Irony of "Oedipus the King"

             Irony of "Oedipus the King"
             In our world today, fate and free will remains the biggest mystery of all; is everything we do controlled or do we have the freedom of choice? In the story "Oedipus the King" by Sophocles, the author uses the idea of fate and free will to explain the struggle of Oedipus's life. Fate and free will is explained as; fate is controlled by an outside supernatural force, and there is no way of controlling it. Free will is when each of us is responsible and controls all aspects of our own life. The author of "Oedipus the King" uses ironic devices to convey a tragic attitude toward the struggle of fate and free will.
             The city of Thebes has been cursed by a plague caused by an unclean being that murdered Laius. While in despair, Oedipus cursed the murderer into exile. "I curse that murderer; if he is alone I curse him"(Sophocles, line 263). The murderer of King Laius is Oedipus, so Oedipus is cursing himself into exile. The irony of that statement is that Oedipus is cursing himself and does not know it. Then Oedipus continues the speech and he says that, "I will fight for him like I would fight for my father. My search will never end until I take in chains the murderer of Laius"(Lines 282-285). Laius is Oedipus's father, so he will fight for Laius like he would fight for his father. Irony is also present in the second sentence of the quote because his search will not end until he finds the murderer so he must find himself and he doesn't know it is he. Teiresias, an old and blind prophet, is summoned to find the person who is unclean. When he comes, he asks to be sent away because he fears the truth. Oedipus demands that Teiresias tell him the truth. Teiresias tells Oedipus that he is the unclean person that is causing the city so much pain. In the example Oedipus is just asking to be accused of the crime, Teiresias has already
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Irony of "Oedipus the King". (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 11:39, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/97495.html