ipl-logo

How Does Oedipus Prevent His Fate

226 Words1 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Oedipus cant escape fate

Yes, I do agree with the E.R. Dodds' paper. As Dodds stated Oedipus' fate was foretold, it was not said that he would know the truth. He was destined to kill his father and marry his mother, but the gods did not indicate that he would know what he had done. In fact, he has fulfilled the prophecy by the time the play begins despite his efforts to prevent his fate. His own arrogance and pride are responsible for the tragedy he suffers. He feels so proud and powerful that he was able to solve the riddle of the sphinx and save Thebes, he is certain that only he can save the city. He demands to learn the truth, determined to discover the identity of the murderer of King Laius when he learns that that the plague is the result of that man's presence
Show More
Related
162 Words | 1 Pages

Nearly everything Oedipus says reveals his lack of knowledge. Oedipus says, “Whoever murdered him may also wish to punish me” (139-140). In this one phrase, Oedipus shows the audience that he does not know who killed the king, for he would not come to punish himself. He says he will search out the answers “as if for my own father” (329), when ironically that is precisely what he is doing. When talking about the fate of the searched-for murderer, Oedipus says it will not be cruel.

Read More
776 Words | 4 Pages

Oedipus fails to overcome the fate that has been set out for him by the gods. Though the case was different for him, as unlike Hamlet, Oedipus really couldn’t have done anything to avoid his fate of killing his father and marrying his mother. He believed that his real parents were in Corinth and the best way to avoid his fate was to flee the city. Unfortunately for Oedipus, what he had not known was that he was adopted, and his real parents lived in Thebes, the city he fled to. It was nearly impossible for him to have avoided his fate.

Read More
287 Words | 2 Pages

Furthermore, it was mentioned many times that Oedipus was fated to commit these crimes and actions, indicating that he had little to no control over whether the action or crime occurred. For example, the instances in which he killed his father and married his mother were both predicted by the oracle, which indicates

Read More
1429 Words | 6 Pages

Upon receiving the prophecy that he would kill his father and marry his mother, he unquestioningly embraced its validity without challenging it. However, if he employed his common knowledge and free will, the course of events might have been altered. For instance, he tragically killed Laius in a dispute that could have been avoided with restraint. Additionally, when tasked with uncovering the murderer of the former king of Thebes, Oedipus willingly accepted the challenge, firmly believing it was his destiny to expose the killer and save his city. Unfortunately, his unwavering trust in fate and blind devotion to prophecies ultimately led to his downfall.

Read More
977 Words | 4 Pages

Imagine being told your future fate without knowing if it’s true, when it will happen, or even if you can prevent it. One king, Oedipus, in particular, was living that very reality. His fate was uncovered early on by a prophecy, so he lived life trying to run from that fate. Yet, he unknowingly lived that very life later on. He led a life of incest, committed a heinous crime, and was burdened with suffering after the acts were revealed.

Read More
991 Words | 4 Pages

Not only is he disappointed, he is enraged with the fact that his royal life has come to an end because of a mistake that he barely remembers from long ago. These three texts all indicate changes that affect the life path of the

Read More
711 Words | 3 Pages

Oedipus Rex essay Final draft Oedipus certainly deserved his fate. Oedipus and his actions are clearly disrespect to the gods , he faces the fate he deserves. He was doing things that would eventually lead up to the unfortunate event of his death , he was even warned by the great and wise Teiresias , but he being himself was to stubborn and did not listen. All the things Teiresias said would happen became the truth. He killed his father, married his mother, yet he tempted his fate , he deserved everything that came his way .

Read More
98 Words | 1 Pages

Oedipus defeated the Sphinx and gained a city, so of course he thought very highly of himself. But, little did he know that his pride and anger would end up dooming him, forcing him to realize that he did not escape his fate. With having pride you believe in yourself a little too much, thinking that you can do anything. You began to think of yourself as a GOD, rather than someone who is able to perform a task better than the next. You will never have a clear vision of what is really in front of you.

Read More
402 Words | 2 Pages

The oracles had prophesied that Oedipus would kill his father and beget children by his mother. Was the prophecy something that had no choice, but to become fulfilled? Anything in my opinion that an oracle or fortuneteller would tell you isn’t final and therefore has the ability to be changed or altered. I don’t believe that you don’t have the ability to change your own future. Oedipus in the play seemed to be ignorant and arrogant, which caused him to have this complex.

Read More
360 Words | 2 Pages

Oedipus the King is one of the best Greek tragedies of the time. One of the only Sophocles play to survive the time as a whole. Oedipus the King gained popularity through its unusual structure, where the action happens before the play takes place, and the audience witnesses Oedipus discover his fate. Which is how he killed his father, became the king with his mother as his queen. The play revolves around how Oedipus is responsible for everything that happens to him.

Read More
993 Words | 4 Pages

But, “The god dismissed my question without reply;/He spoke of other things…/As, that I should lie with my mother… /And that I should be my father’s murderer” (page 42), Oedipus went on to say. So now it’s clear that Oedipus knew exactly what the prophecy was and that there was a risk that any random person could be his father, yet he killed a stranger soon after that! This was Oedipus’s choice, and a terrible one at that. Creon states this towards the end of the book when Oedipus tries to make commands again after being disgraced. “Think no

Read More
690 Words | 3 Pages

Oedipus Rex was produced by the writer Sophocles. The story was a tragedy from the very beginning. As an infant, Oedipus was cursed and could never escape it since it was fate. He unknowingly achieved the prophecy because of type of character he was. Oedipus was a hubris individual, however, he was obsessed with figuring the truth to save his city which was undergoing a plague, and eventually recognizes the mistakes he has wrongfully committed.

Read More
1005 Words | 5 Pages

The question of gods has always been disputed. Even today the debate rages on. Are the gods benevolent and caring, and if so then why is there evil still in the world; or are the gods evil and malevolent? Perhaps there is no god and humans have done all their worshipping for nothing, and the pain in the world is their own fault. In Oedipus Rex by Sophocles this same idea is expressed, what is the nature of god?

Read More
379 Words | 2 Pages

àestablished that the ability of clairvoyance shared by the gods who are not human but moreso apart of nature, subsequently, equating to fate. To prove this, we may use Hume’s non-cognitivist theory which denounces no true definition to the word god, only secondary qualities such as all-knowing, ever-present, all-powerful, etc. Fate can be seen as having the same secondary qualities as god. Thus, it is at least safe to equate the gods as similar to fate. The authors use of imagery and symbolism further reinforce this theory.

Read More
571 Words | 3 Pages

Oedipus’s selfishness and temper eventually lead to his downfall. Oedipus selfishness made everyone else mad at him for him not believing them. He kept digging and digging himself into a deeper hole. This eventually made his punishment at the end worse for him. He also could not handle the truth so this made him disrespect the gods.

Read More

More about How Does Oedipus Prevent His Fate

Related Topics

Open Document