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Analysis of Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on July 27, 2020 • ( 0 )

The place of the Oedipus Tyrannus in literature is something like that of the Mona Lisa in art. Everyone knows the story, the first detective story of Western literature; everyone who has read or seen it is drawn into its enigmas and moral dilemmas. It presents a kind of nightmare vision of a world suddenly turned upside down: a decent man discovers that he has unknowingly killed his father, married his mother, and sired children by her. It is a story that, as Aristotle says in the Poetics , makes one shudder with horror and feel pity just on hearing it. In Sophocles’ hands, however, this ancient tale becomes a profound meditation on the questions of guilt and responsibility, the order (or disorder) of our world, and the nature of man. The play stands with the Book of Job, Hamlet, and King Lear as one of Western literature’s most searching examinations of the problem of suffering.

—Charles Segal, Oedipus Tyrannus: Tragic Heroism and the Limits of Knowledge

No other drama has exerted a longer or stronger hold on the imagination than Sophocles’ Oedipus the King (also known as Oedipus Tyrannus or Oedipus Rex ). Tragic drama that is centered on the dilemma of a single central character largely begins with Sophocles and is exemplified by his Oedipus, arguably the most influential play ever written. The most famous of all Greek dramas, Sophocles’ play, supported by Aristotle in the Poetics, set the standard by which tragedy has been measured for nearly two-and-a-half millennia. For Aristotle, Sophocles’ play featured the ideal tragic hero in Oedipus, a man of “great repute and good fortune,” whose fall, coming from his horrifying discovery that he has killed his father and married his mother, is masterfully arranged to elicit tragedy’s proper cathartic mixture of pity and terror. The play’s relentless exploration of human nature, destiny, and suffering turns an ancient tale of a man’s shocking history into one of the core human myths. Oedipus thereby joins a select group of fictional characters, including Odysseus, Faust, Don Juan, and Don Quixote, that have entered our collective consciousness as paradigms of humanity and the human condition. As classical scholar Bernard Knox has argued, “Sophocles’ Oedipus is not only the greatest creation of a major poet and the classic representative figure of his age: he is also one of a long series of tragic protagonists who stand as symbols of human aspiration and despair before the characteristic dilemma of Western civilization—the problem of man’s true stature, his proper place in the universe.”

For nearly 2,500 years Sophocles’ play has claimed consideration as drama’s most perfect and most profound achievement. Julius Caesar wrote an adaptation; Nero allegedly acted the part of the blind Oedipus. First staged in a European theater in 1585, Oedipus has been continually performed ever since and reworked by such dramatists as Pierre Corneille, John Dryden, Voltaire, William Butler Yeats, André Gide, and Jean Cocteau. The French neoclassical tragedian Jean Racine asserted that Oedipus was the ideal tragedy, while D. H. Lawrence regarded it as “the finest drama of all time.” Sigmund Freud discovered in the play the key to understanding man’s deepest and most repressed sexual and aggressive impulses, and the so-called Oedipus complex became one of the founding myths of psychoanalysis. Oedipus has served as a crucial mirror by which each subsequent era has been able to see its own reflection and its understanding of the mystery of human existence.

If Aeschylus is most often seen as the great originator of ancient Greek tragedy and Euripides is viewed as the great outsider and iconoclast, it is Sophocles who occupies the central position as classical tragedy’s technical master and the age’s representative figure over a lifetime that coincided with the rise and fall of Athens’s greatness as a political and cultural power in the fifth century b.c. Sophocles was born in 496 near Athens in Colonus, the legendary final resting place of the exiled Oedipus. At the age of 16, Sophocles, an accomplished dancer and lyre player, was selected to lead the celebration of the victory over the Persians at the battle of Salamis, the event that ushered in Athens’s golden age. He died in 406, two years before Athens’s fall to Sparta, which ended nearly a century of Athenian supremacy and cultural achievement. Very much at the center of Athenian public life, Sophocles served as a treasurer of state and a diplomat and was twice elected as a general. A lay priest in the cult of a local deity, Sophocles also founded a literary association and was an intimate of such prominent men of letters as Ion of Chios, Herodotus, and Archelaus. Urbane, garrulous, and witty, Sophocles was remembered fondly by his contemporaries as possessing all the admired qualities of balance and tranquillity. Nicknamed “the Bee” for his “honeyed” style of fl owing eloquence—the highest compliment the Greeks could bestow on a poet or speaker—Sophocles was regarded as the tragic Homer.

In marked contrast to his secure and stable public role and private life, Sophocles’ plays orchestrate a disturbing challenge to assurance and certainty by pitting vulnerable and fallible humanity against the inexorable forces of nature and destiny. Sophocles began his career as a playwright in 468 b.c. with a first-prize victory over Aeschylus in the Great, or City, Dionysia, the annual Athenian drama competition. Over the next 60 years he produced more than 120 plays (only seven have survived intact), winning first prize at the Dionysia 24 times and never earning less than second place, making him unquestionably the most successful and popular playwright of his time. It is Sophocles who introduced the third speaking actor to classical drama, creating the more complex dramatic situations and deepened psychological penetration through interpersonal relationships and dialogue. “Sophocles turned tragedy inward upon the principal actors,” classicist Richard Lattimore has observed, “and drama becomes drama of character.” Favoring dramatic action over narration, Sophocles brought offstage action onto the stage, emphasized dialogue rather than lengthy, undramatic monologues, and purportedly introduced painted scenery. Also of note, Sophocles replaced the connected trilogies of Aeschylus with self-contained plays on different subjects at the same contest, establishing the norm that has continued in Western drama with its emphasis on the intensity and unity of dramatic action. At their core, Sophocles’ tragedies are essentially moral and religious dramas pitting the tragic hero against unalterable fate as defined by universal laws, particular circumstances, and individual temperament. By testing his characters so severely, Sophocles orchestrated adversity into revelations that continue to evoke an audience’s capacity for wonder and compassion.

The story of Oedipus was part of a Theban cycle of legends that was second only to the stories surrounding the Trojan War as a popular subject for Greek literary treatment. Thirteen different Greek dramatists, including Aeschylus and Euripides, are known to have written plays on the subject of Oedipus and his progeny. Sophocles’ great innovation was to turn Oedipus’s horrifying circumstances into a drama of self-discovery that probes the mystery of selfhood and human destiny.

