The Truth In Oedipus The King

In one of The Three Theban Plays by Sophocles, Oedipus has volunteered to find out who killed the previous king, King Laius. If he succeeds in finding the “stranger” who committed the crime Oedipus will be able to lift the curse of the plague off the people of ancient Thebes. However, in a turn of events Oedipus not only finds out he is the “stranger” who murdered King Laius but also the tragedy surrounding his birth. This discovery leads to an ethical dilemma of “Is the truth always worth finding?”. Since in the beginning Oedipus has cursed the murderer “banish this man – whoever he may be – never shelter him, never speak a word to him, never make him partner to your prayers” (Sophocles, 172). Even going further as to say “I curse myself as
The messenger states “And there we saw the woman hanging by the neck, cradled high in a woven noose, spinning, swinging, back and forth” (237). Oedipus after finding his wife/ mother hanging went on to gouge his own eyes out because “Nothing I could see could bring me joy” (241). Also, the children that Oedipus leaves behind are now without parents and will forever be looked upon as the children from a mother and her son. Another ethical dilemma that could be discussed is the dilemma between the good of the people vs. the good of an individual. Being that Oedipus has made an effort to find the culprit of the crime to ultimately save the people of Thebes from the plague we have to wonder if he was aware that he was the murderer would he have been so engulfed with making sure the “stranger” got what he deserved. During a conversation between Oedipus and Jocasta it is now coming clear to Oedipus that he made a mistake in casting the curse: “oh no no, I think I've just called down a dreadful curse upon myself - I simply didn't know!” (203). Almost as if to say the horrible curse might have been avoided had he known the extent of the