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Oedipus the King

Introduction

Oedipus the King is an Athenian tragedy that is also referred to as Oedipus Rex. The play was written by Sophocles and was first premiered in c. 429 BC. Oedipus the king is an ingenious fable of ancient mythology that exhibits in a practical simple manner, human overweening and its awaiting punishment from the gods. The intrigue in Oedipus’ character is the complications of his destinies. While he and his parents make efforts to escape prophesied horrors, they seem to follow them. It is intriguing to note that Oedipus, who solved the human life riddle by the Sphinx, lived a life that was in itself a riddle which was only cleared up too late, when all was lost. It is against this background information that this paper seeks to outline the characterization of Oedipus’ traits in the tragedy, Oedipus the King.

Plot- Oedipus the King

Johnstone, in his book Oedipus the King by Sophocles presents this tragedy in a systematic well outlined manner. A very serious plague strikes Thebes and the citizens gather outside the palace of King Oedipus and plead with him to take action. Oedipus affirms to them that he has already sent Creon his brother in law, to the oracle at Delphi to seek help. Creon comes back with a message from the oracle, that if the plague is to end, the murderer of a former king of Thebes Laius must be caught and expelled. He continues that the murderer is still in the city. Oedipus promises to solve Laius’ death mystery (Johnstone, 42).

A blind prophet Tiresias is sent by Oedipus to get more information about the murder. Tiresias laments on his ability to see the truth, a truth that brings nothing but pain. Initially, he refuses to reveal the truth to King Oedipus. Oedipus in his anger curses and insults Tiresias and even accuses him as the murderer. Tiresias is at this point provoked to reveal that Oedipus indeed is the murderer. Oedipus refuses to believe this and even accuses Creon and Tiresias of conspiring to destroy him. He charges Tiresias with insanity as he argues on grounds that Tiresias did nothing when Thebes suffered under a previous plague.

It is at this point that a Sphinx holds the city captive and refuses to leave until someone answers her riddle. Oedipus is very proud to proclaim that he is the only one with the ability to solve the riddle. Tiresias on the other hand defends himself as a prophet and Oedipus parents find him trustworthy. Oedipus who grew up in the distant city of Corinth wonders how Tiresias knew his parents. Tiresias answers enigmatically. Tiresias puts forth a riddle before he leaves the stage that Laius’ murderer will turn out to be both father and brother to his own children and the son of his own wife.

After Tiresias leaves, Creon is threatened with death by the king for conspiring with the prophet. Jocasta is the widow of King Laius and currently the wife of Oedipus. She enters and asks for an explanation as to why the two men are shouting at one another. Oedipus’ explanation is that Tiresias the prophet accused him of Laius’ murder. Jocasta replies that this is false prophecy. She notes that Delphic oracle once told Laius he would be murdered by his son while in actual fact the son had been cast out of Thebes as a baby. She further explains that he (Laius was murdered by a band of thieves. The description of Laius’ murder is sounds familiar to Oedipus who enquires for more information. Jocasta replies that Laius was murdered at a three way crossroads just before Oedipus arrived in Thebes. Oedipus who is shocked tells his wife Jocasta that he may be Laius’ murderer.

He explains to her that long ago, when he was the prince of Corinth, he overheard someone say the he was not really the son of the king and queen. He travelled to the Delphic oracle to get help on this matter but the oracle did not answer him. The oracle stated, “Polybus and Merope are not your parents. You will one day kill a man who will turn out to be your real father. The woman you will eventually marry is your real mother”. His answer was that he would “Mate with [his] own mother and shed/with [his] own hands the blood of [his] own sire”. (Johnstone, 65) On hearing this, Oedipus fled from Corinth and vowed never to return. It would this journey that would finally take him to Thebes. On his journey to Thebes, Oedipus was confronted, harassed and attacked by a group of travelers and in self defense, he killed one of them. The attack and murder he explains occurred at the three way crossroads where Laius was killed.

Oedipus sends for a shepherd who survived the attack hoping that he will not be identified as the murderer. A messenger approaches Jocasta outside the palace and explains to her that he has come to inform king Oedipus that his father Polybus is dead. He further explains that it is the wish of Corinth that Oedipus goes to rule in Polybus’ place. The news that Polybus died from natural causes is good news to Jocasta as she believes that this has disapproved the prophecy that Oedipus would kill his own father. Jocasta summons Oedipus to come and hear the good news and he rejoices with her. He is now at a position to incline with the wife’s decision of deeming worthless prophecies confusing perspective of chance being the principle that governs the world. While Oedipus finds great comfort in the fact that part of the prophecy has been disapproved, he still fears the other part that claimed that he would sleep with his mother.