The play opens with Oedipus secure and respected as the capable ruler of Thebes having solved the riddle of the Sphinx and gained the throne and Thebes’s widowed queen, Jocasta, as his reward. Plague now besets the city, and Oedipus comes to Thebes’s rescue once again when, after learning from the oracle of Apollo that the plague is a punishment for the murder of his predecessor, Laius, he swears to discover and bring the murderer to justice. The play, therefore, begins as a detective story, with the key question “Who killed Laius?” as the initial mystery. Oedipus initiates the first in a seemingly inexhaustible series of dramatic ironies as the detective who turns out to be his own quarry. Oedipus’s judgment of banishment for Laius’s murderer seals his own fate. Pledged to restore Thebes to health, Oedipus is in fact the source of its affliction. Oedipus’s success in discovering Laius’s murderer will be his own undoing, and the seemingly percipient, riddle-solving Oedipus will only see the truth about himself when he is blind. To underscore this point, the blind seer Teiresias is summoned. He is reluctant to tell what he knows, but Oedipus is adamant: “No man, no place, nothing will escape my gaze. / I will not stop until I know it all.” Finally goaded by Oedipus to reveal that Oedipus himself is “the killer you’re searching for” and the plague that afflicts Thebes, Teiresias introduces the play’s second mystery, “Who is Oedipus?”

You have eyes to see with, But you do not see yourself, you do not see The horror shadowing every step of your life, . . . Who are your father and mother? Can you tell me?

Oedipus rejects Teiresias’s horrifying answer to this question—that Oedipus has killed his own father and has become a “sower of seed where your father has sowed”—as part of a conspiracy with Jocasta’s brother Creon against his rule. In his treatment of Teiresias and his subsequent condemning of Creon to death, Oedipus exposes his pride, wrath, and rush to judgment, character flaws that alloy his evident strengths of relentless determination to learn the truth and fortitude in bearing the consequences. Jocasta comes to her brother’s defense, while arguing that not all oracles can be believed. By relating the circumstances of Laius’s death, Jocasta attempts to demonstrate that Oedipus could not be the murderer while ironically providing Oedipus with the details that help to prove the case of his culpability. In what is a marvel of ironic plot construction, each step forward in answering the questions surrounding the murder and Oedipus’s parentage takes Oedipus a step back in time toward full disclosure and self-discovery.

As Oedipus is made to shift from self-righteous authority to doubt, a messenger from Corinth arrives with news that Oedipus’s supposed father, Poly-bus, is dead. This intelligence seems again to disprove the oracle that Oedipus is fated to kill his father. Oedipus, however, still is reluctant to return home for fear that he could still marry his mother. To relieve Oedipus’s anxiety, the messenger reveals that he himself brought Oedipus as an infant to Polybus. Like Jocasta whose evidence in support of Oedipus’s innocence turns into confirmation of his guilt, the messenger provides intelligence that will connect Oedipus to both Laius and Jocasta as their son and as his father’s killer. The messenger’s intelligence produces the crucial recognition for Jocasta, who urges Oedipus to cease any further inquiry. Oedipus, however, persists, summoning the herdsman who gave the infant to the messenger and was coincidentally the sole survivor of the attack on Laius. The herdsman’s eventual confirmation of both the facts of Oedipus’s birth and Laius’s murder produces the play’s staggering climax. Aristotle would cite Sophocles’ simultaneous con-junction of Oedipus’s recognition of his identity and guilt with his reversal of fortune—condemned by his own words to banishment and exile as Laius’s murderer—as the ideal artful arrangement of a drama’s plot to produce the desired cathartic pity and terror.

The play concludes with an emphasis on what Oedipus will now do after he knows the truth. No tragic hero has fallen further or faster than in the real time of Sophocles’ drama in which the time elapsed in the play coincides with the performance time. Oedipus is stripped of every illusion of his authority, control, righteousness, and past wisdom and is forced to contend with a shame that is impossible to expiate—patricide and incestual relations with his mother—in a world lacking either justice or alleviation from suffering. Oedipus’s heroic grandeur, however, grows in his diminishment. Fundamentally a victim of circumstances, innocent of intentional sin whose fate was preordained before his birth, Oedipus refuses the consolation of blamelessness that victimization confers, accepting in full his guilt and self-imposed sentence as an outcast, criminal, and sinner. He blinds himself to confirm the moral shame that his actions, unwittingly or not, have provoked. It is Oedipus’s capacity to endure the revelation of his sin, his nature, and his fate that dominates the play’s conclusion. Oedipus’s greatest strengths—his determination to know the truth and to accept what he learns—sets him apart as one of the most pitiable and admired of tragic heroes. “The closing note of the tragedy,” Knox argues, “is a renewed insistence on the heroic nature of Oedipus; the play ends as it began, with the greatness of the hero. But it is a different kind of greatness. It is now based on knowledge, not, as before on ignorance.” The now-blinded Oedipus has been forced to see and experience the impermanence of good fortune, the reality of unimaginable moral shame, and a cosmic order that is either perverse in its calculated cruelty or chaotically random in its designs, in either case defeating any human need for justice and mercy.

The Chorus summarizes the harsh lesson of heroic defeat that the play so majestically dramatizes:

Look and learn all citizens of Thebes. This is Oedipus. He, who read the famous riddle, and we hailed chief of men, All envied his power, glory, and good fortune. Now upon his head the sea of disaster crashes down. Mortality is man’s burden. Keep your eyes fixed on your last day. Call no man happy until he reaches it, and finds rest from suffering.

Few plays have dealt so unflinchingly with existential truths or have as bravely defined human heroism in the capacity to see, suffer, and endure.

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Oedipus the King

Table of contents.

Tiresias says to Oedipus, “Creon is not your downfall, no, you are your own.” What is the extent of Oedipus’ guilt in his own downfall?

• “Oedipus the King demonstrates that the quest for truth only leads to self-destruction.” Discuss.
• What does the play have to say about fate and free will?
• “The play is about Oedipus’ search for his identity.” Discuss.
• “What should a man fear? It’s all about chance, / chance rules our lives.” Discuss Jocasta’s philosophy about life.
• Discuss the dual role of the Chorus.
• What do the choral odes have to say about the relationship between humans and the gods?
• What are Oedipus’ feelings about family?
• Evidence Bank

Oedipus the King is a classic Greek tragedy by Sophocles about the downfall of Oedipus, a heroic yet ill-fated character who was prophesied to slay his father and marry his mother. Oedipus finds himself caught in a dilemma between his determination to unwind the tangled threads of his history, or avoid undermining everything he knows about his life. The premise of the ancient play reminds audiences of the cruel nature of fate and the importance of making good decisions. Yet Oedipus himself is a complex character who does his best to exercise free choice within the restraints of his fate, which lends itself to the argument surrounding the extent of his guilt in his eventual downfall. To a large extent, Oedipus is responsible for his horrible actions that drive him to fulfil the prophecy given to him at birth, such as his violent nature which drives him to slay his father, as well as his incessant drive to seek the truth about himself. Yet as the ancient Greeks would have it, despite taking extensive manoeuvres to avoid his terrible future, Oedipus may have been a prisoner of his own fate and thus remain guiltless.

