Oedipus The King: The Tragic Hero
Oedipus: The Tragic Hero
Normally when someone hears the word “tragedy,” they automatically think of suffering, pain, destruction, and calamity. The final result would be the unfortunate collapse of a powerful protagonist whether it was a misjudgment or a flaw within their character. A great example of a tragedy would be Oedipus the King by Sophocles. This play was set in the city of Thebes during another terrible plague that the people had just overcome. It tells about a king who lives out his dreadful prophecy after trying to flee from it. During the course of the play, Oedipus greatly exemplifies a tragic hero because of the profound suffering he endured in result of the condemning prophecy that followed him throughout his life.
In the fourth century B.C, Greek philosopher Aristotle put forth a definition of a tragedy (Kennedy and Gioia 855-887 ). Many of the darkening aspects of this play fulfills the characteristics of a …show more content…
Despite his high position and his appreciated authority, Oedipus still made mistakes and went about situations in a dramatic way. The actual cause of Oedipus’ downfall is his refusal to accept his destiny. He knew of what would become of him, but he chooses to run away from the truth. His first mistake was to let fear be apart of his final decision in the midst of confusion. With the fear he had, he ran away. The only reason he ran was to avert the mess of his fate but little did he know, he made it happen. “I heard all this, and fled. And from that day Corinth to me was only in the starts Descending in that quarter of the sky, as I wandered farther and farther on my way to a land where I should never see the evil sung by the oracle” (2.2.268-273). In life when there are problems, it is crucial to face them instead of fleeing because the problem does not go
Normally when someone hears the word “tragedy,” they automatically think of suffering, pain, destruction, and calamity. The final result would be the unfortunate collapse of a powerful protagonist whether it was a misjudgment or a flaw within their character. A great example of a tragedy would be Oedipus the King by Sophocles. This play was set in the city of Thebes during another terrible plague that the people had just overcome. It tells about a king who lives out his dreadful prophecy after trying to flee from it. During the course of the play, Oedipus greatly exemplifies a tragic hero because of the profound suffering he endured in result of the condemning prophecy that followed him throughout his life.
In the fourth century B.C, Greek philosopher Aristotle put forth a definition of a tragedy (Kennedy and Gioia 855-887 ). Many of the darkening aspects of this play fulfills the characteristics of a …show more content…
Despite his high position and his appreciated authority, Oedipus still made mistakes and went about situations in a dramatic way. The actual cause of Oedipus’ downfall is his refusal to accept his destiny. He knew of what would become of him, but he chooses to run away from the truth. His first mistake was to let fear be apart of his final decision in the midst of confusion. With the fear he had, he ran away. The only reason he ran was to avert the mess of his fate but little did he know, he made it happen. “I heard all this, and fled. And from that day Corinth to me was only in the starts Descending in that quarter of the sky, as I wandered farther and farther on my way to a land where I should never see the evil sung by the oracle” (2.2.268-273). In life when there are problems, it is crucial to face them instead of fleeing because the problem does not go