...Hamartia in Oedipus the King According to the Aristotelian characteristics of good tragedy, the tragic character should not fall due to either excessive virtue or excessive wickedness, but due to what Aristotle called hamartia. Hamartia may be interpreted as either a flaw in character or an error in judgement. Oedipus, the tragic character in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, certainly makes several such mistakes; however, the pervasive pattern of his judgemental errors seems to indicate a basic character flaw that precipitates them. Oedipus’ character flaw is ego. This is made evident in the opening lines of the prologue when he states "Here I am myself--you all know me, the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus." (ll. 7-9) His conceit is the root cause of a number of related problems. Among these are recklessness, disrespect, and stubbornness. Oedipus displays an attitude of recklessness and disrespect throughout the play. When he makes his proclamation and no one confesses to the murder of Laius, Oedipus loses patience immediately and rushes into his curse. Later, he displays a short temper to Tiresias: "You, you scum of the earth . . . out with it, once and for all!," (ll. 381, 383) and "Enough! Such filth from him? Insufferable--what, still alive? Get out--faster, back where you came from--vanish!" (ll. 490-492) If an unwillingness to listen may be considered stubbornness, certainly Oedipus would take advice from no one who would tell him to drop the matter of his...
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...theme. Sophocles, the author of Oedipus the King, used three main types of irony to develop the theme: no matter the difficulty of the feat, fate predetermines the outcome. Verbal irony occurs when a character says the opposite of what they mean. Oedipus uses sarcasm in his discussion with the chorus to attack Apollo. The second type of irony, dramatic irony, happens when the audience knows more than the characters. For example, no one but the audience knows that Oedipus killed King Laius. The last type of irony, situational, happens when the characters does the complete opposite of what the audience expects. For instance, the audience expected...
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...Oedipus the King is a tragic play written by Sophocles. The setting is in Thebes during the mythical past of ancient Greece. Oedipus sent his brother-in-law, Creon, to Apollo’s house to ask the priest how to get rid of the plague. Creon later comes back to Oedipus telling him that once the killer of the previous king, Laius, is found Thebes will be cured from the plague. Oedipus then decides that he shall find Laius, and then proceed to murder him. Oedipus kills Laius not knowing that Laius is his biological father. A tragic hero is described as a literary character that makes a decision making error that leads to his or her own suffering, destruction, or anxiety. The play, Oedipus the King, considers Oedipus as being a tragic hero because...
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...Oedipus’ pride and confidence were influenced by the themes in Oedipus the King. Once the themes of blindness and identity came out to show the true horror of the situation Oedipus still represented those traits that the blindness to his identity developed in him. The blindness referring to before he found out the truth of his identity, what he was unable to see and what he just didn’t want to see. The identity theme referring to when he truly figured out who he really was. Blindness and identity influenced Oedipus in different ways as Oedipus the King played out. Blindness influences Oedipus with pride and courage. The blindness referring to before he found out the truth of his identity, what he was unable to see and what he just didn’t want...
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...excessive pride and self-confidence. It indicates that the person who exhibits it has lost contact with reality and always overestimates his accomplishment, which can lead to his/her downfall. The downfall could be anything from mental disturbance to even death. The concept of a tragic hero can definitely be seen in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex and Shakespeare’s King Lear. Even though there are differences in both the writing, they also have some similarities. In Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, the title character was the king of Thebes, and his city was infected with a poisonous plague. To discover the source of the plague and to get rid of it, the Oracle of Delphi was called. It turned out to be that the only way to get rid of plague would be to banish the killer of the former ruler of Thebes, Laius, from the city-state. Oedipus was Laius’s and Jocasta’s son, which was given to shepherd and was order to kill Oedipus, because it was found out that he would kill his father and sleep with his mother. He was very shocked after hearing this because he did not believe that he would ever do something like that. Jocasta then mention how Laius was killed on the three-way intersection. Oedipus found this incident very familiar because it was he who killed Laius along with other men at such intersection. Later on in the play it was found that Oedipus was brought to Thebes as an orphan by a shepherd and that his father was Laius. And because Jocasta was wife of Laius, she is also the mother of Oedipus. So...
