Oedipus The King Essay Questions

Oedipus the King Essay
Sophocles' Oedipus the King In the play 'Oedipus Rex' the main character, Oedipus, has to deal
with his predetermined fate and his own nature. He is cursed from the beginning of his life when
a soothsayer tells of his fate upon his birth. It is predicted that he will kill his father, and marry
his mother, and raise a family. Oedipus was born to Laios and Iocaste who were the king and
queen of Thebes. Upon his birth, his parents were shocked at a soothsayer?s prediction of
Oedipus?s fate. It was originally said that he would kill his father, marry his mother, and raise a
family. Naturally his parents couldn't have this, so they rid themselves of Oedipus by apparently
killing him. They gave him to a shepard and told him...show more content...
Oedipus would carry on and eventually end up in Thebes where he was originally born. Oedipus
would go on to marry his mother Iocaste, and be looked at as a hero to the community. This
would in fact fulfill the second part of Oedipus?s fate. Oedipus would carry on his life in Thebes
and have a family with his new wife, Iocaste, who is also his mother. Throughout all of this
Oedipus never had the slightest clue he was angering the gods by committing the crimes of
patricide, regicide, and incest. The gods placed a plague on the city of Thebes and said that only
the plague would be lifted if the killer of the king Laios were brought to justice. At the time still
no one knew that Oedipus had killed the king or that he was the son of his wife. Oedipus would
carry on a vigorous search for the killer of Laios, although he would be very successful because
the person he was looking for was himself. In the end Oedipus would finally find out it was
himself he was looking for. When his wife committed suicide, after realizing it was actually
Oedipus who she had married, the soothsayer was trying to explain whom the killer of Laios
actually was. Oedipus never had control over his fate because it was all predetermined in the
telling of the soothsayer at the beginning of his life. Oedipus had no clue that it was his father he
was killing when he killed Laios, nor did he have any knowledge
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Oedipus The King Essay
Greek tragedy is characterized by the emotional discharging brought about by the suffering of a
heroic figure. In Oedipus The King, by Sophocles, the agony of pain attacking the protagonist is a
result of his tragic flaw. Sophocles often uses a characters hamartia to alter or influence the future
or outcome of the hero, in this case, Oedipus. Oedipus' hubris traps him into fulfilling the vision
and intensifies his punishment. Oedipus' pride is an inherited characteristic. Even before his glory
and power as King of Thebes, he allowed his conceit to affect his judgment and rule his actions.
Unknowingly, Oedipus fulfills Apollo's oracle, which is a vision, when he encounters a group of
men at a crossroad. The driver offends Oedipus...show more content...
Although he has enough idolization to the gods not to assume himself to be an equal with them, it
is clear through his words that Oedipus perceives himself to be of a greater importance than the
lesser people that surround him. He is conceited to think that he can shape his own destiny and the
gods punish him for this arrogance. Once Oedipus is made aware of the importance of the situation
in Thebes he assumes to be the savior. In addressing his people, Oedipus regards them as his
children – his pride in his abilities enables him to take on the task of leader. His faith in himself
results in a lack of discretion on his part. Although Creon hints at bad news, Oedipus eagerly
insists that Creon announce the oracle's words publicly, so that he will be thought of as an open,
honest leader, and he did not pick up on Creon's hesitation. Oedipus later assumes the role of a
mortal god, "Let me grant your prayers". He is now arrogant, believing that he has divine power
to solve a city's problems. Oedipus again proves to be confident of his abilities, "if I'd been present
then, there would have been no mystery". When Oedipus makes his proclamation and no one
confesses to the murder of Laius, he loses patience, hostily condemning the murderer, and cursing
him to a terrible death. "Now my curse on the murderer... let that man drag out his life in agony, step
by painful step" Ironically, his curse is a foreshadowing of his own impending doom. In