The messenger further asserts that Oedipus has no reason to worry since Polybus and Merope his wife are not his biological parents. The messenger, who is also a shepherd, is aware of the fact that Oedipus came to Corinth as an orphan. One day long ago, as he was tending his sheep, another shepherd came to him with a baby in his arms, its ankles pinned together. The messenger took the baby to the royal family of Corinth who raised him as their own. Oedipus was the baby. Oedipus asks about the other shepherd and the messenger replies that he was Laius’ servant.

Oedipus asks that this servant of Laius be brought to testify but Jocasta disapproves as she finally starts to suspect the truth. She begs her husband not to seek any more information on the matter and runs back to the palace. When the shepherd refuses to disclose any more information, he is threatened with torture by Oedipus. He finally reveals that the baby came from the house of Laius. He further continues to state that Laius was the baby’s father and that Jocasta gave it to him and ordered him to kill it reason being that it had been prophesied that this baby would kill its parents. The Shepherd who was Laius, servant pitied the baby and named him Oedipus, which means swollen feet. Although he intended to keep the baby himself, he possessed no means to do so. He made a decision to pass the boy to the shepherd in Corinth in belief that the prophecy could be avoided if the baby were to grow in a foreign country, never to return to Thebes. The shepherd took the baby to the childless royal family.

On realization of truly who he is and who his real parents are, Oedipus screams that he sees the truth and runs to the palace. At this juncture, the shepherd and the messenger exit the stage slowly. A second messenger enters with a description of scenes of suffering. Jocasta has hanged herself and Oedipus has stabbed out his own eyes with the pins from Jocasta’s robe when he finds her dead. Oedipus emerges from the palace bleeding. He begs to be exiled. Further, he asks Creon to send him away from Thebes and to look after his daughters, Antigone and Ismene. Creon, who has always coveted royal power, obliges.

Oedipus the Character

Oedipus is the protagonist of the tragedy, Oedipus the King. He becomes the king of Thebes before the beginning of Oedipus the King action. His intelligence and ability to solve riddles cannot be underestimated in the case where he saved the city of Thebes and therefore made king by solving the riddle of the Sphinx. Sphinx is described as a supernatural being who had been held captive by Oedipus. However, in as much as he is intelligent, he is stubbornly blind to the truth about himself. The literal meaning of his name Swollen feet gives a clue about his identity; he was taken from his father’s house as a baby and with his feet bound together, left in the mountains. On his way to Thebes, he unknowingly killed his biological father and proceeded to marry Jocasta his own mother.

Oedipus is swift in action and portrays a sense of great insight. The opening of the play portrays his qualities that are in action in making him an excellent ruler who always anticipates his subject’s needs. A good instance to demonstrate this is when Thebes encounters a plague and the citizens ask him to do something about it. The fact that he has already sent Creon to the Delphic oracle means that he is a step ahead of his citizens. However, the dangerous side of his swift actions is seen later when he narrates the story of the attack on the travelers who harassed him at the three way crossroads (Johnstone, 112). He ends up killing one of them, who turns out to be Laius, his biological father. He behaves in a rash, irrational manner.

Oedipus is portrayed as very confident at the beginning for a good reason. He has saved Thebes from the curse of Sphinx and overnight becomes the king. He proclaims his own name proudly, “Here I am myself – you all know me, – the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus”. Contrastingly at the end of the tragedy, his name becomes a curse that destroys his parents.

The king’s character combination of swiftness and confidence is seen throughout the tragedy. He interrogates Creon, summons for Tiresias, threatens to punish Tiresias and Creon, calls for the servant at Laius’ attack and finally demands that he be exiled. He constantly tries to keep at pace with fate even when it is beyond his reach.

Conclusion

Oedipus the King is an Athenian tragedy that is also referred to as Oedipus Rex. Oedipus the king is an ingenious fable of ancient mythology that exhibits in a practical simple manner, human overweening and its awaiting punishment from the gods (Knox, 138). Oedipus is the protagonist of the tragedy, Oedipus the King. He becomes the king of Thebes before the beginning of Oedipus the King action.

The intrigue in Oedipus’ character is the complications of his destinies. While he and his parents make efforts to escape prophesied horrors, they seem to follow them. It is intriguing to note that Oedipus, who solved the human life riddle by the Sphinx, lived a life that was in itself a riddle which was only cleared up too late, when all was lost.

References

Johnstone, C. Ian, Oedipus the King by Sophocles Virginia: Richer Resources, 2007

Brunner, M. King Oedipus Retried London: Rosenberger & Krausz, 2000

Foster, C. Thomas. How to Read Literature like a Professor New York: HarperCollins, 2003

HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Knox” o “Bernard Knox” Knox, Bernard. “The Date of the Oedipus the King of Sophocles,” The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 77, No. 2 (1956), 133-147.