Sophocles Use Of Dramatic Irony In Oedipus The King
An Analysis of the Uses of Dramatic Irony throughout Oedipus Rex Dramatic irony is extremely prevalent throughout the entirety of the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. Dramatic Irony can be defined as when the audience knows something that the characters do not. Through the chorus, the audience is told in the introduction that Oedipus is guilty. Throughout the rest of the play, the audience is aware of Oedipus’ guilt while he is trying to solve the crime on his own. Sophocles uses the literary device of dramatic irony to enhance the play by helping the reader make emotional and cultural connections, as well as aiding in the development of major themes throughout the play.
Dramatic irony was common in Greek theater. Sophocles’ use of dramatic …show more content…
Sophocles uses the dramatic irony of the audience knowing Oedipus’ guilt while he still has no idea, to show how easily someone can be blinded from the truth when they truly believe there is now way they could be the bad guy. This can be observed in scene one when Oedipus is threatening the people of Thebes in an effort to convince the guilty person to come forward. Oedipus says, “And as for me, this curse applies no less if it should turn out that the culprit is my guest here, sharing my hearth. You have heard the penalty.” (Sophocles 15) This is ironic because the audience knows that not only does the culprit live in his house, the culprit is Oedipus himself. It seems as if Oedipus never even considered the possibility that he could be guilty. He says there is a punishment for anyone who is guilty, except for him, because Oedipus himself does not believe in the possibility of his own guilt. In the end, Oedipus hamartia is his excessive hubris, and his inability to see past himself, and see the truth. The audience would have a much more challenging time trying to understand this if Sophocles had not clued them in to Oedipus’s guilty early on it the play. This gives the audience a better chance of processing the major theme of how excessive hubris can cause a person to be blinded to the
Dramatic irony was common in Greek theater. Sophocles’ use of dramatic …show more content…
Sophocles uses the dramatic irony of the audience knowing Oedipus’ guilt while he still has no idea, to show how easily someone can be blinded from the truth when they truly believe there is now way they could be the bad guy. This can be observed in scene one when Oedipus is threatening the people of Thebes in an effort to convince the guilty person to come forward. Oedipus says, “And as for me, this curse applies no less if it should turn out that the culprit is my guest here, sharing my hearth. You have heard the penalty.” (Sophocles 15) This is ironic because the audience knows that not only does the culprit live in his house, the culprit is Oedipus himself. It seems as if Oedipus never even considered the possibility that he could be guilty. He says there is a punishment for anyone who is guilty, except for him, because Oedipus himself does not believe in the possibility of his own guilt. In the end, Oedipus hamartia is his excessive hubris, and his inability to see past himself, and see the truth. The audience would have a much more challenging time trying to understand this if Sophocles had not clued them in to Oedipus’s guilty early on it the play. This gives the audience a better chance of processing the major theme of how excessive hubris can cause a person to be blinded to the