Around 430 B.C, an Athenian dramatist and tragedian, Sophocles, wrote the play Oedipus Rex, capturing the complexity of human consciousness by pitting fate and freewill against one another. By do so, understanding the Oedipus myth and his hamartia became less daunting and more transparent to the audience. It is evident, however, that individual free will was the dominant factor that led to Oedipus’ hamartia and played a more active role in the creation of the myth itself.
Fate can be defined in more than one way, according to Sophocles; it had “terrible power. You cannot escape it by wealth or war. No fort will keep it out, no ships outrun it.” (Antigone, Sophocles.) Using this interpretation of fate, it is clear that Sophocles was implying …show more content…
"I will tell you what I heard from the god. Apollo commands us-- he was quite clear-- "Drive the corruption from the land, don’t harbor it any longer, past all cure, don’t nurse it in your soil-- root it out!"" (107-114). This was the first mentioning of the Oedipus myth, and although the audience was well aware of what Apollo was referring to when he stated, “drive the corruption from the land,” Oedipus did not. The audience knew that this was a reference to the murder of the former king Laius, which immediately signals the beginning in which Oedipus’ reign of power comes to a halt. This is an example of fate because it is spoken from the gods, and as Sophocles stated, fate has terrible, inescapable power. The command to drive out the corruption and seek out the murderer is inescapable and inevitable if Oedipus wants to free Thebes from the plague under which it suffers and make sure that he doesn’t have the same fate as the former king. Another instance of fate, is in the beginning of the play when the Chorus prays to the gods that “If ever, once in the past, you stopped …show more content…
It is evident that if an individual went to look for something, they would return with new information. It is also evident that what is not researched will never be found. If Oedipus followed the latter of the quote, he would not have found out about his birth. For example, throughout the play Oedipus is always at the center of attention. For example, in the beginning of the play, when Oedipus tells the people of Thebes not to worry and that he will make sure he finds the murderer and brings him justice. “"No, I 'll start again-- I 'll bring it all to light myself!" (149-150) And "I order you, every citizen of the state where I hold throne and power: banish this man--whomever he may be--" (268-270). These quotes are especially important because it proves that Oedipus himself chose to bring light to the case and chose to set the punishment of exile for the criminal when found. Another incident of free-will is when the story of Oedipus’ birth is brought back up with the Shepherd and he states "What--give up now, with a clue like this? Fail to solve the mystery of my birth? Not for all the world!" (1161-1163) and "I must know it all, must see the truth at last." (1170) in regards to his birth. If Oedipus weren’t so insistent on learning the truth, the truth of his
Fate can be defined in more than one way, according to Sophocles; it had “terrible power. You cannot escape it by wealth or war. No fort will keep it out, no ships outrun it.” (Antigone, Sophocles.) Using this interpretation of fate, it is clear that Sophocles was implying …show more content…
"I will tell you what I heard from the god. Apollo commands us-- he was quite clear-- "Drive the corruption from the land, don’t harbor it any longer, past all cure, don’t nurse it in your soil-- root it out!"" (107-114). This was the first mentioning of the Oedipus myth, and although the audience was well aware of what Apollo was referring to when he stated, “drive the corruption from the land,” Oedipus did not. The audience knew that this was a reference to the murder of the former king Laius, which immediately signals the beginning in which Oedipus’ reign of power comes to a halt. This is an example of fate because it is spoken from the gods, and as Sophocles stated, fate has terrible, inescapable power. The command to drive out the corruption and seek out the murderer is inescapable and inevitable if Oedipus wants to free Thebes from the plague under which it suffers and make sure that he doesn’t have the same fate as the former king. Another instance of fate, is in the beginning of the play when the Chorus prays to the gods that “If ever, once in the past, you stopped …show more content…
It is evident that if an individual went to look for something, they would return with new information. It is also evident that what is not researched will never be found. If Oedipus followed the latter of the quote, he would not have found out about his birth. For example, throughout the play Oedipus is always at the center of attention. For example, in the beginning of the play, when Oedipus tells the people of Thebes not to worry and that he will make sure he finds the murderer and brings him justice. “"No, I 'll start again-- I 'll bring it all to light myself!" (149-150) And "I order you, every citizen of the state where I hold throne and power: banish this man--whomever he may be--" (268-270). These quotes are especially important because it proves that Oedipus himself chose to bring light to the case and chose to set the punishment of exile for the criminal when found. Another incident of free-will is when the story of Oedipus’ birth is brought back up with the Shepherd and he states "What--give up now, with a clue like this? Fail to solve the mystery of my birth? Not for all the world!" (1161-1163) and "I must know it all, must see the truth at last." (1170) in regards to his birth. If Oedipus weren’t so insistent on learning the truth, the truth of his