Oedipus the King, a timeless Greek tragedy penned by Sophocles, unfolds the tragic descent of Oedipus, a heroic figure ensnared in the ominous prophecy of patricide and matrimony with his mother/incest. Confronted with the formidable choice between unraveling the intricacies of his lineage and preserving the foundation of his perceived reality, Oedipus grapples with a profound dilemma. The narrative serves as a poignant reminder of the inexorable cruelty of destiny and the consequential significance of judicious decision-making.Oedipus, a character of intricate depth, endeavors to wield volition amidst the constricting threads of his foretold destiny, thereby fueling debates about the degree of culpability in his eventual downfall. While Oedipus bears considerable responsibility for the grievous deeds that propel him toward the fulfillment of his preordained fate—such as his proclivity for violence leading to the slaying of his parents—he also exhibits an unwavering determination to unveil the veracity of his existence.Yet, adhering to the ancient Greek ethos, Oedipus, despite his concerted efforts to circumvent the ominous prophecy, remains ensnared in the inexorable web of fate, prompting contemplation about his potential innocence. In essence, Oedipus, despite his extensive manoeuvres to avert a calamitous destiny, emerges as a captive of his predetermined path, thereby challenging conventional notions of guilt and culpability.

Oedipus’ violent and aggressive nature, as shown by his various impulsive actions, can be said to be a defining factor which led him to the actions of his downfall. Even considering the audience’s knowledge of his horrible fate, there is no question that his nature lends itself to his questionable actions. For example, Oedipus testifies to Jocasta that the man he killed, Laius, was “accompanied by a herald”, thus announcing to the world that he was a king. Yet Oedipus, despite having been raised as royalty himself, does not hold himself back in the slaughter of Laius, the herald, and multiple others. This can be interpreted in several ways: either his impulsivity and pride led him to rashly kill Laius and his followers, thus cementing his guilt in his own fate, or that the threads of fate led him to make that decision in that moment. Either way, there is little doubt that it was simply part of Oedipus’ nature, as there is little other justification for his violent actions. In a similar way, his dogged determination to uncover the truth of his past turns him hostile and abusive, revealing his hubris; when Tiresias does tell him the truth about what he seeks, he does not listen as he is consumed by paranoia. His aberrant character flaws are thus determinant of his guilt in his own downfall.

Oedipus’ propensity for violence and aggression, manifested through impulsive actions, emerges as a pivotal factor contributing to his eventual downfall. Despite the audience’s awareness of his inexorable fate, there is an unequivocal acknowledgment that his inherent nature propels him towards morally ambiguous deeds. Notably, Oedipus, while recounting to Jocasta the slaying of Laius, explicitly highlights the regal stature of his victim, accompanied by a herald. Paradoxically, even though Oedipus himself was nurtured in royal surroundings, he fails to restrain his carnage, perpetrating the ruthless murder of Laius, the herald, and others. This dichotomy invites interpretations that either his impetuosity and pride precipitated the hasty annihilation, cementing his culpability in his tragic destiny, or that the inexorable threads of fate coerced him into that fateful decision.Moreover, Oedipus’ unwavering commitment to unraveling the truth of his origins transforms him into a hostile and abusive figure, laying bare the depths of his hubris. When Tiresias imparts the veracious revelation he seeks, Oedipus, ensnared by paranoia, remains deaf to reason. His anomalous character flaws thus serve as decisive elements substantiating his complicity in the tragic unraveling of his own fate.

In addition to his violent nature, Oedipus’ incessant seeking of the truth also leads him to his downfall. As the play opens, the audience learns that Oedipus is at the height of his success, as he had already become a great ruler of Thebes, revered by many for “defeating the Sphinx”. This only lends itself to demonstrate the great downfall that he will face at the hands of his own curiosity. Later, when Jocasta tells the tale of Laius’ death to Oedipus, he begins to doubt himself, in that he is indeed the murderer he is seeking. However, despite understanding the consequences, this does nothing to stop the momentum of his investigation. Oedipus refuses to consider Jocasta’s advice that he “live at random, best we can” and according to chance. Instead, he is so fixated on getting to the bottom of the truth by calling for the old shepherd who saved him when he was a baby. Oedipus is aware of the consequences, that “if he refers to one man, one alone, / clearly the scales come down on me: / I am guilty”. Even as the shepherd, like Tiresias, demonstrates reluctance to tell Oedipus what he knows, he insists that the truth must come out. Moreover, when Jocasta collapses in despair, Oedipus remains fervent in his determination to discover his true identity, proclaiming that “I must know it all, / must see the truth at last”. In the end, it is this unwavering confidence and determination for the truth that ultimately leads him to his downfall.

However, despite these interpretations, it can also be said that Oedipus was merely a prisoner of his own fate, indicating that all the questionable actions he took were merely part of his destiny, no matter how hard he tried to avoid it. Through this interpretation, Oedipus is guiltless as there was no way to avoid his fate. Many attempts to avoid Oedipus’ tragic fate appear in the play, yet he still fulfilled it regardless. Jocasta and Laius cast him out as a mere infant; Oedipus exiles himself from his adopted parents in fear that ill would befall them (and not his birth parents). Yet it is fate that drives him towards Thebes and to the crossroads where he slew Laius, where there was no reason to kill Laius, but he was driven to do so anyway. Fate rewards him cruelly with Jocasta as a wife after besting the Sphinx. Lastly, fate drives him to pursue the truth of his past, driving home the final punishment of exile and blindness set by himself. There appeared the illusion of free will in his choices, but Oedipus was ultimately driven to make horrible choices which resulted in the fulfillment of the prophecy. Hence, Sophocles presents the cruel reality that even though characters may take extensive manoeuvres to avoid committing the crimes of their fate, they will be compelled to commit abhorrent acts in order to fulfill their destinies.

Overall, Oedipus himself is a complex character: the extent of his guilt depends on how much the audience places value on his personal choices or the prison of his fate. It is true that his nature lends itself to the interpretation of his own guilt in his actions. However, given the context of ancient Greece where individuals were commonly understood to be prisoner of their own fate, there may have been no way for him to avoid the consequences. Hence, while Oedipus was ill-fated from birth, Sophocles aimed to imbue audiences with the moral that one’s choices are highly important to the outcome of their lives.

“ Oedipus the King demonstrates that the quest for truth only leads to self-destruction. ” Discuss.

