The Heart of Oedipus, King of Thebes
“Wouldn’t a man of judgment say--and wouldn’t he be right--some savage power has brought this down upon my head?” (1.918-19). When Oedipus is first introduced, he is the great and powerful ruler of the city of Thebes; by the end of the day, he will be the most agonized man on Earth. He will have discovered that he has killed his father and wed his mother, yet that is the very thing that he has tried to avoid for most of his life. How did this horrible turn of events come to pass? Is Oedipus a blight on society, or is he merely a product of manipulative gods? In Sophocles’ play, “Oedipus the King,” Oedipus is revealed to be a compassionate, altruistic, and honorable leader whose fate has been designed and twisted by the gods.
At first glance it may appear that Oedipus is an egotistical and arrogant leader, but a closer look reveals a man who is deeply troubled by the suffering that afflicts his city. Thebes is in the grip of a horrible plague with no end in sight; the number of dead keeps rising and they are pouring out onto the streets. Oedipus is implored by the citizens to act on their behalf and bring this dreadful plague to an end. He has saved the city once before when it was under the curse of the Sphinx, thus any pride that he may feel is completely justified. As he informs the city that he has sent Creon, his brother-in-law, to see Apollo’s oracle for an answer to this crisis, he states, “Your pain strikes each of you alone . . . my spirit grieves for the city” (1.74-76). This is the first sign that Oedipus has great compassion for his people and does not rule with a stone heart. As each citizen mourns for the loss of one of their own family members, Oedipus mourns for the loss of everyone. It is obvious that he is deeply moved by the darkness that has surrounded his once majestic city of Thebes, and he aches for his grief stricken citizens. In fact, as author Walter R. Agard notes, Sophocles set the whole...