Oedipus the King Essay - 615 Words

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 couldnt 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 knowledgeShow MoreRelatedOedipus The King Of Oedipus868 Words   |  4 Pageschallenge that waits upon one. Confidence overpowers cockiness. The cocky trait is heavily represented in the story â€Å"Oedipus the King† (c. 430 B.C.) by Sophocles. In the story, Oedipus the king of Thebes has the cocky trait and it results in torture for life. Oedipus’s arrogant personality shows throughout the story as he tries to find the killer of the former king of Thebes, his father. Oedipus tends to deem himself as a god throughout the story which plays a big role in interaction with people around himRead MoreOedipus The King : Oedipus1328 Words   |  6 PagesOedipus the King Oedipus had a lot of different character traits both good and bad. 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