Oedipus’ Unfortunate Tragedies

Oedipus’ Unfortunate Tragedies

  • Submitted By: alexc
  • Date Submitted: 03/07/2009 7:41 PM
  • Category: English
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Alex Cyriac English II-1 Mrs. Roberts December 10, 2008 Oedipus’ Unfortunate Tragedies In the classic play King Oedipus by Sophocles, Oedipus is the impetuous King of Thebes who tries to escape his fate of killing his father and marrying his mother. According to the ancient Greeks, it is impossible to avoid their fate and true to their words, Oedipus unknowingly fulfills it. Once the truth is revealed, he loses the throne along with his dignity and becomes a blind outcast. The reversal of fortune, Oedipus going from the King of Thebes to being banished, is partially caused by his hamartia, a key part of being a tragic hero. Oedipus is considered a tragic hero because of his anger, which is seen in his conversation with Teiresias, and also because he experiences a discovery and a peripety. Oedipus’ anger is revealed as his hamartia several times during his conversation with Teiresias. When Teiresias evades Oedipus’ question because “wisdom” would have brought him no “profit” (KO 34), Oedipus’ anger causes him to call Teiresias an “insolent scoundrel” (KO 35). Oedipus is the one looking for help from Teiresias, and instead of treating him with courtesy, he insults him merely because Teiresias refuses to answer the question for the sake of both men. By insulting Teiresias, Oedipus shows that anger is a major part of his nature, which causes him to act irrationally. It does not help him at all, showing that it is one of his character flaws, and it makes Teiresias furious too. Eventually, Teiresias becomes so livid, that he decides to tell Oedipus the truth. He names Oedipus as the “cursed polluter” of Thebes, and in response, Oedipus becomes furious, which misleads him into thinking that Teiresias is “mad” and is not giving a true “soothsaying” (KO 35, 38, 35). This news is “received by Oedipus with astonishment” and defiance (Gould 5). He finally gets what he wants, an answer, and his reaction is to disbelieve what he is hearing. His rage causes him to jump to...

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