Betrayal: An Abuse of Power!
Vulnerability, both idependently and idealized, has been
responsible for some of the greatest and biggest changes in the
history of societies.
From Hitler to Lincoln, the power of few
have controlled the lives of many.
Whether it be for wealth,
power or entertainment the inequality of freedom has always been
prevalent.
As Bagg and Scully discuss: “Whatever else it did to
entertain, move, and awe, Athenian tragedy consistently exposed
human vulnerability to the gods’ malice and
favoritism” (xxxiii).
with moral justice.
Through this concept, injustice is met
The bad meets the good.
met with truthfulness.
The betrayal is
As powerful as one may be, such as a god
in Sophocles plays, the emotion of the people can prove equally
if not more powerful.
Meaning that the power of emotion can
have a lasting effect greater than that of an act of the gods.
!
It is of a greater impact to move human emotion and
remember how feelings are effected at a certain time than to
remember every detail of an occurrence.
As Aristotle stated:
“They differ, again, in their length: for Tragedy endeavors, as
far as possible, to confine itself to a single revolution of the
sun, or but slightly to exceed this limit, whereas the Epic
!
action has no limits of time” (V).
This shows how a prophecy
such as Oedipus’ fulfilled, while tragic in its occurrence, is
merely tragic.
By comparison the occurrence of tragedy does not
out weigh the impact of the epic story of Oedipus.
What may
occur in a day can be tragic, but to withstand the test of time
is to be legend, heroic or epic.
!
!!
Through peripeteia the gods display a domination over their
human counterpart.
When there is a human that is worshipped or
idolized the display of this reversal of fortune can be seen.
It is at this key time within a play that the emotion of the
people can show their agreement or...