Oedipus The King Essay
Oedipus was a thoughtful king in the book Oedipus Rex written by Sophocles. Before Oedipus
was born, Laius and Jocasta (Parents of Oedipus, King and Queen of Thebes) went to go see
Apollo. Reason being, they wanted to talk to Apollo to see what future was ahead for their family.
He told them that their baby (Oedipus) would end up killing his father Laius and marrying his
mother Jocasta. Them hearing such awful news, they pierced his feet together and gave him to a
servant/shepherd to leave him in the woods to die. Baby Oedipus was given to another shepherd,
from corinth, out of pity and was then given to his adoptive parents, Polybus and Merope (King and
Queen of Corinth).
After some time had passed, a drunk guy told Oedipus the...show more content...
Oedipus then is determined to figure out who did such a thing. He interrogates suspects in front
of the whole kingdom. He summons a well known person, Tiresias, who is known for being a
blind prophet that is able to "see all." When Oedipus asks who the killer was Tiresias was
hesitant. He knew who had murdered Laius but he wishes he didn't. Oedipus starts begging
Tiresias to tell him who it was. Oedipus and Tiresias then get into a back and forth fight after he
refused to tell Oedipus who it was. Tiresias starts hinting that it was Oedipus that had done this.
Oedipus gets mad and starts accusing Tiresias of murdering Laius. After more fighting Tiresias
just tells him that Oedipus was the one that has put the kingdom of Thebes under pollution,
implying that Oedipus killed Laius. But still Oedipus doesn't believe him; he basically ignores
what the blind prophet had told him. Oedipus was frightened that the killer might actually be him.
So he asks his wife Jocasta for some advice. She tells Oedipus that everyone that's accusing him of
murder is lying because one of the witnesses, shepherd, that saw the killing happen, told Jocasta
that Laius was killed by robbers at the crossroads. So there was no way that Oedipus was the killer.
And then Jocasta tells her husband what the Prophecies said about her son when he was about to be
born. She tells him that they told her that the child of hers would

Essay on King Oedipus Questions
Scene 1 (Pages 25–39)
1. Oedipus characterizes himself by in line 7 of scene 1, Oedipus says, "I Oedipus, a name that all
men know."(known afar) This shows he has much pride for himself. He feels he is very important,
and that no one is above him. He knows the people need his help, and he feels prideful that they
would need him. The people view him as their saviour. They are relieved to have him there to help
them, and they almost worship him for his help. But as for Oedipus his attitude towards the
suppliants is good, he anticipates his subjects needs and is always one step ahead of them.
2. The conditions in Thebes the Priest describes is there city is in a tide of death from which there
is no escaping. For example "Death in...show more content...
This statement brings grief to the elders because they support and believe Oedipus. Creon
defends himself against Oedipus's accusation by Creon points out that he has an equal third (the
other two thirds belonging to Oedipus and Oedipus' wife) in governing Thebes, and yet he lets
Oedipus rule entirely while he enjoys his life and all the pleasures of royalty. Therefore, he says,
there is no reason for him to kill Oedipus to take the throne and he does not want to rule. Oedipus
is free to judge him, Creon says, but not without some proof, as it is "not right to think good men,
without a reason, bad or bad men good."(Line 609) Creon believes that it takes time to judge for:
"time alone can make it clear a man is just while you can know a traitor in a day."(Line 613)
Oedipus threaten to do is Oedipus says that if someone plots quickly, he must respond quickly or
he will have missed his chance and the other person will have gotten what they wanted.
Furthermore, he calls Creon a traitor and says he wants him dead. Oedipus promises not to harm
the man that comes forward, or is known to have killed Laios. He is not interested in taking this
man's life, only that he no longer lives in Thebes, so that the city can get better. He therefore
promises only to exile Laios' killer.
12. (Also 13) As Creon leaves, Oedipus' wife, Jocasta, asks her husband to explain to her why he is
so angry. Oedipus says

