Oedipus & The Odyssey: The Main Characters Transgress Beyond Accepted Social Norms and Commit Crimes
In both Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Homer's The Odyssey, the main characters transgress beyond accepted social norms and commit crimes. Odysseus blinds a man, acts recklessly in providing for the safety of his crew, and is unfaithful (repeatedly) to his wife. Oedipus is unkind to a blind man, refuses to listen to good advice, falsely accuses people, and kills a man. In both cases, though, the epic heroes Odysseus and Oedipus are not blameworthy because the audience understands that the acts of lawlessness and transgression are not the fault of the heroes; it is their fate to behave in such a way. While it is a suspension of reality to absolve the heroes of blame for their immoral or illegal actions, such a suspension is common in literature. The fictional heroes "get away with murder" because it is really not their fault. Readers of mythology and literature in general can appreciate the loophole that allows fated characters to escape retribution. The actions and consequences of the heroes suggest that people are willing to tolerate or even approve of transgressions if the circumstances are beyond the hero's control. The ill-fated descendant of the House of Cadmus, Oedipus, has both a lucky and an unlucky beginning. B
As Odysseus later recounts his tale, it is clear that Calypso is not his last lover. He is also regarded as being wise and clever, and he has a host of accomplishments to recommend him. Even though Odysseus may enjoy parts of his imprisonment, Homer portrays his sadness and homesickness, saying "Now he's left to pine on an island, racked with grief in the nymph Calypso's house-she holds him there by force" (Homer 153). While it may seem that Oedipus escaped his fate by being moved away from his native Thebes to Corinth, his teenage years reveal the news of his fate. Instead of regarding Oedipus as a raging murderer as a result of the killings at the crossroad, the audience tends to take a fatalistic view of the incident. Oedipus kills a man, but we understand that it was his fate. The second plague upon the city of Thebes was caused by the fact that the city had not sought and punished the murderer of King Laius. The meandering ten-year trip home from the ten-year Trojan War results in the loss of Odysseus' entire fleet and crew. Oedipus kills the man in the chariot along with his entire entourage and does not, apparently, give the murders a second thought until nearly twenty years have passed. Upon arriving in Thebes, Oedipus solves the riddle of the sphinx and marries Queen Jocasta as a reward. Odysseus has much to be proud of in his journeys and trials, but he also commits the crimes of adultery, deceit, violence, and pride. The goddess Calypso detains him as her lover on her island for seven years. His flight away from the people whom he assumed were his real parents leads him down the road to Thebes. His angry mistreatment of the oracle is a byproduct of his tragic fate and he escapes the blame of the audience by taking the blame squarely on his shoulders even though there was nothing he could have done to avoid fulfilling the miserable prophecy.
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Acceptance Essays
