Examples Of Irreverence In Oedipus The King

In many religions, the god or gods are believed to be all-knowing and powerful, and their judgment ultimate. The tragedy Oedipus Rex, written by the Greek playwright Sophocles, is a classic Greek play telling of a king, Oedipus, who refused to accept the fate determined by the gods for him. Although he seeks to know the truth, he denies it when people tell him. All throughout the play, both reverence and irreverence to gods is shown. Reverence is shown when Oedipus says “It was Apollo, my friends, Apollo/Who contrived my ruin, who worked my fall” (1289-1290). Irreverence is shown terrifically when Oedipus denies the truth that the prophet Teiresias was saying during their conflict. Although both are shown, the irreverence to the gods is what is best reflected. …show more content…
Some examples include when Jocasta denied Apollo when she said, “So in this case Apollo’s purpose failed” (692). At this point in the story, Jocasta is telling Oedipus that Apollo’s ministers said Laius would be killed by his son, but the rumor was that he was killed by bandits, which led her to believe that Apollo was wrong. After saying that, she also mocked the oracles when she exclaimed, “So much for oracles which map our future!” (695). Also, Oedipus says “I am terrified of proving Phoebus true” (977), which shows he wanted to prove Phoebus, or Apollo, wrong, showing distaste to Apollo’s judgment. These events notably show that the disrespect to gods was what was emulated by