The Downfall of Oedipus Essay

in the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles serves as a foil to the main character Oedipus. The extreme contrast between the two men emphasizes the inherent weaknesses that Oedipus possesses. Oedipus is able-bodied, whereas Tiresias is old and blind. Oedipus ignorantly denies fate, whereas Tiresias humbly accepts it. Tiresias may be physically weak, but he possesses an inner strength - he is able to recognize and accept the truth of the myth. Tiresias is frail and blind whereas Oedipus is…

“Creon thus serves as a pivot about which Oedipus turns in his contrasting phrases of self-confidence and abasement” (Kirkwood 70). He not only ignored others but even accused them of the crime. “Oedipus is proud and overconfident; he harbors unjustified suspicions against Teiresias and Creon” (Dodds 19). Rather than acknowledging the information of other characters, Oedipus was threatened by their attempts to help. “The suspicion is confirmed, the connection between Creon and Teiresias is…

character’s downfall. This circumstance is evident through the Jewish Proverb, “Proud people breed sad sorrows for themselves.” The sorrows that emanate from the prideful could range from destruction and turmoil, sadness experienced by others, or one’s own unfortunate defeat. Oedipus from Oedipus the King and Coalhouse Walker Jr. from Ragtime relate to this proverb because both let their pride manipulate their actions, thus resulting in their breeding of sorrows, or in this case their…

out of free will. In the time of the story, Oedipus Rex, a person's fate is controlled by the gods, and trying to go against their fate is like going against the gods. Laius and Jocasta learn from the oracle that if they have a child, then their child’s fate will be to kill their father and marry their mother. When Laius and Jocasta accidently have a child, Oedipus, they attempt to avoid their fate and Oedipus’s fate by trying to kill him. Because Oedipus did not know that Laius and Jocasta were…

Oedipus Rex, written by Sophocles, is a play that focuses on a king named Oedipus. Oedipus is a king who has tragic flaws lead him to his tragic downfall. People can get an understanding of why it is important to have humility and accept one's faults. This concept is learned all too late for Oedipus; nevertheless, this shows the audience the result of what happens when people become arrogant and unwilling to acknowledge their flaws. Oedipus does not stand alone as a tragic historical figure that…

Aristotle, tragedy involves a protagonist of a high socioeconomic class who falls from prosperity to misery through several reversals and discoveries as a result of such “hamartia". This protagonist is known as the tragic hero. Tragedy depicts the downfall of a noble hero, usually through some combination of hubris, fate, and the will of the gods(Poetics). The character should be a good man though not perfect so that the audience can identify with him. As there, will no feelings of pity or fear…

In the mythical story Oedipus the King by Sophocles, the protagonist is plagued with the ultimate sin of hubris which provides him with the false belief of being equal to the Gods due to his own greatness. The tragic flaw of pride had caused the downfall of Oedipus because he attempted to go against the Gods by refusing to accept his fate and fulfill the prophecy. In order to maintain his power in Thebes, Oedipus is determined to save his people from the plague as well as himself by finding the…

poor judgment leads to their own destruction. This modern definition, although modeled from Aristotle’s version, differs from the traditional, Greek tragic hero. Aristotle stated that “a man doesn’t become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall,” and thus in order for a literary character to be deemed an Aristotelian tragic hero, they must meet certain qualifications. The first is, the tragic hero must be virtuous, in the sense that they are a noble leader and represent the…

beginning. The tragic hero discovers his destiny by his actions, he is usually a leader, and his suffering always has a purpose, his downfall is due to excessive pride, and a tragic flaw is what often leads to the hero’s downfall. Oedipus is the ideal tragic hero because he satisfies the role of tragedy and stimulates fear and sympathy at the highest level. Oedipus is a man with no clear vision that enables him to examine every angle of a matter with clear sight, and see all things in due…

a great character who is destined for defeat, suffering, or downfall. One thing I would add into the definition of a tragic character is that they have a tragic flaw that leads to their downfall. One major tragic play written and preformed during the peak of Ancient Greece was Sophocles ' Oedipus the King. Sophocles wrote Oedipus the King as a self-discovering tragedy that all plays out in one day. In that one day the great King Oedipus realizes all of the problems he has created and suffers…