How Does Jocles Use Dramatic Irony In Oedipus Rex

In the play, Oedipus The King, by Sophocles, a tragic hero tries to escape his fate of murdering his father and marrying his mother. The tragedy of Oedipus begins when a plague devastates the city of Thebes. Creon is sent to the oracles who tells him that the murder of king Laius is the cause. Ironically, the murderer is Oedipus as he is the one who kills Laius, not knowing Laius is his father. Sophocles uses dramatic irony throughout it’s entirety but is specifically effective when Jocasta talks about the oracles, her feelings about it, and how Oedipus reacts towards it. In the section of the play where Oedipus is furious at the fact that Tiresias, an oracle, tells him that he is the murderer of King Laius, Jocasta enters the scene in an attempt to comfort him. Jocasta tries to convince Oedipus that whatever the oracle tells him is just a ruse. She mentions how the fate an oracle foresaw in

Jocasta further explains as she points out that the death of Laius was not the cause of his son, but by thieves at the place where three roads meet. Those words are what sparks Oedipus’ worries. In the play, Oedipus inquires about Jocasta’s words by saying, “I thought I heard you say that Laius / was cut down at a place where three cross roads meet,” at which, Jocasta replies that Laius was(Line 804, 805). Oedipus begins to feel afraid of the fact that he may be the culprit of the death of Laius and asks a series of questions such as where it happened, how long ago, and the features the killer had. Jocasta responds to every question that Oedipus puts out and comes to a realization that the possibilities