In the plays Antigone and Oedipus, the author, Sophocles, portrays Oedipus as a noble king by providing multiple instances in which he displays positive ethics as well as actions that benefit others to a high degree. Although other characters may be noble to some level, none are as selfless as Oedipus for the benefit of others. Oedipus displays his nobility from the beginning. Upon arriving at Thebes, Oedipus was crowned as king for performing a great deed. “You freed us from the/ Sphinx, you came to Thebes/ and cut us loose from the bloody tribute we had paid/ that harsh, brutal singer. We taught you nothing,/ no skill, no extra knowledge, still you triumphed,” (44-47) says the priest to Oedipus, praising him for his quick wit that has ended the plague on Thebes. Oedipus could have chosen to run from the Sphinx, saving himself any trouble, but he righteously took up the task to defeat it, putting his own life at risk but deciding it was worth it to rescue the citizens of Thebes from their peril. Since one of the signs of nobility is selflessness, Oedipus is clearly noble because of his grand sacrifice.
Furthermore, Oedipus loves his city dearly. Upon learning that there is a plague,
…show more content…
However, this situation does not make him any less noble because Oedipus did not perform these actions by his own will. The prophecy forced him to do this, like a puppeteer pulling strings in the background. Furthermore, Oedipus did not want to marry his own mother and kill his father at all. He even tried to defeat the prophecy by running away from his “foster” home because he thought his guardians there were his biological parents. Therefore, if given the choice, Oedipus would definitely not be willing to wed his mother and murder his father. Oedipus at his core is a noble man, Fate just managed to outsmart him, condemning him to the tragic life that he now