As King Oedipus and the Theban Legend incorporate many themes, one particular themes sticks out. Does suffering make one wiser and stronger? Throughout the play Sophocles forces us to read between the lines to solve the question. Oedipus's fate and decisions lead to the suffering of himself and the citizens of Thebes and lead us to decide for ourselves: does suffering build you up or wear you down? Sophocles disagrees with this statement because if he were to agree with it, I believe he would not have made the ending so tragic. It is clear to the readers that once Oedipus discovers that he fulfilled the prophecy; his entire life spiraled out of control. The constant stress that followed Oedipus wherever he went did not make him any stronger. It wore him down. As Teiresias states, "You are the cursed and polluter of this land " (Sophocles 35). By this quote, Oedipus's subconscious is now making Oedipus doubt his every thought and more, which would put a heavy burden on his mind. He carried around the burden of not knowing who the killer was and not being able to help the people of Thebes out of their horrible plague brought on by the gods. He had to live with the guilt of knowing he caused all this to happen. His life may or may not have already been decided by fate, but it was his choices that brought all of this to life. .
If anything the burden of the truth weakened him. It leads him to gouge out his own eyes and to be banished from his own kingdom. Another quotes by Teiresias goes," You, even though you see clearly, do not see the scope of your evil, nor where you live, nor with whom you dwell. Do you know your true descent? And secretly you are an enemy to your own kin " (Sophocles 37). Here he is stating that Oedipus's decisions have caused his suffering and pain even if his life was determined for him by fate. This is also ironic because Teiresias states that he cannot see clearly and in the end he ends up taking out his eyes because he does not want to see all the havoc he has created.
Although Oedipus is a victim of fate, he is not controlled by it. ... Instead of waiting for the plague to end, out of compassion for his suffering people of Thebes, Oedipus orders Creon to seek the oracle at Delphi. ... / My suffering is enough." (1161-1163). Oedipus replies, "Listen to you? ... Oedipus claims full responsibility for his actions. ...
This can be seen by many aspects in the play, such as, the tragic hero must not be a perfectly good man, the tragic hero is brought to disaster by his own hamartia, and that the consequences of the hero's fall produces suffering and calamity far beyond the hero. ... Although there is less suffering where Laius is involved, Oedipus" events are less tragic. ... Oedipus's hamartia is also caused by his hubris. ... Therefore, Laius" hamartia is much more tragic than Oedipus", and therefore there were more tragic consequences such as suffering and calamity. ... He is also more...
The ironic thing about this play is that many of Oedipus" choices were intended to prevent suffering and were intended to protect those he cared about. ... Nonetheless, Oedipus still commits both of these horrible crimes. ... The tragic vision of Oedipus Rex is increased by the fact that for all of Oedipus" actions he is never the lone sufferer. Whether it be his birth parents, his children or even the villagers; all of them shared in his suffering. ... This quote goes to show that Oedipus realizes the pain and suffering that his actions have caused within his own children. ...
He experiences a fall because he has a certain character flaw, or tragic flaw, and he suffers so that the audience may learn from that suffering without having to experience the pain themselves. Oedipus" tragic flaw led to his downfall and suffering. ... Oedipus" need for knowledge led to his downfall and caused a great deal of suffering. ... The suffering inflicted by that alone was almost unbearable for him and his people, but Oedipus continued to push for more knowledge. ... If only Oedipus could have disregarded his desire for knowledge and truth, this great suffering could have been avoid...
He experiences a fall because he has a certain character flaw, or tragic flaw, and he suffers so that the audience may learn from that suffering without having to experience the pain themselves. Oedipus" tragic flaw led to his downfall and suffering. ... Oedipus" need for knowledge led to his downfall and caused a great deal of suffering. ... The suffering inflicted by that alone was almost unbearable for him and his people, but Oedipus continued to push for more knowledge. ... If only Oedipus could have disregarded his desire for knowledge and truth, this great suffering could have been avoid...
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles is a classical Greek tragedy. ... For example, "Oedipus, the simple man, who knows nothing. ... this is when Oedipus mocks teiresias, Oedipus tires deliberately to be ironic when he says he is "simple man, who know nothing." ... The main character Oedipus remains on stage for nearly the entire play, this hero who suffers a reversal of fortune that causes him profound suffering, which eventually leads up to his final recognition of truth. The fundamental irony in Oedipus Rex that stems from the fact which the audience knows king Oedipus's true identity, while he is...
In the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, Oedipus is a classic tragic hero.According to Aristotle's definition, Oedipus is a tragic hero because he is a king whose life falls apart when he finds out his life story. ... Those actions happen when the Herdsman tells Oedipus who his mother is, and Oedipus replies "Oh, oh, then everything has come out true. ... A prophecy is foretold to Laius, the father of Oedipus, that the destiny of Oedipus is a terrible one beyond his control. ... In the play Oedipus Rex, Sophocles portrays the main character, Oedipus, as a good- natured person who has...
It is stereotypical that protagonists from ancient Greek tragedies make mistakes based on their behaviors or decisions, often suffering the consequences. ... It is obvious that Oedipus exhibits a higher degree of remorse, not only through the suffering of his relatives and severe physical punishments, but his action of avoiding the tragedy and abandoning his power in order to search for the "mental peace " before and after. To begin with, Oedipus's reaction to the devastating tragedy is more severe, and shows more remorse. On his way to the City of Thebes, Oedipus killed an old man unint...
In Oedipus the king, the crossroads is part of the distant past, dimly remembered, and Oedipus was not aware at the time that he was making a fateful decision (Murray 59). ... Take for example a part of the last conversation between Iocasta and Oedipus. ... Oedipus replies, "You cannot move me. ... He could have endured the plague, but out of compassion for his suffering people, he had Creon go to Delphi. ... This man was Oedipus. ...