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Oedipus — Oedipus the King: Analysis of Tragic Hero and Themes

Oedipus The King: Analysis of Tragic Hero and Themes

• Categories: Oedipus

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Words: 861 |

Published: Jan 31, 2024

Words: 861 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Table of contents

Background information, analysis of the tragic hero, examination of fate and free will, exploration of the theme of blindness, examination of the themes of knowledge and ignorance.

• Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Penguin Classics, 1967.
• McAuley, Karen. “Themes in Greek Tragedy : Oedipus the King.” English Tutor, 11 Mar. 2021, englishtutorlessons.com/gcse/greek-myths-and-tragedies/oedipus-the-king/.
• Segal, Charles. “Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Freud's Oedipus Complex.” International Journal of Psychoanalysis , vol. 70, no. 1, 1989, pp. 1–13.

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Oedipus is a Tragic Hero

For hundreds of years Sophocles' play Oedipus the King has been popular and dissected by many. Oedipus journey through the story to his dark fate has made this play one of the more popular plays among Greek mythologies. Many themes are brought up in the play, we see tragic flaws, the concept of inescapable fate and free will throughout the story. Due to the journey we see Oedipus take, he fits the mold of a tragic hero as defined by […]

Situational Irony in Oedipus Rex

The Greek tragedy of Oedipus Rex has many examples of irony. There is an irony throughout the play, that is the tragedy of Oedipus's fate. He is tortured by the constant twist of his own fate. The play shows examples of three types of irony, verbal irony, situational irony, and dramatic irony, all of which lead to Oedipus causing his own loss of sight. Verbal irony is the use of words to mean something different from what they seem to […]

Ancient Greece’s Three Types of Heroes

The definition of the word hero is quite skewed. People tend to have their own definitions and interpretations of what the word means. However, people can usually agree on who a hero is and what makes a person a hero. In most cases, a hero can be described as one who shows great courage and is admired for noble achievements and noble qualities. Greek heroes show all of these qualities. They were admired for achieving incredible mythological feats and were […]

Hamlet Oedipus Complex

The well known play, Hamlet written by William Shakespeare truly centers on the hardship of Hamlet being pressured to kill his uncle by plead of his dead father. It all began when Hamlet discovers a ghost which embodies the exact features of his recently dead father. The Ghost begs Hamlet to seek revenge for him since he was unfairly killed by his own brother named Claudius. Hamlet’s uncle not only killed his father, but he also had the audacity to […]

Oedipus Rex: Tragic Hero

Oedipus displays the Aristotelian elements of a tragic hero when his hamartia causes him to suffer a peripeteia in which he loses all that he holds dear, his catharsis offers some relief from the pain of his downfall, and ultimately this tragedy creates a legacy that suggests fate is an uncontrollable force that cannot be altered. Oedipus Rex suffers great tragic flaw throughout the play. From the beginning Oedipus will never be able to escape his fate. A prophecy is […]

The Role of Woman in Ancient Time

The role of woman in each of these works play a significant role in each yet they are all portrayed in different aspects. The Epic of Gilgamesh is a very old story yet still the role of women in the story is very much important. You can get the idea that it might actually not be so old since it shows that woman’s role as that of in today’s society. If you take it from the biological perspective, the females are […]

Oedipus the King: the Story of the Consequences of a Curse Placed on King Oedipus

In the city of Thebes, there is a plague of infertility that strikes. Just as the plants do not grow so is women not able to bear children. Creon informs King Oedipus that until the killer of King Laius is identified, the plague cannot be ended. Oblivious to the truth, King Oedipus sets to find out who the killer is and swears to punish the individual. Most of the times, people may have their physical sight, but blind themselves for […]

AP One Sheet Oedipus the King

Major Characters: One major character in the story is Oedipus Rex. He is the main protagonist, who is the king of Thebes. Oedipus is portrayed as a dynamic character throughout the piece. He was notorious for his intelligence and being able to solve riddles. He saved the city of Thebes from a plague by telling a riddle to the Sphinx. Oedipus is a dynamic character because throughout the story he is finding more about his own self. Oedipus tries to […]

An Important Role Free Will in Oedipus the King

Fate is often said to be inevitable, an adverse outcome, condition, or end and free will is the ability to choose at your own discretion. In our everyday life, we make decisions and are often told that life is about making choices. It is because we have free will that we make choices which may lead to positive consequences if the choice is rational and yet other times our decisions lead to negative consequences. Free will plays an important role in Oedipus the King and fate […]

Oedipus and Antigone

Relationships are known to be about love and trust, but it seems to be a very big problem in the past. In the past for example in the stories I will be using are not just complicated between one or two people it is conflict that has happened between an entire family. When something is conflicted that means that there is a huge argument between one or even many people because they disagree with something. In my opinion it almost […]

Oedipus the King: Oedipus Complex

In Oedipus The King by Sophocles, tells the story of the new king of Thebes who fulfilled the prophecy of killing his father and having sexual relations with his mother while trying to avoid it (Sophocles). In psychology, this sounds very similar to the Oedipus complex. With it named after the king, did Oedipus suffer from it himself? The Oedipus complex is, "in psychoanalytic theory, a desire for sexual involvement with the parent of the opposite sex and a concomitant […]

Oedipus the King and Aristotle

In Aristotle's' Poetics, a perfect tragedy is described as being complex story whose themes and actions should imitate real life. For the story to be considered a tragedy, the hero must be virtuous and possess nobility of character. Their greatness however, should not insinuate they are perfect instead, they should possess real flaws which should help the audience related to the hero. One of the main factors for a perfect tragedy is the reversal of situation. The hero should be […]

Leadership in Oedipus Rex

While comparing the similarities between Oedipus and Creon, they both accepted their guilt behind their actions, felt guilty for their actions and Creon would make a better position as a president for 2021. Oedipus accepts his guilt when he realizes that he murdered his father and slept with his mother and also finds Jocasta dead. Oedipus then later blinds himself from facing reality and the actual truth. 'And as this dirge went up, so did his hands strike his founts […]

Arrogance in Oedipus Rex

Before a world of advanced entertainment and technology, there was Greek theater. Unlike many stories told today, ancient Greek tragedies seldom ended well. The heroic qualities of the protagonist were often overshadowed by a horrific human failure. Yet, when written well, a story can elicit strong feelings of sympathy for the damaged hero while simultaneously teaching greek cultural values. The play, Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, showcases the tragic fate of Oedipus while displaying that he is still capable of […]

Oedipus and the Sphinx

The great sphinx is a famous landmark known around the world for its loin body and a human head. It was built for a pharaoh as a guide in the afterlife. There is so much to learn about the sphinx. Like when and where it as built, ancient Greek myths, and King Khafre (the head of this amazing monument). Not to mention all the astonishing facts about the statue. When and where was the great sphinx built? The sphinx was […]

