Olympian Destiny vs. Personal Choice Essay

An Analytical Essay on the Tragedy of Oedipus in Sophocles Oedipus the King Debates on whether men control their lots or whether their batchs are already dictated by another force are not new and has definitely not ended. Still, plane if arguments on the subject has been exhaustingly discussed, there is still no conclusion make of whether humanity really make their give birth choices or if there is a greater or heavenly force which deprives humanity of that choice. Such circumstance is visualized in Oedipus the King, champion of the trilogies in a famous Greek tragedians plays.Sophocles, who is known to be one of the pioneers of tragedies (as a drama) in the world, writes of the sad and terrible fate of Oedipus who is the ruler of Thebes after he saves the people of Thebes from a monster. The play revolves rough a prophecy that Oedipus wants to kill his own father and make his own mother as a wife. This leads to this essays purpose which is to discuss on whether Oedipus was d estined to have such end or whether he was the one who actually made his own fate.In Oedipus the King, trouble brews in Thebes as the people are in pandemonium over a sickness that spreads over the city. Oedipus who is the present ruler of the city after defeating the Sphinx asks help from an oracle to decipher why Thebes if suffering such fate. The oracle reveals that Olympus is angry over the murder of Thebes chivalric King and the city can notwithstanding be restored to its proper order when the Kings murderer has been caught. This rather ominous scene sets the play in motion as the court of Thebes starts to investigate and prod on who is the possible murderer of the dead King.Through much explanation, interrogation and prodding, it is found out that it is Oedipus himself who has killed the King, devising the prophecy of Apollo truethat Oedipus will kill his father and marry his own mother. Because Thebes needs to be saved and because Creon cries out for Oedipus to respect t he desires of Olympus, Oedipus willingly exiles himself from Thebes and eventually (in the adjoining and last part of the trilogy, Oedipus at Colonus) dies alone. The trilogy that Sophocles has written is known to be the Oedipus plays even if one of the plays played out with the King already dead.However, it is quite evident that in all the plays, Oedipus plays an important part because his fate serves as anchorground of all the plays and his fate becomes a catalyst for all the other scenes in the plot. This fate that brings drink such grief to Oedipus and his family is connected to Apollos prophecy that was predicted by an oracle in Delphi. Oedipus recounts this prophecy when he talks to Jocasta, his queen and wife (and unbeknownst to him, his mother) over the reason why he self-exiled himself from CorinthAnd so I went in secret off to Delphi. / I didnt tell my mother or my father. Apollo sent me back without an answer, / so I didnt learn what I had come to find. But when he spo ke he uttered monstrous things, / strange terrors and horrific miseries it was my fate to defile my mothers bed, / to bring forth to men a human family that people could not bear to look upon, / to murder the father who engendered me. (Sophocles 945-954)This ask out points to the fact that it is Apollo who passed the knowledge of the prophecy and Oedipus is well aware of the said prophecy. Thus, it would seem that the fate of Oedipus is already determined but there is a possibility that although he made unconscious and innocent choices and decisions, Oedipus is still well aware that all the things that he will do leads to something greater and sadder. This something greater and sadder is his tragic fate that would take in the death of his own father and would result in an immoral relationship with his own mother.This premise neither proves nor negates whether Oedipuss life was created out of the decisions, actions and choices he made or whether his life was already created by anot her force for him. Both arguments may be correct but the other holds more incubus base on the text itself. With regards to the tragedy of Oedipus fate created by his own choice, it can be shown in how the Chorus of the play described Oedipus that he was a man who had his own power from his mental strength which resulted in his ability to be very cunningYou residents of Thebes, our native land, / look on this man, this Oedipus, the one who unsounded that celebrated puzzle. / He was the most powerful of men. All citizens who witnessed this mans wealth / were envious. Now what a surging tide of terrible disaster sweeps around him. (Sophocles 18051811) The Chorus described Oedipus as having feats that he alone did without the help of any other force or powerthis would of course show that Oedipus total charge as a character and individual was not just created by the Olympian gods alone.Oedipus also had a hand in the making of his own heart as a person. Thus, his characteristics whi ch lead to his crimes were the culmination of all these characteristics. For example, he is cunning and that is why he was able to defeat his father in battle and he was able to solve the Sphinxs riddle. Because of these two circumstances, he killed his father and he won the queen of the city who is his mother. Apollo merely prophesised Oedipus fatethe sun god did not provide the weapon which would kill Oedipus nor did he provide the answer to the riddle.Thus, Oedipus was able to the things he has done based on his own judgement and discernment as a person. On the other hand, the premise that Oedipus is the victim of the tragedy of fate manufactured by the Olympian gods still holds more weight compared to whether he is a victim of his own misplaced judgements and actions. This can be proven by the following lines delivered by the Chorus of the play In everything / our loftiest traditions consecrate,those laws engendered in the heavenly skies, / whose only father is Olympus. They wer e not born from mortal men, / nor will they sleep and be forgotten. In them lives an ageless mighty god. (Sophocles 1034-1040) The lines explain that mens laws and the traditions that they exalt, whether good or bad and advantageous or remiss, is created by the heavens. Therefore, men are but putty in the hands of the gods and goddesses of Olympus. Whatever human beings do, it is determined already by the hands of the gods.If this supposition is correct, it just means that Oedipus entire life was created by the gods and it is up to the gods on how his life will end even if the Queen Jocasta believes otherwise Fear? What should a man fear? Its all chance, chance rules our lives. Not a man on earth can see a day ahead, groping through the dark. Better to live at random, best we can (Sophocles 10681078). When the queen declared such judgement, she was not able to consider that even if chance rules humanitys lives chance is also something which the heavens also control.Though men make decisions in certain circumstances, those circumstances were also created by pre-determined fate Oedipus had to be there at the exact same time his father was at the crossroads Oedipus had to take the path going to Thebes Oedipus had to solve the riddle by the Sphinx, etc. Thus, although Oedipus can make his own decisions which lead to his tragic fate, his tragic fate was already determined by his hands not his own. It was determined, based on the Greek mythologies, by the Fates. Works Cited Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Ontario General Publishing, Ltd. , 1991.