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Hubris In Oedipus Rex

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This passage of Oedipus Rex appears near the beginning of the play. Tiresias`s defensive statements occur shortly after Oedipus angers him with insulting language. This narration transpires shortly after Oedipus requests the name of Laius`s killer. Despite conversing with Tiresias in a civil, polite manner in the beginning, upon receiving denial in the form of riddles Oedipus reacts with an irrational rage. The anger that erupts inside Oedipus induces Tiresias`s condemning words that predict Oedipus’s downfall. This event emerges as a result of Oedipus’s hubris which leads to his demise. Tiresias`s lines in the passage reflects the derivation for which Oedipus`s fatal flaw, hubris, arises in his character through his comments, riddles, and sense of knowledge.
Tiresias`s response to Oedipus`s ignorance exhibits the conflict that arises between characters in the story once Oedipus`s hubris breaks through, “I say to you, the man whom you have looked for/ as you pronounced your curse, your decrees/ on the bloody death of Laius- he is here!”(3-4) Oedipus challenged Tiresias and his godly skill through insulting the very nature of his occupation. Responding to this with disbelief and frustration, Tiresias is provoked …show more content…

The prophet conveys the all-knowling knowledge that he possesses in the play. This same belief is held by Oedipus which thwarts him from acknowledging Tiresias`s intellect. Oedipus`s belief that he contains a proficient intellect and status over others leads to the condemnation of irrational actions. Oedipus blinds himself from seeing the knowledge and truth Tiresias embodies through believing his intellect is

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For instance, he initially feels superior over Tiresias, “But you did not come forth with this, knowing some clue from birds or gods; instead I came along, the idiot Oedipus!”. His presumptuousness later fuels his disappointment, especially once he reflects on the unsuccessful endeavours at avoiding the prophecy and how his self-entitlement is based on an illusion. The crux of the matter is, hubris is present in all societies; it causes individuals to overestimate their capacities and underestimate the costs of their actions. Therefore, the effect of the story becomes more poignant, considering that individuals are able to further relate to Oedipus. This empathetic connection with the character forms a stronger emotional response from the audience, leading to a larger and more meaningful sense of catharsis once they reach the ultimate

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Oedipus Rex represents the tragic hero archetype throughout the play; shown as he destroys his status and in turn himself as a result of his unyielding arrogance towards the gods; his hubris causes him to be blind to his foolishness and results in his destruction as he tries, again and again, to avoid his fate believing he can best Apollo and the destiny he had set out for him; his eventual demise causes him to recognize the errors of his ways, however like in any tragic play it is too late and he is plunged into a catharsis - blind, poor, and exiled from his kingdom.

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Oedipus denies the truth and faces the consequences later on in the play. He gets furious when everyone is blaming him for killing Laius. As he is blaming others, hubris appears within his personality. Oedipus becomes blinder as hubris takes over him.

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Oedipus’s arrogance blinds him from seeing clues that lead him to the truth. His pomposity caused him to receive the punishment he was determined to enforce on the murderer of King Laius. The constant reference to blindness and darkness indicates Oedipus’s fate. In addition, it emphasizes the dramatic irony throughout the story. Oedipus discovered that fate is what brought him his luxury and his downfall.

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The character Oedipus is a tragic hero because of his tragic flaw of having consistent, proper ambition to finding the murderer of Laius. In the second scene, Oedipus enters and addresses the chorus, as if addressing the entire city of Thebes. "To all of Thebes I make this proclamation: / if any one of you knows who murdered Laius, I order him to reveal / the whole truth to me . . . He will suffer no unbearable punishment, nothing worse than exile" (171) At this time, Oedipus is trying to convince the killer to come forward and confess the murder.

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As seen through the murder of Oedipus’s father, he gives in to anger and kills the ‘stranger’. As the king of Thebes, he proclaims harsh punishment to the one who killed Laius and does not seem to be able to put two and two together to see his error. In comparison, Aristotle and Sophocles’s ideal hero comes from the superego and is represented by Theseus. While Theseus thrives and accepts the broken Oedipus, Oedipus would have shunned the killer of Laius (and did through asking Kreon to banish him). The id part of Oedipus’s unconscious directed his fate and, as a result, his

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