The Story Of Oedipus : Fate Or Free Will Essay

The Story of Oedipus: Fate or Free Will The story of Oedipus in Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King is a tale of prophecy and how the characters fall victim of their undesirable fate. The Oracle of Apollo at Delphi foretold that Oedipus would grow up to murder his father, marry his mother and father children with her. Oedipus destiny is inevitable but it was his free will and hamartia of hubris, anger, and determination that led to the complete undoing of Oedipus. In the beginning, Oedipus learns of the prophecy that said he would kill his father and wed his mother. In learning his future, Oedipus tries to escape his predetermined fate by leaving his home in Corinth to avoid killing Polybus, the man he thought to be his biological father. Oedipus says, “when I heard this, and ever since I gauged / the way to Corinth by the stars alone, / running to a place where I would never see / the disgrace in the oracle’s words come true” (798-801).Unbeknown to Oedipus, he was actually falling directly into the hands of his fate by trying to escape it. He then unknowingly kills his father after meeting a group of men at a crossroads where one, King Laius, hits him in the head with a whip. Oedipus in a fit of rage kills all the men and eventually becomes the King of Thebes and marries Jocasta, who he does not realize is his biological mother. Laius and Jocasta did the same thing when they heard the prophecy. Knowing what their son would do, Laius has young Oedipus taken to Mount Cithaeron…