Tragedy is meant to invoke many emotions within its audience, particularly of the negative variety, and Oedipus the King is no different. An audience watching this Greek play may, in fact, experience both pity and fear at the same time. Firstly, the audience pities the character of Oedipus because he is a character an audience can easily relate to thrust into terrible circumstances. Oedipus has flaws just like any other human being, such as arrogance and paranoia, but he is all around a decent person, a ruler trying to save his kingdom and a man trying to live his life. This makes the audience sympathetic towards Oedipus when the truth of his misdeeds comes to light. The viewer may also feel a sensation akin to fear during a staging of Oedipus
