Blindness In Truth In Oedipus The King

The tragedy is universal because everyone else goes through. In the Greek tragedy “Oedipus the King “, written by Sophocles and translated by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald; the topic of tragedy is retained. Oedipus is abandoned by his parents due to prophecy. He lives his entire young life blindly, without knowing his true identity, until he kills his father, marries his mother, and is finally exposed to the truth. Oedipus has lived his whole life blindly, abusing his power and those around him. The three points to my essay are as follows: the blindness in knowledge, blindness in truth, and lastly, physical blindness.

Even though Oedipus is wise, he is extremely close minded. “There is, not for you, you sightless, witless, senseless,

He has lived his life knowing one thing, but in reality, everything is completely different: he believes he knows who his parents are, who he is, and what he is and anything that threatens his truth, is discredited. At a young age, he is called a bastard and thus leaves to go and visit an oracle for further knowledge of his past. The oracle tells him that there has been a prophecy that he, Oedipus, will murder his father and marry his mother. He immediately leaves to travel to Thebes, on the way, his way is blocked by an old man who refuses to let him cross. This results in the death of the man and all of his guards. Before he could enter Thebes, he is stopped by the Sphinx and is not allowed into the city until he can solve the creatures riddle. He ultimately became king, and married Jocasta (his mother) —proving that you cannot hide from fate, as it always catches up with

As the story progresses, Oedipus’s blindness to truth and his infringements brings misfortune to his subjects. He is said to be the cause of his subject's demise, including famine, the death of his people, the death of multitudes of animals, and women were giving birth to babies that were dead at birth. He has killed his father and married his mother at this point-- the Greeks believe that any crime or infraction against the gods would lead to not only the demise of the person who had sinned but to all that is around them. Tiresian especially blames Oedipus of the current plagues over the city of Thebes. In this quote, Tiresian states his feelings toward him and sparks his interest in his history: "You, even though you see clearly, do not see the scope of your own evil, nor with whom you dwell. Do you know your true decent? And secretly you are an enemy to your own kin." (433-437) Oedipus sends his brother in law, Creon, to visit an at Delphi. He returned later with news that shocked Oedipus and everyone around him: he was the reason for the plague and all of the death around him. He learns he has murdered his father and is married to his mother. Upon going to tell Jocasta, he finds her hanging. As a result, he stabs his own eyes out, making himself physically blind, with a