Sunday, February 21, 2010
Oedipus the King Blog
In Oedipus the King, Sophocles tries to make a point of the lack of actual human free will due to the power of the Gods and the prophets. In general, Sophocles shows prophecies as turning out true due to there being a large amount of debate over the truthfullness of prohpets back in his time. Sophocles clearly believed in prophecies and "blinds" Oedipus by the end of this act of the play to prove that anybody who does not believe in prophecies is foolish. At one point in this act, Oedipus and Jocasta even have a debate about how true prophecies really are. They come to a conclusion that most prophecies are not true, and that Oedipus's supposed prophecy would not become true. They believed in chance over fate, which was the opposite of Sophocles's beliefs. Throughout the act, Sophocles leads Oedipus with clues that his fate was already pre-decided and would occur as planned. Oedipus refuses to take these clues in order to go againts the beliefs of Sophocles, and to be eventually blinded. Even Jocasta tries to avoid her own fate by getting rid of baby Oedipus. This does not work, as Oedipus goes on to kill his father Laius. He also marries his mother Jocasta, totally completing the prophecy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Is it that Sophocles is condemning all men to their predetermined "fate," precluding any and all from bettering themselves or escaping tragedy? Or is it perhaps that Sophocles is creating a commentary upon greed, pride, gluttony, and other vices? Those Greeks and Romans who were the educated and the elite did not necessarily subscribe to the pagan belief system that had become the official religion for hundreds of years prior; rather, the stories of mythology became parables and allegories meant to further the moral base of man. Sophocles may be acknowledging the destructive power of pride and the fallibility of man, rather than illustrating the inexorable strength of prophecy.
ReplyDeleteI think that the universal theme that it is impossible to escape your fate is well reflected in Sophocles's work as well. I think there are many ways to interpret Oedipus's ultimate downfall; however, I think that the most apparent one is man's inability to outwit the Gods. Although he was under the impression that that he was avoiding his prophecy, without even realizing it, he made it come true.
ReplyDeleteGood work!
Patrick,
ReplyDeleteI like that you focuses on the element of free will in your blog, because I definitely agree that it a reoccurring and prevalent theme in Oedipus the King. Your idea of Sophocles leading Oedipus to a conclusion that his fate is already sealed and decided is a very interesting one. I would ask what specific events, other than the presence of soothsayers, would lead you to this idea? Great work!
Patrick, I definitely agree with you about the idea of the gods' inescapable power. The story really shows this idea because Oedipus tries to escape his fate, but by doing so, he plays out the fate that was planned out for him by the gods. It think there were a few other references in the play that you could have put in your response, but overall you did an excellent job!
ReplyDelete