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...and destiny, and those who believe in their own free will. The struggle to prove or disprove the existence of fate is one that has been present along with the idea of fate since its beginning. In Oedipus the King, Sophocles not only clearly shows his own opinion on the existence of fate, but also demonstrates the struggle humans encounter when trying to determine whether they have control over their destiny. Ancient societies, such as the Ancient Greeks, strongly believed in religious ideals to a greater extent than many modern societies; however, Oedipus’s story is one of few from Ancient Greece that openly questions the existence of fate, and dares to entertain the idea of free will. The time described in the play is one where the truthfulness of religion was being heavily questioned, and at its core, Oedipus the King is about the existence of fate. Throughout its pages, the play shows characters who both believe in destiny like Tiresias, and also characters like Oedipus, who transition from believing in fate to believing in free will, and back again. In Oedipus the King, the difference in opinions between Oedipus and Tiresias regarding the existence of fate, clearly show the nature of fate in the play, and Sophocles’s opinion on the existence of destiny and free will as well. Oedipus is a character held in high esteem by most others in the play, and throughout is referred to as the great leader, a savior, and more. Even after his eventual downfall, the citizens of Thebes choose...
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...but disastrous failures. In and throughout the play, Oedipus the King, by the Greek play written by Sophocles, then translated for modern times, is and is probably, one of the greatest example of a heroic tragedy. The author, Sophocles, first writes and portrays the main character, Oedipus, as man accredited for his great understandings, great pride, and accomplishments, which is, suggesting that he is a hero. The character Oedipus eventually loses his respect and dignity for something so catastrophic and in consequence destroys Oedipus, who was once called a hero. In the end, though, the greatest tragedy can be said that Oedipus disgraces himself and his family for the killing of his father, marrying and or forcefully raping his mother, and being responsible for the downfall of his reign. One of the first examples of when you see Oedipus’s pride and ego get to him is when he actually has his father killed. Oedipus had sent his men to kill certain people objecting his rule, but unknowingly, has his father killed. Oedipus not really caring about the predetermined fate he is aware of, is...
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...Oedipus the King written by Philosopher Sophocles was regarded as an excellent play by Aristotle, so much he used it to illustrate the many principles of tragedy. Through Sophocles play, we can see the definition of the tragic hero which according to Aristotle tragedy arouses pity and fear from the audience towards the character. The plot and Oedipus character development along the play, causes readers to pity the King as a tragic hero. Sophocles skills have Oedipus recognizing his guilt and at the same time the shocking reversal of destiny. The king is not aware that he killed his father and wedded his mother. He is the reason for the plague that Thebes is going thru according to the gods. Thebes have been stroke by the plague and upon...
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...Running head: Oedipus-A Tragic Hero Research Paper ENGL 102: Literature and Composition) Fall 2015 Melinda Meeds L26683811 APA Outline Thesis: In Sophocles’ “Oedipus”, Oedipus is exemplified as a tragic hero according to Aristotle’s definition because his story appeals to the reader’s humanity in the way he maintains his strengths after inadvertently causing his own downfall. I. Oedipus A. The noble birth. B. Describe Oedipus’ character. II. Tragedy A. Describe what a tragedy is. B. Describe the tragedies Oedipus has faced. III. A tragic hero A. Describe what makes Oedipus a tragic hero. B. Describe how Oedipus handles life after the pitfalls he has faced. Oedipus-A Tragic Hero Sophocles’ Oedipus is a very well-known tragic hero in dramatic literature. Oedipus, in the story, is a king with a great personality however his morality is what leads him to his demise. This mish mash of Oedipus’ disposition is what leads a reader to feeling sympathetic. In Sophocles’ “Oedipus”, Oedipus is exemplified as a tragic hero according to Aristotle’s definition because his story appeals to the reader’s humanity in the way he maintains his strengths after inadvertently causing his own downfall. According to Aristotle, "a man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall” (Hume, n.d.). In Sophocles’ Oedipus, Oedipus possesses specific qualities that allow him to be considered a tragic hero. These qualities include...
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...Arrogance and Pride B. Arrogance and Paranoia C. Pride D. Pig-headedness IV. Downfall V. Conclusion Dramatic Research Paper “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles “Oedipus Rex” was a Greek Tragedy written by Sophocles in the fifth century BC. It was the first of a trilogy of plays surrounding the life of Oedipus. Sophocles wrote over 120 plays approximately 100 years before Aristotle even defined a tragedy and the tragic hero. Aristotle’s definition of a tragedy is “… an imitation of an action of high importance, complete and of some amplitude; in language enhanced by distinct and varying beauties; acted not narrated; by means of pity and fear effecting its purgation of these emotions” (Kennedy and Gioa 2010). According to Aristotle there were six elements to a tragedy: the plot, the character, the thought, the spectacle, the diction, and the music. He believed that “[t]he plot, then, is the first principle, and, as it were, the soul of a tragedy; character holds the second place” (Aristotle 1999). The character (tragic hero) being the second most important element of the tragedy, he must be of nobility, he is not infallible and his downfall is due to an error in judgment, and is capable of making his own choices and, most important, accepting the consequences for those choices. “Oedipus Rex” is not only a classic example of Aristotle’s definition of a tragic plot; Oedipus (the protagonist) has all the characteristics of a tragic hero. Oedipus is the son...
