In Plato’s Apology, Socrates examines his own life by “discuss(ing) virtue every day” and “conversing and testing myself and others”. In this way, he gradually learns the fact that he does not know something. Realizing the impossibility of knowing everything, he becomes more calm and reasonable regarding to the process of pursuing knowledge. By interacting with various people, Socrates treats various people different but appropriately based on his observation and thoughts on their personalities. In this way, Socrates’ “examined life” is worth living, even though he is accused by the authorities in Athens and commit suicide at last. Similarly, the life of Oedipus confirms Socrates’ claim of “the unexamined life is not worth living”. From seeking
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When people are unaware of the significance of knowledge and reasoning, they always exaggerate the power of gods and worship more blindly when confronting with fear and anxiety. Thus, they are always towards the gods when there is good news, while away from the gods when there is disastrous forecast. Without exception, Oedipus the king is one of the devout worshippers. Confronting with plague, Oedipus sends Creon to “learn the will of the gods” even before the Theban elders begging for the king’s salvation. On the contrary, when it comes to his own fate, Oedipus flees from Corinth after hearing Apollo’s prophecy of his life. Such contrast between the same Oedipus’ attitudes towards the gods illustrates his reverence on the omnipotence, which also reflects his lack of thoughts. After his discovery on his bloodline, Oedipus recognizes himself more thoroughly, and he intends to make decisions more based on his own free will. When Creon commands him to return Thebes, Oedipus refuses to follow the order, despite the benefits returning may bring according to the gods. He reasons to Creon on this issue, claiming that it is his own suffering and torment caused by Creon that determines himself not to go back to “the city of his birth”. From this point, the profounder self-image rouses Oedipus’ cognition of free will. With …show more content…
When he rules Thebes, Oedipus loves his sons and daughters, trusts Creon, and cares his people. Accompanied with the drastic change of Oedipus’ own life, people’s attitudes towards him get widely different. Creon and the sons’ misbehavior brings Oedipus to curse them as cruelly as they treat him, while the king wholeheartedly addresses “love” to his benevolent daughters before his death. Such various reactions to the people around him originates in Oedipus’ distinguishable evaluations on these people, which have their sources in his rational thoughts. The strike difference in social status may not let the king get to know the people around exactly, however the genuine benevolence and malignity in others comes to the picture when the great turn of his life takes place. It is not always acceptable for a man to be blindly kind to everyone, but should treat people appropriately according to understanding of their personalities, which requires the richness of a person’s heart and emotions. To a certain degree, Oedipus’ examination activates his feelings and enriches his emotions, leading to widely different but proper evaluations on
When people are unaware of the significance of knowledge and reasoning, they always exaggerate the power of gods and worship more blindly when confronting with fear and anxiety. Thus, they are always towards the gods when there is good news, while away from the gods when there is disastrous forecast. Without exception, Oedipus the king is one of the devout worshippers. Confronting with plague, Oedipus sends Creon to “learn the will of the gods” even before the Theban elders begging for the king’s salvation. On the contrary, when it comes to his own fate, Oedipus flees from Corinth after hearing Apollo’s prophecy of his life. Such contrast between the same Oedipus’ attitudes towards the gods illustrates his reverence on the omnipotence, which also reflects his lack of thoughts. After his discovery on his bloodline, Oedipus recognizes himself more thoroughly, and he intends to make decisions more based on his own free will. When Creon commands him to return Thebes, Oedipus refuses to follow the order, despite the benefits returning may bring according to the gods. He reasons to Creon on this issue, claiming that it is his own suffering and torment caused by Creon that determines himself not to go back to “the city of his birth”. From this point, the profounder self-image rouses Oedipus’ cognition of free will. With …show more content…
When he rules Thebes, Oedipus loves his sons and daughters, trusts Creon, and cares his people. Accompanied with the drastic change of Oedipus’ own life, people’s attitudes towards him get widely different. Creon and the sons’ misbehavior brings Oedipus to curse them as cruelly as they treat him, while the king wholeheartedly addresses “love” to his benevolent daughters before his death. Such various reactions to the people around him originates in Oedipus’ distinguishable evaluations on these people, which have their sources in his rational thoughts. The strike difference in social status may not let the king get to know the people around exactly, however the genuine benevolence and malignity in others comes to the picture when the great turn of his life takes place. It is not always acceptable for a man to be blindly kind to everyone, but should treat people appropriately according to understanding of their personalities, which requires the richness of a person’s heart and emotions. To a certain degree, Oedipus’ examination activates his feelings and enriches his emotions, leading to widely different but proper evaluations on