Oedipus Rex Complex Character

Themes are a key factor to have in stories. They express a lesson, message, or point of view of the author. A theme can connect all parts of a story. The theme of sight, physically and metaphorically, is heavily used in one of Sophocles Theban plays; “Oedipus the King”. This play tells the story of King Oedipus and his quest to lift a plague off of his city. Through out the story, Oedipus is ignoring the truths that are told […]

Summary of Shakuntala: Oedipus Rex

Finding Poetics in History The common saying about war, depression, political events, and history is that it repeats itself. In theatre history, Aristotle’s Poetics does this too. The Poetics, only 114 pages, is a common thread that is sewn through the evolution of theatre from 335 BCE to present day. Aristotle’s Poetics is a crucial document that has been formative in the path influencing the decisions of some of the earliest thespians. Aristotle’s impact on history is large and the […]

Oedipus the King by Sophocles

In Sophocles' story, Oedipus The King, the title concerns the main character Oedipus, King of Thebes, who married his own mother without knowledge and killed his own father. When Oedipus was born, King Laius gained from a prophet that he was bound to be slaughtered by his very own child, thus requested Jocasta, his better half, to kill Oedipus. At the Town of Corinth, he was raised by King Polybus and his wife, Merope, as their own child. Oedipus learning […]

Oedipus Rex – Greek Mythology of Heroism and Tragedy

As part of three Theban plays written by Sophocles, Oedipus Rex is the story of man who consults an oracle and learns of his fate; that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Once learning his fate, he then runs away from ""home. Later, Oedipus becomes king after defeating the Sphinx, that was terrorizing his birth home. When a plague strikes the city, Oedipus goes in search of the murderer in order to rid of the plague. While […]

Thebes and Oedipus: Unveiling Symbolism, Choices, and Relationships

In Greek mythology, there's an innumerable amount of Gods, heroes, and monsters. Oedipus - the King of Thebes - was one of the best-known heroes of all the Greek legends. He had dark, wavy hair and resembled what a perfect, attractive human man would look like. His ankles were covered with scars and he was blind. His name signifies the definition ""swollen foot in Greek. Oedipus biological parents were King Laius and Queen Jocasta and his foster parents were King […]

Comparison between “Death of a Salesman”, “Oedipus Rex”, and “A Streetcar Named Desire”

Both “Oedipus Rex,” “A Streetcar Named Desire,” and “Death Of A Salesman” have scenes where a character’s past is revealed, whether it is to other characters or the audience (Oedipus’ parentage, Blanche’s past, or Willy’s affair). This overall foreshadows that they cannot fully escape their past, whether it is an eventual surfacing (“A Streetcar Named Desire” and “Death of a Salesman”) or an unexpected revelation (Oedipus Rex). This is linked to the theme of the inevitability of fate. There are […]

Oedipus: the King of Thebes

Oedipus is the king of Thebes, having solved the riddle of the Sphinx and saved the city from destruction. But now a plague is devistraing Thebes, and various oracles and bird entrails suggest it is because the murderer of the old king, Laius, still lives in the kingdom unpunished. Oedipus decides to investigate the murder to alleviate everyone, including himself, only to discover he himself is the one who killed Laius and married his queen, Jocasta. Then he finds out […]

Oedipus Vs Hamlet

In Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, when Thebes is struck with the aid of a plague, the human beings ask King Oedipus to supply them from its horrors. Creon, the brother of Jocasta, Oedipus's queen, returns from the oracle of Apollo and discloses that the plague is punishment for the homicide of King Laius, Oedipus's instant predecessor, to whom Jocasta was once married. Creon further discloses that the residents of Thebes need to find out and punish the murderer before the […]

Antigone Vs Oedipus the King Civil Disobedience

Antigone struggled between the loyalty to her brother and Creon’s decree. She wanted to give her brother a proper burial so he could have a peaceful afterlife. However, Creon demanded that no one bury Antigone’s brother. I can relate to Antigone because I have wanted to help my friend when she got herself in trouble. However, my parents said I was not allowed to contact her because she was a negative influence. I believe that Antigone has the right to […]

Journal Oedipus the King

One of the most interesting and tragic ideas about reading Oedipus by Sophocles is that we know what Oedipus does not. We know that he unknowingly killed his father. The idea of fate, or fulfilling a prophecy is complicated in this story. Oedipus, has no control of this story line, and could no way have changed what was already in place from the time of his birth. We know that he unknowingly killed his father.That he marries his mother, becoming […]

Oedipus Rex, a Play by Sophocles

The ancient Greeks built the first theaters, invented and mostly wrote two types of drama; tragedy and comedy. A tragedy is a serious drama about common themes, such as betrayal or love. In ancient times, Greece had three notable dramatists who wrote tragedies, one of whom was Sophocles. Sophocles was an ancient Greek playwright from 496 to 406 BC. He came from a wealthy family and recieved a good education. His father is Sophillius, a rich armour manufacturer, and grew […]

Navigating the Intricate Web of Parent-Child Relationships: a Contemporary Exploration of the Oedipus Complex

Introduction Sigmund Freud, revered as the pioneer of psychoanalysis, introduced a groundbreaking theory that has captivated the world of psychology for over a century: the Oedipus complex. This enigmatic concept probes the complex dynamics between parents and their children, with a particular focus on the intense emotions and conflicts that can arise between a child and their same-sex parent. While Freud's theory has undergone scrutiny and evolution, it remains a significant cornerstone in the realm of psychology. In this essay, […]

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How To Write An Essay On Oedipus

Introduction to oedipus and its significance.

When approaching an essay on Oedipus, it's essential to understand the play's significance in the context of ancient Greek literature and its lasting impact on Western culture. Begin by introducing "Oedipus Rex" (also known as "Oedipus the King") by Sophocles, one of the most renowned tragedies of ancient Greek theater. Outline the story's central themes of fate, free will, and tragic downfall. Your introduction should establish the scope of your essay, whether you plan to focus on character analysis, thematic exploration, the concept of tragedy, or Sophocles' use of dramatic techniques. A clear and engaging introduction will set the foundation for a deeper exploration of this classic work.

Analyzing the Character of Oedipus

In the body of your essay, delve into an analysis of Oedipus as a character. Discuss his journey throughout the play, from a respected king to a tragic figure doomed by fate. Examine his qualities as a leader, his pursuit of truth, and his eventual downfall due to his hubris (excessive pride). Analyze how Sophocles develops Oedipus’ character to explore themes such as human suffering, the limits of human understanding, and the struggle between fate and free will. This section should offer insight into Oedipus as a complex character whose story raises timeless questions about human nature and destiny.

