Katie Bertelsen Hour 4 10/26/2013 Ignorance “Ignorance is bliss.” Many times I have thought this to be true. But now that we have read Oedipus Rex‚ by Sophocles‚ I’m rethinking my thoughts on this idea. What if Oedipus was better off not knowing his true parents? Could this predicament have been avoided if Oedipus hadn’t known his “true calling” of killing his father and sleeping with his mother? His life‚ in my eyes‚ would have been better being ignorant. He would’ve lived a great and long life
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In the play Oedipus Rex written by Sophocles; there are many surprises that are sprung upon the main character and the reader at the same time. This play starts with the people of Thebes begging their King Oedipus to end the plague that is upon the land. They pray to the oracle of Apollo and asks what can be done to remove the plague. The oracle states that the sickness is the result of an injustice. This injustice is that the murderer of a previous King Laius still walks free. In hopes the murderer
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without once thinking of the consequences. This can be described as the human condition. What is the human condition? Through his interpretation of the Theban legend‚ Sophocles (c. 496 BCE – c.406 BCE) explores the human condition thoroughly‚ suggesting the universe provides a pattern that humans subconsciously follow. Sophocles’ play Oedipus Rex (Rex translates into King in English) portrays three enduring themes of the human condition through humanity’s
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In Sophocles’ Oedipus The King‚Oedipus was born with the curse that he would kill his father‚ Laios‚ and marry his mother‚ Jocasta. Oedipus tries to avoid his fate by running away from Corinth‚ however this causes him and Laios to meet one last time‚ and Oedipus ends up fulfilling the prophecy. With this in mind‚ the gods create a person’s predetermined fate‚ and no one can ever escape it‚ as Jocasta points out; “No mortal can practise the art of prophecy‚ no man can see the future.” (935). Oedipus
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Oedipus Paper The Theban plays taught ancient Greeks that there were four things that should be learned and lived by in order to be a good person and a good leader. The chorus outlined these things in the last lines of "Antigone" (pg 162). According to the chorus‚ Of happiness the crown And chiefest part Is wisdom‚ and to hold The gods in awe. This is the law That‚ seeing the stricken heart Of pride brought down‚ We learn when we are old. These lines simply put‚ state that wisdom is good
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only try with our earnest efforts to design our own future. In Oedipus Rex‚ by Sophocles‚ its been predicted by the Apollo at Delphi that Oedipus‚ will kill his father and marry his mother. Many characters‚ such as his parents‚ Laius’ herdsman‚ shepherd of Corinth‚ King Polybus‚ Queen Merope‚ and Creon try to prevent this prophecy from occurring. Even though each of them have their own reasons‚ their efforts ultimately lead to Oedipus’ set destiny. To prevent his inevitable death‚ Oedipus’s father
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In the play Oedipus Rex Oedipus is chosen to be king because unlike many citizens in Thebes he solves the Sphinx riddle. However‚ he becomes blind with the riddle of his own life as he is trying to understand it. By examining Sophocles’ use of irony‚ we can see that Oedipus’s fatal flaw is blindness to his own truth. Sophocles’ makes Oedipus’s intelligence visible to us as he solves the Sphinx riddle but unfortunately‚ Oedipus demonstrates to be book smart but not street smart. It is stated by
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THE KING WEARS A SHADES AS THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT WHICH MAKES HIS DAYS DARKER AND DARKER EVERY SINGLE DAY (with some relations to the Philippine Government and setting as a whole) A POSITION PAPER ON SOPHOCLES’ OEDIPUS REX REGULANO‚ Jean Paula Bermudez 2011-05787 HUM 1 X Oedipus Rex’ knowledge‚ which served as his gut against the others to be the King of Thebes‚ is only limited to the information on his people and his environment‚ excluding the information about himself due to his blindness and
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Emotions and Free Will in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King Sophocles’ play brings up the complex issues about the relationship between human’s free will and fate predestined by the Gods. It examines the nature of human confidence to defy fate as well as human’s limited ability against the unknown force that they do not completely understand (p. 609). Several remarks were made in the play to question the authority of the divine powers. If the prophecies are wrong‚ however‚ how could the play
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Every human is susceptible to flaws‚ including myself. In literary works‚ the flaws and figurative blindness of the protagonist creates conflict within the plot. As in Oedipus the King‚ written by Sophocles‚ I have been figuratively blinded by an aspect of my personality. My anger towards a family member has caused me to fail to the reality that they are still present in the lives of my other relatives. When I was a young child‚ circumstances occurred that left many of my family members not speaking
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