Oedipus the King
The ancient Greeks were famous for their tragedies. These dramas functioned to "ask questions
about the nature of man, his position in the universe, and the powers that govern his life" ("Greek"
1). Brereton (1968) stated that tragedies typically "involved a final and impressive disaster due to an
unforeseen or unrealized failure involving people who command respect and sympathy. It often
entails an ironical change of fortune and usually conveys a strong impression of waste. It is always
accompanied by misery and emotional distress" (20). The play, Oedipus the King, by Sophocles
definitely demonstrated the characteristics of an impressive disaster unforeseen by the protagonist
that involved a character of...show more content...
The audience recognized that Oedipus did not intend to do this horrific act and they felt sympathy
for him. Aristotle believed true tragedies evoked catharsis from the spectators (Brereton 6).
Tragedies usually involve people that demand respect and sympathy (Brereton 17). The plots of
tragedies are usually based upon myths or legends about individuals of high rank (New T–350). In
many plays, characters of royal decent are utilized because this implies a position of stature from
which they can fall (Mandel 103). In the case of Oedipus, he was born into a royal family and
was also eventually raised by another royal family. Oedipus who was a respected king came to
recognize his true self. In the end, he was demoted to an exiled, penniless peasant. This caused the
audience to recognize that if someone with this much greatness can experience catastrophe then
they can also. The third characteristic typically seen in Greek tragedy was that of irony. Irony has
been defined as an "incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs"
("Irony" 692). Oedipus heard from the oracle that he would kill his father and marry his mother, so
he decided to leave the town of Corinth to avoid this calamity. Oedipus' decision to leave "his
parents" actually led him into a collision course with his true father and mother. The prophecy was
fulfilled despite Oedipus' attempts to thwart it and this demonstrated a

Oedipus the king written by sophecles when read for the first time the reader will realize that the
audience already knows what is going to happen its just the way that the characters deal will with it.
There is an oracle that says that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother.
Sophecles examines the relationship between fate and free will.
Fate being what some say is an excuse. For example if I said that I could not do what I wanted to do
I could say it was fate, which is junk.
What is fate? Fate is something that is supposedly set out for some one when they are born. Fate
pertaining to the play oedipus rex is that the mother queen locasta and the father king Laios have
learned from an oracle that their son Oedipus was to kill...show more content...
(Neitzsche29blooms) This basically means that if Oedipus had lived with his parents and had his
parents not have given him up he could have probably avoided all of this. But since this did not
happen Oedipus is forced to fend for himself. So fate is something that many people use an excuse
for something that they have not yet accomplished. Also fate plays a big part in the play because
Oedipus who finds out from creon that there is a killer among them, he does not know who was
killed or that he had done the killing.
Free will pertaining to the play is what the character in this case oedipus does to avoid the fate that
the oracle has set out for him.
This means that Oedipus is so determined to find out who the killer of the king is. He goes
throughout the play talking to people who might know anything about what went on before he
became king. One person he talks to is terrisies. He is blind and basically says that oedipus is the
killer of king Laios. Oedipus gets angry because that is a big charge. Also Oedipus has laid out a
decree saying that whoever the killer is, is to be banished and not spoken to by anyone In the
community. So terissies says that I should not be even talking to you because you are the killer. Es
shucks burg talks about how freewill causes Oedipus to be strong and to find the killer. This
basically means that sophecles wrote Oedipus to be the strongest of all the characters until the very
end. It is my opinion that if