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...It's hard to acknowledge Oedipus tragic flaw I will explain who explain who or what is responsible for his downfall. Basically the theme of the book is “the desire to avoid the truth” basically the truth about his history. He's the son the prophecy foretold the one who would kill his father and marry his mother. Unfortunately, oedipuss desire to avoid the truth only puts off the inevitable and the tragic irony is that even as the facts are piling up against him, Oedipus can't seem to make even the most obvious connections. The desire to avoid the truth manifest itself, all along Oedipus continues to look at the truth, but never to really see it. There has been many reviews on showing how Oedipus is in fact a tragic flaw or tragic hero, for...
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...hero is defined as many things. One who is selfless, one who shows compassion, one who not only leads others into battle but fights alongside them. In the greek parables, The Odyssey, by Homer and in Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles a hero is described as someone who perseveres on even when burdened by the weight of the unknown. The hero of The Odyssey is named Odysseus, a young man who overcame many trials to get back to his home in Ithaca, and the hero of Oedipus Rex is King Oedipus, a ruler who has his people's best interest at heart. The protagonists in these tales are both reputed to have heroic qualities and yet how they dealt with being receptive to new ideas, their humility, and their relationship with a higher power was what led each to...
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...Willy and Oedipus Tragedy Essay Oedipus is a play by Sophocles about a man who saves a town from a sphinx, becomes king,weds with his mother, and kills his father. His whole path is driven by fate. Death of a Salesman is a drama by Arthur Miller about a salesman named Willy Loman who has this big dream to be successful. He ends up failing and commits suicide. Both Oedipus and Willy are exquisite tragic figures, but Willy is superior because he has a higher relation to the audience, had a chance to make it, and Oedipus had no control over what happened to him. Aristotle and Arthur Miller had very different views on what a tragedy entaled. Aristotle thought that a tragedy must start out great, but end in a tragedy. It must have magnitude and...
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...one of the best Greek tragedies, Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles tells of the misfortune of a great man who tried to fight a terrible fate, ultimately bringing down misfortune and sorrow upon them. King Oedipus, ruler of Thebes, the protagonist and tragic hero of the play, hears of a terrible prophecy condemning him to slay his own father and bed his mother, leading him to run far away from the place he considered his home. However, as many Greek playwrights, Sophocles underscored the impossibility of fighting a fate set by the cunning, often cruel, gods, making Oedipus fulfill the prophecy, which ultimately leads to his downfall. A story brimming with irony, foreshadowing and paradox, Oedipus Rex weaves the tale of a man who was his own destruction, acting as his own antagonist in the play, sending the audience a clear moral: fate is immutable. In the beginning of the play, Oedipus possesses many child-like characteristics, perhaps a way to foreshadow his true relationship with Jocasta, his wife, and Creon, his brother-in-law, both of whom are significantly older than him. His irrationality, quick temper and inability to keep emotions separate from his decision-making, lead to him alienate Creon, a useful guide and father figure to Oedipus. As Creon states, “Attitudes like yours [Oedipus’s] always hurt the person who has them.” (Sophocles, Act II, scene i, page 7) His response of outrage towards Tiresias, who at first withheld the truth to help Oedipus, distanced him from the soothsayer...
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...constraint of necessity or fate; the ability to act at one's own discretion.” Fate is a development of events beyonds a person’s control. These ideas are exactly what Sophocles is challenging is his play Oedipus Rex. In Oedipus Rex the protagonist Oedipus is trying to figure who killed the former king Laius, not realizing he was the killer himself. Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Throughout the play, Oedipus is torn between accepting the prophecy or choosing his own destiny. Despite his best effort, the prophecy laid out for him came true. Oedipus Rex uses symbolism to illustrate the theme that one can never escape fate. One symbol used in Oedipus Rex is the scars on his feet. It represent the suffering he has endured and will keep on enduring. In the play Oedipus finds out from a messenger that his adopted father Polybus is dead. The messenger explains how long ago he found a baby on Mount Cithaeron with its...
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