Comparing Hamlet And Sophocles Oedipus The King
When reading the works of two great writers, a person can find many similarities between them. The underlying themes of Shakespeare 's Hamlet and Sophocles Oedipus King excite the reader yet leave us with the desire of wanting more. There are significant similarities between Oedipus King and Hamlet, especially when it relates to the theme of the tormented king, incest, and Shakespeare 's and Sophocles metaphorical references to vision and hearing. Sophocles Oedipus King and Shakespeare 's Hamlet both contain the basic elements of tragedy, although the Shakespearean tragedy expanded its setting far beyond that of the ancient Greek tragedy.
The theme of the tormented king is perhaps the strongest comparison between Hamlet and Oedipus King. In …show more content…
The motif of incest runs throughout Hamlet and is frequently alluded to by Hamlet and the ghost, most obviously in conversations about Gertrude and Claudius, the former brother-in-law and sister-in-law who are now married. A subtle motif of incestuous desire can be found in the relationship of Laertes and Ophelia, as Laertes sometimes speaks to his sister in suggestively sexual terms and, at her funeral, leaps into her grave to hold her in his arms. However, the strongest overtones of incestuous desire arise in the relationship of Hamlet and Gertrude, in Hamlet 's fixation on Gertrude 's sex life with Claudius and his preoccupation with her in general. In the same manner, Oedipus king conveys the most repulsive incest of all, child and mother. Jocasta was married to Laius. An oracle warned the parents that their son would murder his father, so they ordered him killed. Oedipus survived, however, and returned to Thebes, where he unknowingly killed his father. He then married his mother, who bore him Eteocles, Polynices, Antigone, and Ismene. When they learned that the prophecy was true and their shameful secret revealed Jocasta returned to her home and cursed the bed upon which she had slept with both Oedipus and Laius. She then hung herself. Indeed, both authors used the theme of incest to further exemplify the complexity of their
The theme of the tormented king is perhaps the strongest comparison between Hamlet and Oedipus King. In …show more content…
The motif of incest runs throughout Hamlet and is frequently alluded to by Hamlet and the ghost, most obviously in conversations about Gertrude and Claudius, the former brother-in-law and sister-in-law who are now married. A subtle motif of incestuous desire can be found in the relationship of Laertes and Ophelia, as Laertes sometimes speaks to his sister in suggestively sexual terms and, at her funeral, leaps into her grave to hold her in his arms. However, the strongest overtones of incestuous desire arise in the relationship of Hamlet and Gertrude, in Hamlet 's fixation on Gertrude 's sex life with Claudius and his preoccupation with her in general. In the same manner, Oedipus king conveys the most repulsive incest of all, child and mother. Jocasta was married to Laius. An oracle warned the parents that their son would murder his father, so they ordered him killed. Oedipus survived, however, and returned to Thebes, where he unknowingly killed his father. He then married his mother, who bore him Eteocles, Polynices, Antigone, and Ismene. When they learned that the prophecy was true and their shameful secret revealed Jocasta returned to her home and cursed the bed upon which she had slept with both Oedipus and Laius. She then hung herself. Indeed, both authors used the theme of incest to further exemplify the complexity of their