Man of Admirable Feats
In the epic tragedy, Oedipus the King, we see the example of a man whose life is already determined by his own fate. What more can we ask? How admirable is that? Who would not want to admire Oedipus? For instance, the man had his feet pierced together after he was born for goodness sake, that's admirable! "Swollenfoot" Oedipus was a prime example of a "tragic hero". Although in the tragedy Oedipus is brought down by his own fate, in the end we can still consider him a hero. Throughout the whole epic Oedipus never once denied the truth but rather tried to find the mysteries of his life. Oedipus the King was like a murder mystery, involving numerous amounts of affliction which all led up to one man's misery, Oedipus's. Oedipus's admiration began when he killed the monstrous Sphinx who had been terrorizing the countryside by answering her riddle: "What goes on four feet at dawn, two at noon, and three at evening?" At that point the Theben people proclaimed him as their hero and appointed him King following the death of their deceased King Laius. Little did he know though that Laius was his father whom he himself had killed. At that point the prophecy of his fate that he learned f
He knew for himself who his real parents were and the fact that the prophecy that was foretold had come true. This really worries Oedipus and he sends his only living witness to learn the truth, a shepherd. At first the shepherd refuses to speak, but under threat of death he tells what he knows - Oedipus is actually the son of Laius and Jocasta. Despite all that had happened Oedipus was a hero because he finally knew the truth. At this point in Oedipus's exploit, everything including the death of Laius that was said to happen in his fate came true. He married Jocasta, his mother, and bore four children. It doesn't matter if one does or does not seek the truth because in the end the truth will come out no matter what. At that suggestion Oedipus remembers the oracle that he was told when he was younger, that he would kill his father and marry his mother. Oedipus mocks and rejects Tiresias the prophet angrily, ordering him to leave, but not before Tiresias hints darkly of an incestuous marriage and a future of blindness, infamy, and wandering. A man of such existence who was trampled over and over with many different feats and can still be admired as a hero is very admirable. From the very beginning all Oedipus wanted was the whole truth no matter what circumstances. Which is exactly what happened after he was appointed king. Oedipus isn't considered a hero because of the fact that he was recognized and looked up to by others because of his achievements but instead he found what he was looking for.
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