King Laius and Queen Jocasta are told by the oracle at Delphi that their first son will kill his father and marry his mother. ... Oedipus tells Jocasta, "This: at a feast a man who"d drunk too much denied, at the wine, I was my father's son" (OR 783-784). ... Jocasta who, unknown to him, is his mother bore him two sons and two daughters. ... Jocasta believes that fate is preset and cannot be changed. ... Jocasta warns Oedipus by begging him, "For the love of the gods, and if you love your life, give up this search! ...

• Word Count: 1505
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

The role of fate and destiny, and the impact of the prophecy is further seen when the reward for the person who destroys the pestilence brought on by the riddling sphinx is Jocasta, Laius's wife and Oedipus's mothers, hand in marriage. ... Nemesis is inflicted upon Oedipus with his loss of sight, his banishment from Thebes, the death of Jocasta and through the degradation of his children. ... The manner in which Oedipus and Jocasta both display their disbelief in Oracles is also ironic. Jocasta tells Oedipus that oracles are powerless, yet at the beginning of the next scene, she is s...

• Word Count: 1270
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

No matter how Jocasta comforts him with her logical reasoning that Oedipus can never be involved in this crime, Oedipus still insists on searching for proofs and emphasizes the urgency of revealing the truth-"I want that shepherd summoned here. ... No matter how the witness cries out desperately, "Please, in god's name, no more questions" (1463), Oedipus keeps interrogating who the murder is until the bloody spear of truth eventually makes Jocasta commit suicide and agonizes Oedipus to blind himself. ... Before the servant tells the powerful and awful evidence that Oedipus ...

• Word Count: 1352
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate