a big ego, Oedipus also carries an ignorant character trait. Oedipus prolongs the argument with Tiresias by adding, “You’ve lost your power, stone-blind, stone-deaf— senses, eyes blind as stone! (423-424). Oedipus states the obvious about Tiresias’s blindness, but he knows that reminding him about being blind will enrage Tiresias. The tragic flaw and dialogue of Oedipus tie in great together to reveal Oedipus’s attitude and personality will lead to his …show more content…
Throughout the story, Oedipus is trying to find who the killer of his father is. Oedipus eventually finds out that he, himself is the killer of his father the former king of Thebes. Mary R. Sullivan adds on by saying, “With Oedipus, [...] he finds himself face to face with the shattering knowledge that he is indeed the cursed killer.” Oedipus kept denying the fact that he was the killer of his own father but instead of the continuous refusals he decides to punish himself by removing his own eye and exiling himself. Oedipus then begins to talk down to himself: “What can I ever see? What love, what call of the heart can touch my ears with joy? Nothing, friends (1475-1476). Here Oedipus finally admits that he does not have the mental strength to carry on. Oedipus’s tragic flaw, dialogue, and self-actions create an illusion of success but turn out to backfire and lead to failure. Cockiness is not the best way to approach every situation; rather being confident is the best way to go. Sophocles’ use of characterization for Oedipus reveals the outcome of one with an arrogant attitude and big ego. Failure and regret are the only things on the mind of a cocky minded one. Cockiness can change into confidence in a matter of seconds, but if the person has a big ego, the transition from pride to humbleness may take longer. Be confident, be humble, and be

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