Essay On Oedipus The King
Greta Oulman Windish English II 3 December 2017 Oedipus: An Apparent "Hero" Did you ever
think that a man who killed his father and married his mother would ever be considered a hero?
NOBODY DID. (Except the Greeks...) The story of our tragic "hero," Oedipus, depicts him in the
midst of his life, just learning about his adoption and, years later, the birth of his four kids (with his
mother) that – apparently – inspired so many people. Oedipus' Story Oedipus' story is about how he
became an apparent "hero". In the beginning, Oedipus' father, King Laius, and mother, Queen
Jocasta of Thebes wanted to know if they would someday have kids. Laius went to the Oracle of
Delphi and asked the burning question. The Oracle replied that their first...show more content...
She asked him the same riddle as she did everybody else: "What walks on four feet in the morning,
two in the afternoon, and three at night?" Oedipus thought long and hard until he finally answered
with "Man, who crawls on all fours as a baby, he walks on two legs as an adult, and needs a walking
stick when old." The Sphinx – never bested at her own game – was so angry at Oedipus, she fell off
the rock she was sitting on and killed herself. He was then greeted by Creon, the uncle he didn't
know he had. Creon said that whoever killed the Sphinx would become king. Oedipus met Jocasta
and they were married, unknowingly completely fulfilling the prophecy. The new king had
fathered four kids with his mother: Eteocles, Polynices, Antigone and Ismene. Years later, a
plagued smothered the land. Oedipus sent Creon to the Oracle to find out why. The Oracle told
Creon it was because Laius' killer (his first son) hadn't been caught. Oedipus ordered a search for
everyone to help find the killer. A messenger came in (at that exact moment) to tell the king that he,
in fact killed the previous king. Creon and Oedipus argued, and Jocasta added that her first son was
dead. Then, another messenger came in and said that King Polybus was dead. Oedipus was relieved
and said he would not attend the funeral anyway, just to prevent the second part of the prophecy
from possibly coming true. The messenger then said Oedipus was

Oedipus the King: A Hero Essay
Throught Oedipus Rex, Oedipus displays his heroism many times. From the Prologue of the play to
the moment in which he leaves Thebes, Oedipus' heroics are extremely apparent; however, at the
same time, the decisions which make Oedipus a hero ultimately become the decisions which bring
him to shame and exile.
From before Oedipus was born, he was doomed to kill his father and marry his mother, a very
cursed fate. Throughout his life, the readers learn that Oedipus tries his hardest to avoid this
dreadful proclamation; however, the gods were against him before he was even in his mother's
womb, so Oedipus and the readers quickly learn that there would be no way for him to avoid...show
more content...
Oedipus is a very honest and persistent man. From the instant in which he questions Teiresias about
the murder, we see that he is very persistent in trying to find the answer. Even when Teiresias begs
Oedipus to stop questioning him, Oedipus forces the truth–teller to speak the truth. He goes as far as
to threaten to kill Teiresias to give him the news which would accuse Oedipus as the murderer that
he seeks.
Oedipus, of course, does not believe this news, and still tries to get to the bottom of this murder
mystery. Each person that he questions unravels another piece of information which would
eventually confirm Teiresias' accusation that Oedipus was the murderer.
No matter how many people advised Oedipus to quit the search and forget about it, Oedipus
remained determined to solve the question. Teiresias, the shephard, the messenger, and his own wife
advise him not to continue his investigation. When Jocaste pleads with him to stop the search,
Oedipus he demands that she let him continue. These show signs of a true hero. Oedipus put the
benefit of his own land before he did. If Oedipus had any thoughts that he could be the murderer, it
didn't matter to him. He would not give up until he fufiled his promise to find the murderer.
When the shephard who found Oedipus confirmed that Oedipus had killed his father, and indeed
married his mother,

Oedipus The King: Summary
Oedipus steps out of the royal palace of Thebes and is greeted by a procession of priests, who are
in turn surrounded by the impoverished and sorrowful citizens of Thebes. The citizens carry
branches wrapped in wool, which they offer to the gods as gifts. Thebes has been struck by a
plague, the citizens are dying, and no one knows how to put an end to it. Oedipus asks a priest
why the citizens have gathered around the palace. The priest responds that the city is dying and
asks the king to save Thebes. Oedipus replies that he sees and understands the terrible fate of
Thebes, and that no one is more sorrowful than he. He has sent Creon, his brother–in–law and fellow
ruler, to the Delphic oracle to find out how to stop the plague. Just then, Creon

Oedipus The King Essay Questions

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