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Assess The Importance Of Knowing And All-Knowing In Oedipus The King

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Are the Gods All-Knowing and All-Powerful?

Sophocles’ devotion to his religion is reflected in the plays Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone, and enlightens us as readers or observers to the meaning of his plays. Sophocles wants his readers to see that man has a responsibility for his own moral actions and his own judgement and reasoning. Sophocles at the same time recognizes that to fulfill these responsibilities a man must have faithfulness in the gods. In Sophocles’ plays Oedipus Rex and Antigone, he shows that the gods should be worshipped and obeyed because they are all-powerful, they are all-knowing, and they are not subject to human notions of fairness. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone, Sophocles uses the actions of the main characters and the storyline to show these beliefs. …show more content…

The importance of these laws is clear in his play because the entire plot is the result of a prophecy made by the Oracle at Delphi. Sophocles’ play shows that Oedipus has faith in the oracle and wants his guidance in how to end the pestilence in Thebes. Oedipus sends Creon his brother- in- law, to find out from the Oracle how to save Thebes. Creon states in part, “This is what the god has said / The Prince Apollo…” (Roche, P. 1991. p. 8), thus showing how powerful the gods responses were. Sophocles shows that their obligation to the gods is necessary and guidance from them should be sought before any human actions are taken. Sophocles also shows by the fact that the innocent are not always protected, and the non-guilty may suffer, that it is the will of the gods what happens and that humans are not subject to the human views of

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One of the elements that helps Creon become the tragic hero is the rule he has over the city of Thebes. As he is capable to make and adjust laws, Creon does not want to hear or take anyone’s advice. “But here comes Creon, new king of our land,/ son of Menoikeas. Thanks to the gods,/ who’re brought

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To begin with, in the beginning of the second episode, Sophocles establishes a conflict between Creon and Oedipus. When Oedipus sees Creon at his palace, he scolds, “You-here? You have the gall / to show your face before the palace gates? / You, plotting to kill me, kill the king- / I see it all, the marauding thief himself / scheming to steal my crown and power!”

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Melanee Terrell Professor Ohayon HUM2210 11 October 2015 Antigone: Morals vs. Law Antigone is a play written by Sophocles, who is one of three ancient Greek tragedians. In the midst of Sophocles' most well-known plays are Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone. These plays follow the fall of the great king, Oedipus, and later the tragedies that his children suffer.

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The grand claims in the umbrella of “super-human wisdom” include believing certain actions please or displease the gods, the existence of life after death, and such matters indeterminable to humans through the medium of divinity. In Plato’s Euthyphro, Euthyphro and Socrates bicker about Euthyphro’s behavior, and its interpretation from the gods. Euthyphro claims his prosecution of his father for an accidental crime would fancy him in the eyes of the Gods, yet Socrates rebuttals, exclaiming “ But, in the name of Zeus, Euthyphro, do you think you have such exact knowledge about the positions the gods take, and about the pious and the impious, that in the face of these events, you’ve no fear of acting impiously yourself in bringing your father to trial?” (Euthyphro, 7).

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A main theme throughout The Odyssey is the idea of fate vs. free will, which is also largely consistent throughout Oedipus Rex. However, instead of exclusively exploring the involvement of both fate and free will in the human condition, Sophocles analyzes the limits of human free will and the consequences of ignoring or attempting to avoid fate. Throughout the play, we see both Oedipus and his parents constantly running from their fate. They make almost every possible move to avoid their inevitable fate. Through this presentation of free will, Sophocles suggests that although humans have the independence to make their own choices, these choices will ultimately result in whatever condition they were predestined to encounter.

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In “Antigone” Sophocles proves that it is a moral choice to do something that will result in our death if we have a good enough reason to do it because it shows bravery, proves the importance of human rights, and can create role models for

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In everyday life, we face choices that can be decided for or against based on our moral compass. But what if what you believe to be right cannot be easily expressed due to the fact of a governing law preventing it? This is the case of Antigone in Sophocles’ tragedy. It is her against the rest of the world when she tries to fight what she believes to be right. In Antigone by Sophocles is about Antigone’s struggle to combat the law of the land while maintaining her pursuit in following her moral law, and justifying whether she is right or wrong.

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The world of literature offers many different works; some may offer similarities while there are differences between others. There are more similarities than differences between Odysseus and Oedipus. Two great examples of literature is the tragic play “Oedipus the King”, written by Sophocles and “The Odyssey”, an epic poem written by Homer who were both Greek poets. Both poets’ work shows similar examples of life altering changes that were ultimately controlled by the Greek gods.

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Sophocles was the author of the two Greek tragedies: Antigone and Oedipus the King. Although written by the same person, they have their differences. Antigone deals with the conflict of age versus youth, while Oedipus the King deals with man versus fate. In Antigone, Creon is shown to be an undesirable king while in Oedipus the King, Oedipus is presented to be a respected king likes by the people. Lastly, Antigone focuses more on what is morally and ethically right while Oedipus the King focuses more on the idea of unawareness of a situation.

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In a way, it might even be seen as a sort of relativist perspective because the gods could develop their own beliefs and commands and change them accordingly and they must always be right. This is what makes Socrates’ claim so essential, it calls into question the Divine Command Theory and questions the real origin of morality. Human civilizations have been going to the gods for their guidance since the beginning of time, but Socrates’ brings insight that stumps the “smart” Euthyphro. In a certain way, this one question can poke a hole in an individual’s view and traditions of religions such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It is the spring board for disciplines and studies into religious apologetics, because this question that might seem innocuous at first proves to be incredibly powerful.

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In the play Antigone by Sophocles the Greek gods play a very important role. Discussion of the gods is present throughout the entirety of the play. Essentially the gods drive the plot of Antigone. The play is about a girl, Antigone, who lives in Thebes Greece. She is the niece of the king Creon.

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Intelligence Breeds Overconfidence Intelligence is commonly seen as a gift, a perfection or a survival instinct, but many don’t realize that intelligence can undermine a person’s life. In Oedipus Rex, a theatrical play by Sophocles, displays the idea that human flaws such as intellect can flourish overconfidence which may become a downfall. The play revolves around the king Oedipus, in a burdensome experience to find out what who is the murderer of the previous king. He is confident that with his intelligence he will restore Thebes and go against the word of the gods, to later realize that his intelligence is not a gift but a destruction. As previously stated Oedipus tries to use his intelligence to stop the curse of Thebes.

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I think that it shows the Greeks believe that pridefulness is wrong/punishable as well. Along with pride, I think that there were themes of piety, lies and deciet, and justice so I believe that the Greeks may have seen the Gods as a way to enforce good behavior/a moral code of good, although they show to be ignorant, act "bratty", and can be decietful which may be believed to cause humans to be bad. So it explains their bad behavior for them in a

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The relationships between the Greek gods and mortals have always been complicated. The gods can be generous and supportive, but also harsh and destructive towards the humans. They claim to be all powerful beings with unlimited power and influence, but in truth, they are far more human than they are perceived. They meddle with human lives, not because they are wise, but because of their own selfish reasons. In Homer’s

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Humans are like puppets; they have the freedom of choice however their decisions are constantly interfered by the gods. The god’s are given respect due to their extreme power, as mortals know, if offended a god, one would most likely have to face severe consequences. Nonetheless, the gods are not all powerful, as they have emotions that drive them hence weakens them. In Ancient Greek society, having the gods in your favor played a critical role in peoples daily lives, as the gods would extremely influence decision, have significant power over one’s fate, and have direct involvement in the lives of humans. “Father Zeus, is there any mortal left on the wide earth who will still declare to the immortals his mind and his purpose?

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