Laius

According to Aristotle, tragic heroes must acquire some qualities, including a superior stature, tragic flaws, and the ability to evoke in the audience a sense of sympathy. Oedipus in the Greek play Oedipus the King by Sophocles is described as eminent, confident, and caring. Romeo in the play The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is presented as handsome, sensitive and passionate. The two characters, although created in two ages that have a gap of two thousand years, satisfy…

If you are oblivious to the truth and have no way of knowing what you did wrong, should you be blamed for your actions? Oedipus Rex is a play written by Sophocles in 441 b.c.. The play is about King Oedipus, ruler of Thebes, and his terrible destiny. There was an oracle created before the King’s birth that eventually proved to be true. The oracle claimed that Oedipus would kill his father, and also marry and have children with his mother. Knowing that this oracle was in place, Oedipus’s…

follows the same mindset as Marcus regarding being rebellious to those not in favour of an individual’s actions and being determined to accomplish any task. In Oedipus the King, the characteristic of Oedipus being determined to find the murder of King Laius is rather his downfall as it leads to his own unfortunate shortcoming. During that time, Oracles were given much respect as they provided insight about specific events, making it unacceptable to refute their words. However, when Tiresias…

The Impact of Mythology in Oedipus Rex Have you ever thought about how Greek mythology is implanted in the story of Oedipus Rex? There are many examples of mythology throughout “Oedipus Rex.” There are many references to gods and goddesses and also mythological creatures. Oedipus is viewed as a tragic hero in Greek mythology. The use of mythology makes sense because of the time that Oedipus Rex was written back in 429 B.C. Sophocles uses elements of Greek mythology in “Oedipus Rex” in order…

In the story of Oedipus Rex, blindness refers to people being blind to the truth. The answer they were seeking when it came to their problems may have been obvious, but they could not see the answer. Due to them being blind to they answer they were seeking. Blindness also can be associate with being physically blind and being enlightened. A blind person in the story is said to have powers to see things that people with sight cannot see. Though the blind doesn’t have sight they have another kind…

In Socrates’ view, wisdom entails the understanding of the self. An individual needs to be aware of their existence, own thoughts and feelings, as well as their environment, in order to be considered wise. From this perspective, Oedipus was everything but wise. He pride himself with his achievements, his knowledge and fame, yet was ignorant of so many things. His pride led him to believe he was knowledgeable, disregarded the information and warnings from others, and thought he could shape his…

identity. Creon, a close friend to Oedipus, aids him in his search by requesting help from multiple people, Tiresias is one of them, as well as a Herald from Corinth, and a Shepherd. They tell him that his wife, Jocasta, is his mom and the former king, Laius, who he believes he killed, was his dad. Jocasta finds out about this as well and ended up hanging herself, devastating Oedipus to the point where he stabs out his own eyes. He wants Creon to banish him so he won’t have to be seen by Theban…

Sophocles’s award winning tragedy Oedipus Rex can be at times disturbing and gory, but it is attention grabbing overall. In a world where people are destined for good or evil and knowledge is blinded by ignorance, one can say it is a tale about life. A life in which one’s worst fears became reality and the truth is hidden behind a clear screen. The various symbols of Oedipus Rex help to illustrate the theme that the truth will always be revealed no matter how much one may deny it. The symbol…

“The bigger they are, the harder they fall,” said American singer/songwriter Pitbull. Imagine starting at the bottom, slowly working your way up, and finally reaching the pinnacle of your success, only to just plunge back down to where you started. Whether it be due to your actions or another’s, it hurts like nothing else. In Sophocles’s “Oedipus the King,” Oedipus goes from living the dream of his lifetime all the way to down to agonizing in his worst nightmare. Oedipus is a tragic hero because…

Identification is the process known as finding oneself, or discovering the things that make up a persons personality or self. Ones origins, past present and future are the determining factors of becoming who one is. Two Known stories that use the process of exploring their inner self, through out the their stories are, Oedipus the King, as well as Dante’s story Inferno Canto . Both stories show a great depiction that portrays the effort of finding oneself. As Oedipus yearns to search for…