Theme Of Blindness In Oedipus

Blindness can be classified as either physical or intellectual blindness, both of these are significantly important and can have a great impact on an individual’s life. In the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, blindness is the main theme that revolves around the characters in the play. The theme is conveyed as an idea that it is not the eyesight itself, but the insight that holds the key to the truth. “…You mock my blindness, do you? / But I say that you, with both your eyes, are blind” (Scene I, 400-401). This is a powerful yet contradicting quote which questions the idea of being blind while having the ability to see. It metaphorically expresses that even though one may have eyes, they may be blind to the truth. Oedipus Rex is qualified as a …show more content…
This metaphor refers to a sightless man who sees all in contrast to a man who is rich with vision yet sees nothing of his own life. First of all, in spite of being physically blind Teiresias has the aptitude to “see” metaphorically. The continuous metaphor of blindness is seen at the beginning when Teiresias has been asked to give his statement about the murder of King Laius. After being compelled to speak his mind, he unwillingly reveals that Oedipus is the murderer he hunts, “So? I charge you, then…You yourself are the pollution of this country.” (Scene I. 131-135) While making his statement even more clear he reiterates himself, “I say that you are the murderer whom you seek” (Scene 1. 144). Teiresias makes this powerful statement and it is significance because of the fact that he is a blind man, yet he is also the only man who knows the entire truth about the king Laius’ death. On the other hand, the protagonist of the play, Oedipus has great vision and can literally “see” but he is metaphorically blind to the truth. He is "blind" to the fact that the fate he has been trying to avoid has unknowingly come true. Oedipus turns his back towards the truth portraying his unwillingness to accept the reality, “Could I have told that you’d talk nonsense, that / You’d come here to make a fool of yourself, and of me?” ( Scene 1. 218-219). His denial to the truth proves him being metaphorically blind as even after he is …show more content…
First of all, Teiresias’ blindness increases his prophetic ability since he is in tune with the mind of Apollo and receives visions of the future. He is also gifted with foretelling the future from the behavior of birds. His prophetic abilities are evident through the prophecies that he makes about Oedipus’ life. “A blind man, / Who has his eyes now; a penniless man, who is rich now;…Brother and father – the very same; to her/ Who bore him, son and husband – the very same/ Who came to his father’s bed, wet with his father’s blood…If later you find error in what I have said, / You may say that I have no skill in prophecy.” (Scene 1. 236-245). This prophecy proves the point that vision does not necessarily come along with the physical sense of sight. Teiresias’ metaphoric blindness makes him a prophet, which allows him to encounter visions of the future. Also, his prophetic ability foreshadows Oedipus’ downfall in the future. Furthermore, when Oedipus comes across the truth and metaphorically, his eyes finally open up, he is filled with shame, “Ah God! / It was true! / All the prophecies! / -Now, / ...Oedipus, damned in his birth, in his marriage damned, / Damned in the blood he shed with his own hand!” (Scene 4. 66-73). At this point Oedipus is full of guilt, he finally realizes the fact that even though he can see he was blind this whole time, while the physically blind seer Teiresias is the