Exploring Themes and Sophocles’ Dramatic Techniques

Extend your essay to discuss the broader themes in "Oedipus Rex" and how Sophocles employs various dramatic techniques to convey them. Analyze the role of fate and prophecy in the play, and how it intersects with the theme of blindness and insight. Discuss the use of dramatic irony, where the audience is aware of the tragic truth long before Oedipus himself realizes it. Consider Sophocles’ use of dialogue, symbolism, and staging to enhance the emotional and thematic depth of the play. This analysis should illustrate how "Oedipus Rex" exemplifies the elements of classical Greek tragedy and its enduring relevance in literature and theater.

Concluding with the Impact of Oedipus Rex

Conclude your essay by summarizing your main points and reflecting on the impact and legacy of "Oedipus Rex." Discuss why this play remains significant in modern times, considering its influence on literature, psychology (as seen in Freud's Oedipus complex), and theater. Reflect on the universal themes in the play that resonate with contemporary audiences, such as the quest for identity and the human condition's complexities. Your conclusion should not only tie together your analysis of "Oedipus Rex" but also encourage readers to consider its continued relevance and the insights it offers into the human experience.

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Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

By sophocles, oedipus rex or oedipus the king essay questions.

Oedipus remains in the dark. Do you agree?

This question asks you to consider the importance of dark and light, and therefore perhaps also sight, in the play. Think metaphorically (i.e. 'in the dark' - unknowing) but also literally (Oedipus' blinding at the end of the play).

Oedipus is old before his time. Do you agree?

This question asks you to consider question of youth and age in Oedipus - though the action of the play happens in a single day, how might Oedipus be considered old? You might also want to think about fathers and children and the impact generation has on age.

This play happens backward. Do you agree?

This question asks you to consider the structure of the play. Look at the section on 'Myth' and consider the way Sophocles alters the story to turn it into a drama. What does Oedipus know at the start of the play? What does he know at the end? What events actually occur during the play - or have all the events happened before it begins?

How might a consideration of the conditions of Greek theatrical performance impact upon our understanding of Oedipus Rex?

This question asks you to consider the importance of the Greek theatrical conventions (particularly masks) that would have originally been employed when Oedipus was performed. Think practically - there were no electric lights, no recorded music, and perhaps even no props. How might this change your interpretation of the play? (See 'About Greek Theater' for more information).

Is Oedipus Rex a private or a public play?

This question asks you to consider the relationship between public and private (or between oikos/polis) in the play. What is the outcome for Thebes? What is the outcome for Oedipus? Is Oedipus to be considered as a father/son/brother or simply as the king of Thebes?

Might Oedipus be more than one man?

This question asks you to consider the play's central inconsistency as potentially one of its themes. The Thebans have heard that Laius was killed by more than one man; in fact, Oedipus alone committed the murder. Think of Oedipus' various roles in the play - king/brother/father/son - and consider whether the conflict of the play might be a conflict between the one and the many.

Do you agree that Oedipus' tragedy happens because of a 'tragic flaw'?

This question asks you to consider that Oedipus' tragedy happens because of a tragic flaw - an opinion that many critics would strongly disagree with. Why do the events of the play happen? Whose fault is it - if anyone's? See Oedipus and Aristotle for more information about the idea of tragic flaws.

"The old seer had eyes" (Oedipus the King, 748). Discuss ideas of sight and blindness in the play.

As well as thinking literally about blindness in Oedipus (Teiresias, in particular) consider the relationship between knowledge and sight. Does Oedipus have any insight into things - can he, perhaps, see better without his eyes?

"I stumbled when I saw" (Gloucester, in Shakespeare's King Lear ). Compare Oedipus Rex to any other play of your choice.

This question invites you to compare Oedipus to any other play. You might want to think about themes, about characters, or what you consider to be the ultimate lesson of the play - just remember to keep comparing: write about both plays at once, not one and then the other. See Useful Comparison Points for some good ideas.

How does Oedipus come to embody the riddle of the Sphinx?

This question requires you to make a connection between the Sphinx riddle's answer - 'man' - and Oedipus' fate. Oedipus, as a consequence of seeking the answer to his kingdom's plague, manages to go through the three stages of the Sphinx's riddle. He is the baby with pierced ankles, crawling on four feet to escape a messenger who would kill him. Then he is the proud adult, king of Thebes, walking on two feet. And finally he is the old, blinded man, walking with a cane, cast out of his own kingdom.

Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

What does Oedipus seem to believe about his ability to control his own destiny?

It is important to remember that, even at this first stage of the play, Oedipus’ pride does not bring about any of the events that cause the plague. The murder of Laius, after all, happened many years ago, and he already has four children fathered...

Character analysis please?

Oedipus is the king of Thebes, married to Jocasta. He is unaware, at the start of the play, that he has murdered his father and slept with his mother. Soon he learns that it was he that put his kingdom at such terrible risk, and blinds himself...

• Oedipus the King

Jocasta is both Oedipus' wife and mother, though, she is unaware that she has married her son. When she learns that her son was not killed, and was in fact her husband, Jocasta takes her own life.

Study Guide for Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) study guide contains a biography of Sophocles, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King
• Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King Summary
• Character List

Essays for Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) by Sophocles.

• Hubris in Antigone and Oedipus
• Hubris in Greek Mythology
• Anagnoresis
• Poetics and the Great Greek Tragedy: Oedipus Rex
• The Vision of Blindness: Sight Versus Insight in Sophocles' Oedipus the King

Lesson Plan for Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King Bibliography

E-Text of Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) e-text contains the full text of Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) by Sophocles.

Wikipedia Entries for Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King

• Introduction

92 Oedipus the King Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best oedipus the king topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay topics on oedipus the king, 💡 most interesting oedipus the king topics to write about, ❓ oedipus the king essay questions.

