The Inevitable
Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, was a play about the downfall of the citizens of Thebes and its King. Before Oedipus became King there was a man named Lauis but he was murdered and no one knows who did it. As the search comes to a close Oedipus begins to give consequences and cast down curses for whoever has committed this murder. However we find that he is ultimately condemning himself and his wife, Jocasta, as well. Much like Oedipus she begins to see the horror of her identity unfolding.
Jocasta is similar to the tragic hero in that both of their fate was inevitable. However she does have her own ideas about fate and prophesy. The evidence found on page 1446 Line 779-782 we can see we can see Jocasta is not willing to give prophesy a place in her life. She does not believe that prophesy can control life and give someone a set plan for how their lives will turn out. As soon as she heard the word prophet she automatically declared that it won’t penetrate Oedipus future. For example on page 1447 Line 820-821 Oedipus reaction to the news that he has just gotten revealed that he may be the murderer of Lauis which results in the curses being cast down on him. This example shows how depressed he has become because he recognizes that the prophesy he has received is true. This is what separates Jocasta and Oedipus because he actually believes in fate. On page 1453 line 1068-107 she expresses her unbelief in fate once again by pointing out that it is all about chance. According to Jocasta nothing is set in stone but can be changed if it is the desire of the beholder. Opinions of fate and prophesy is what separates Oedipus and Jocasta. This may be the reason why the reaction of Jocasta to the birth of Oedipus was uneasy.
As the story continues there is not only speculation about what is concerning Oedipus but also about the birth of Oedipus as well. On page 1455 line 1157-1159 Jocasta is reluctant to let Oedipus find the Old sheppard because she knows that if he proceeds he will find something that could lead to her doom. The evidence found on page 1455 line 1161-1163 you can almost feel how convinced she is about her suspicions. When she says “ My suffering is enough” you can tell that just seeing Oedipus search is hurting her. If he continues to find more information her suspicions will not just be uncertain but they will become truth. For instance on page1455 line 1170-1171 when she says “for your sake”, it demonstrates her care for Oedipus life because she is more convinced in her suspicion that she may be his mother. If he found out it could lead to trouble or even worse, his death. Jocasta had suspicions about Oedipus birth and she became nervous about the search that Oedipus was leading. She was so uneasy because if her speculation about Oedipus birth is correct it would mean that the prophesy is true. It would mean he is her son and he killed his father. Her suspicions lead to despair which resulted in an unexpected turn of events.
After trying to convince Oedipus not to find out the truth she finds herself in misery which Is different from Oedipus despair. For example on page 1461 line 1396 when she ended her life she was also able to end her misery. However this differed from Oedipus because he still has to live with it as long as he lives. He does not commit suicide but he does take Jocasta’s brooch and digs the needle down his socket. Although they both had a tragic fate each lived it differently than the other.
Oedipus the King of Thebes was destined to marry his mother and kill his father which happened to be Lauis. Knowing his fate he does his best to stay away from the inevitable. However it does not work and he begins to see the horror of his fate unfolding, he is his wife’s son. Not only does he bring horror upon himself but also upon Jocasta who realizes her identity is her husband’s mother. As they search for the murderer there are more revelations being made about who could have committed this crime. Descriptions about the murderer makes Oedipus remember his ultimate fate. Jocasta has her suspicions of Oedipus birth because she knows that if he killed Lauis it would mean Oedipus is her son. Although she shares her own ideas about fate she comes to realize that maybe fate is inevitable because Oedipus’s life begins to play out that way.
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