Fate and its predisposition on life .
Many people have different opinions over the truth regarding fate. Is fate predetermined? It is not possible to determine whether this question is true nor can one determine whether this question is false. Because the validity of this question can not be determined, this idea enters the realm of philosophy. According to the plays of Sophocles, fate is predetermined and can't be changed. I do not think this is true; I believe in the idea that we as humans have free will and therefore, am able to determine our own fate. Though I believe in free will, I do not believe that Oedipus could have changed the events of his life.
Due do Oedipus" great pride, it would have been very difficult to prevent the prophecy from coming true, as the prophet told his parents at his birth. His pride, ignorance, and disbelief in prophecies as well as his pursuit of the truth contributed greatly to the terrible results of his existence. After Oedipus was told by Tiresias that he was responsible for the murder of King Laius, he became infuriated and called the prophet a liar. This shows the type of ignorance and disbelief that Oedipus has towards fate as determined by the gods. Oedipus ran away from Corinth with a purpose of fleeing from the will of the gods to prove to that he had control of his life, but this merely caused the prophecy to come true. "If a man walks with haughtiness of hand shafts of the God?" (Sophocles 975-984). The chorus warned of the dangers if a person has too much pride in his own fate without giving respect to the will and fate that the gods have intended.
Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines fate as, "a power of thought to control all events and impossible to resist a persons destiny." This definition would imply that fate has an overwhelming power of the mind and that a person has no ability to control it. It has been proven throughout time that the combination of a person's mind and will can overcome any obstacle, thereby deciding their own fate.