• Critical Analysis of Oedipus Rex The advancement of art in the Greek cities cannot be compared to any in the other civilizations that existed at the time. Most of Sophocles’ plays emphasize the tragedies of life and the pain inherent […]
• Psychological Theories of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King One of the greatest tragedies of Sophocles, Oedipus the King touches upon a deep psychological theme of the parents-son relations which lately was called the Oedipus complex and the theme of faith as a main […]
• Blindness in Oedipus Rex & Hamlet Therefore, in this play, the sighted like Oedipus and Jocasta are ‘blind’ to the truth whilst the blind like Teiresias can see the truth.
• The Role of Prophecies in Oedipus the King Laius is the rule of Thebes; he learns from oracle that his son Oedipus will kill him and usurp his throne.
• Oedipus the King The king is in conflict with himself. The king’s behavior is in conflict with the character of Oedipus king.
• Sons and Lovers: A Psychoanalytic Reading This essay offers a psychoanalytic reading of the novel Sons and Lovers and addresses the psychological needs of Paul and Gertrude Morel both conscious and unconscious and examines how the dynamics of their relationship mirror […]
• Free Will and Fate in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King Drama Even though the role of fate and prophecy is significant in influencing the life of Oedipus, the king’s destiny can be discussed as a direct result of his actions, choices, and decisions.
• Hamlet and King Oedipus Literature Comparison This essay compares the characters and roles of both Hamlet and King Oedipus as the sons who have to deliver justice to their fathers’ killers.
• Oedipus as a Tragic Hero By the end of the paper, the reader should be able to identify a strong correlation between Oedipus and the tragic hero outlined by Aristotle in the Poetics.
• Role of Fate and Divine Intervention in Oedipus and The Odyssey This is because while the gods are obviously responsible for choosing the path that one’s life is to take, it still takes the free will of the involved person to follow that path.
• Characters in “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles In this essay, we are going to explore the following issues; first, whether, Oedipus can be perceived as a hero in the traditional meaning of this word, in other words, we have to answer the […]
• Women in Literature: Oedipus the King and The Odyssey Two major works of literature, ‘Oedipus the king’ and ‘The Odyssey’, provide some of the best examples of how the role of female characters is portrayed in different ways and how these women influence the […]
• World Literature. Oedipus the King by Sophocles The Delphic Oracle informed that this famine served as a punishment from the gods for not having reattributed the murderer of the Oedipus royal predecessor; therefore, Oedipus ironically vowed to find the murderer.”Just as if […]
• How Does Oedipus Exhibit Weakness of Character? At the start of the play, he was not aware that he had slept with his mother or that he had murdered his father.
• Gregor’s Relationship With His Father in “The Matamorphosis” This paper seeks to explore the father and son relationships in Metamorphosis and Oedipus the King and offers a comparison for the two.
• Oedipus the King as a Piece of Classic Literature This story is nothing short of a treasure in terms of the use of literary devices, and various other techniques employed by the writer to elevate this work to the status of one of the […]
• Othello and Oedipus Rex Characters’ Traits The two characters had to overcome several obstacles in a manner that led many of their followers to respect and honor them, and their royal positions Othello can be considered to be a black member […]
• Prophecies in Oedipus the King In Oedipus the King, one of the persons, who receive prophesies that project a doomed end, is King Laius; who is the biological father to Oedipus. Oedipus then arrives back to his father’s land, Thebes […]
• The Three Themes of the “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles The theme of this story was to address issues that were affecting the people of Thebes during this time and even in times to come.
• Comparison and Contrast of Two Plays: “Comedy of Errors” by William Shakespeare and “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles The main character Oedipus in the play “Oedipus the King”; is full of pride which he loses at the end and has to bow down to fate.
• Similarities of the Pericles’ Speech and “Oedipus the King” On the other hand, Sophocles, in the play “Oedipus the King,” emphasizes on the value of the city in the speech of the king.
• The Other Character in Oedipus The King The chorus in Oedipus, the King is an additional set of characters, the Theban elders. They represent “the people” of the city, and they alternately pray, bemoan their fate, or criticize the King.
• “Oedipus the King”: An Athenian Tragedy by Sophocles The main characters of the play are the members of a royal family, the rulers of the city of Thebes, King Oedipus and his wife Jocasta.
• Responsibility and Punishment: “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles Although the death of his father signifies his own downfall, nonetheless, one could argue that Oedipus acted in self-defense, in that he was attacked unexpectedly while travelling alone and out of fear of losing his […]
• Literary Devices in “Everyman” and “Oedipus the King” Thus, the main feature of the play “Everyman” is that the main protagonist has no name and is not a specific character. The main protagonist in “Oedipus the King” is Oedipus himself, who is the […]
• “Oedipus King” by Sophocles and “Hamlet” by Shakespeare The protagonist is on the verge of madness: an intelligent and unexcelled humanist in the world, which is an enemy to his ideas. However, Oedipus later comes to terms with his fate and takes responsibility […]
• Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Michael W.Cox. Analysis of the Play It is open to anyone reading the play to make a personal conclusion as to the degree of pain and suffering that Jocasta went through in her life.
• Oedipus the King and Ancient Greek Culture Oedipus consults the servant who was sent to abandon him as a child and it is revealed that he was the child of Laius and Jocasta.
• “Oedipus the King” by Sophocle: The Representation of Genre Peculiarities In the tradition of classical dramaturgy of ancient Greeks, the concept of the pay and its representation was driven in terms of the natural play of actors and without decorations.
• “Oresteia” by Aeschylus and “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles: Family Tragedies In this way, Agamemnon presents imperfections in the family under consideration with the tragedy of this family rooting in the wife’s unfaithfulness to her husband and the father’s sacrificing his daughter in exchange for the […]
• “Oedipus the King” Drama by Sophocles It vividly discloses and illustrates the talent of the ancient Greek dramatist as the master of disclosure of the themes that have been topical in the course of development of human society and literature.
• People Get What Deserve. “Oedipus the King” Play Providing some actions people do not always think about the consequences, but it usually appears so that they get what they deserve and the play of the ancient Greek author Sophocles “Oedipus the King” is […]
• “Oedipus the King”: Life Is Ruled by Fate Alone It is known that the plot of the drama is built around an awful tragedy in the life of the protagonist and his surrounding.
• Fate in “Oedipus the King” Play by Sophocles As the story progresses, the protagonist, Oedipus, evolves from his position as the egocentric king of Thebes and rapidly disintegrates into a victim of his own fate.
• The Concept of “Total Flaw” in the Tragedy of Sophocles “Oedipus the King” While both versions indicate extreme passion involved in the killing of Laius and the claiming of Jocasta, the Oedipus in the play greets his subjects with almost concealed disdain and the Oedipus of the film […]
• The Fate of Oedipus, the King Oedipus, born to Laius and Jocasta, the king and queen of Thebes, is destined to “kill his father and mate with his mother”.
• Unconscious Knowledge in “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles There is something in the symbolism of his career, and in the words with which it is memorialized, which is evocative of drama not upon the tragic stage but in the theories and speculations of […]
• Theatre in Contemporary Culture: Sophocles’ Oedipus the King The director aims at portraying Oedipus as a confident person and this is very evident in Oedipus’ opening speech in the play as it exudes the authority of a father to his people and brings […]
• Oedipus the King by Sophocles and Proof by David Auburn It is also of the utmost importance to discuss the attitude of two authors towards the very notion of the overwhelming force.
• Gilgamesh and Oedipus the King In the case of Enkidu, he uses his strength to undermine all those going against his will and he is not putting in mind what the results will be to other in the society.
• Comparison Between the Book “Oedipus – The King” and the Movie “Omen” The only difference between the ‘Oedipus’ and ‘Omen’ is that of mode in which the crime is committed, or in other words, is the curse initiated.
• Inexorability of Fate in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King Soon, Oedipus also understands that the prophecy has come true and that he is the source of the curse for the kingdom.
• The Most Complicated Element of Sophocles’ “Oedipus the King” for the Modern Audience Sophocles’s Oedipus the King is one of the most acclaimed plays, but because of the chorus, it may be not successful with the viewer nowadays.
• Will and Fate in Sophocles’ “Oedipus the King” When speaking of Sophocles, he integrates the myth of Oedipus into the plot of the play in order to demonstrate a deep conflict between the will of gods and the will of human beings.
• Oedipus King vs. Macbeth: Drama Comparison The concept reflects the foundation of the decent authority through showing the tendencies of power both in the ancient times and in the period of Renaissance.
• Oedipus the King – Characters and Performance Oedipus’s cleverness makes his candidature to surface as the best individual to inherit the throne, hence becoming the King of Thebes. He is a seer and prophesized that the end times of Oedipus is nigh.
• Oedipus the King by Sophocles Literature Analysis The closer he gets to the truth, the bitter the reality of his dreadful fate unveils. This is the mistake he made as this search made his life full of agony.
• Sophocles’ Oedipus the King and Aeschylus’ Agamemnon On the other hand, Clytemnestra, a character in Agamemnon, is the daughter of a king and a Greek leader. Love is not the getting and having in times of joy, it is the giving, serving, […]
• Drama Oedipus the King by Sophocles The key aspects of Sophocles’ play capture the learners’ interest in the purpose of comedy and twist of fate. The theme of tragedy is illustrated in the play, Oedipus the King.
• “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles He is aware that his background is not Thebes and is likely to face the threat of the Sphinx. Therefore, it is worth noting that Oedipus provides a good example of the ancient Greeks who […]
• Treatment of Women by Shakespeare and Sophocles Othello disregards the explanation that Desdemona has in regard to the accusation of being unfaithful and kills her.’She’s, like a liar, gone to burning hell, Shakespeare 28.’ After Othello killed Desdemona, he believed more in […]
• Tragic Error in the “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles The main character Oedipus is the King of Thebes. The reward for this work was for Oedipus to be made the King of Thebes.
• Interpreting the Playwrights’ Messages in the Oresteia Trilogy, Oedipus the King, and the Bacchae In Sophocles’s Oedipus the King, the playwright chronicles the narration about the king of Thebes and his eventual fall due to the conflict between the state and the individual values.
• Pride in “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles This divergence in the acceptance of what is said to them between the younger and older versions of Oedipus is based on the fact that the older version of Oedipus had developed a considerable degree […]
• Exploration of Art Theater: Comparing and Contrasting “Oedipus Rex” and “Death of a Salesman” Proposals to the queen and the execution of the king are two coincidences in “Oedipus Rex”. On the other hand, as Cohen notes, “the death of Willy is a tragedy while the failure of his […]
• Oedipus the King and Hamlet However, the fact is both Oedipus and Claudius managed to get the post of kingship after killing the former kings leaving the seats vacant. In conclusion, both Oedipus and King Claudius attained their crown after […]
• Strength of Oedipus Character One day, while Oedipus was on his way, he had a dispute with the King of Thebes and unknown to him he killed him after having the argument.
• Pride and Arrogance in the “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles As the events unfold and Jocasta senses that Oedipus is indeed her son, she begs him to drop the matter but he decides to have none of this. This leads to the death of Jocasta […]
• Leadership Reign in “Oedipus Tyrannus” by Sophocles In a typical way of people in modern world, Oedipus goes on to question the credibility of the Oracle. Oedipus has to pay for all his sins and face humiliation in front of the very […]
• Sophocles: Fate in “Oedipus the King” From an initial reading, most readers assume that the tragedies that befall Oedipus and his family are mere actions of free will by both Oedipus, his parents and the shepherd but it is actually the […]
• What Is King Oedipus’s Tragic Flaw in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Did Oedipus Discover About Himself in “Oedipus the King”?
• How Does the Play “Oedipus the King” Provide a Catharsis?
• How Did Oedipus Prevent the Prophecy in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Is the Thesis of “Oedipus the King”?
• How Does Oedipus Cause His Self-Destruction in “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles?
• “Oedipus the King”: Does Oedipus Satisfy the Definition of a Good Man?
• Does Oedipus Sleep With His Mother in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Has Oedipus Gained From His Experience in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Is the Storyline of “Oedipus the King”?
• Are “Oedipus the King” and “Death of a Salesman” Definitive Tragedies?
• Why Does Oedipus Choose to Blind Himself in “Oedipus the King”?
• Can Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and Sophocle’s “Oedipus the King” Be Regarded as Tragic Plays?
• When Did Bad Things Happen to Good People in Sophocles’ “Oedipus the King”?
• What Does “Oedipus the King” Show Us About Greek Thought?
• How Is Fate Shown in “Oedipus the King”?
• Why Did Oedipus Marry His Mom in “Oedipus the King”?
• Are “Hamlet” and “Oedipus the King” Dramas of Conscience or Consciousness?
• “Oedipus the King”: Did the Prophecy Cause His Destiny?
• What Page Does Oedipus Find Out the Truth in “Oedipus the King”?
• Are “Oedipus the King” and “Death of a Salesman” Tragedies?
• How Does Oedipus Try to Change His Fate in “Oedipus the King”?
• How Sophocles’ Tragedy “Oedipus the King” Conforms to Aristotle’s Definition of Greek Tragedy?
• How Did Oedipus Discover He Killed His Father in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Is “Oedipus the King” Known For?
• What Causes Oedipus’s Downfall in “Oedipus the King”?
• What Literary Techniques and Themes Do Sophocles and Marquez Use to Portray Dramatic Irony in “Oedipus the King” and “Chronicle of a Death”?
• What Errors Does Oedipus Make in “Oedipus the King”?
• Who Revealed the Truth About Oedipus’s Beginnings in “Oedipus the King”?
• Why Does Oedipus Search for Truth in “Oedipus the King”?
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream Titles
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Research Ideas
• A Rose for Emily Research Topics
• The Bluest Eye Titles
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• The Fall of the House of Usher Research Ideas
• A Raisin in the Sun Essay Titles
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IvyPanda . 2024. "92 Oedipus the King Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." March 2, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/oedipus-the-king-essay-examples/.

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IvyPanda . "92 Oedipus the King Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." March 2, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/oedipus-the-king-essay-examples/.