Oedipus & Macbeth: Comparison

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The given writings central theme is a fulfillment of the prophecies in a highly tragic manner, where the main characters learn about their demise beforehand and make attempts to either make it the reality or avoid it. In the case of Oedipus, the prophecy is manifested in the fact that the main character will eventually kill his father, therefore, righteous Oedipus leaves his city in order to prevent his adopted fathers death. In doing so, he unknowingly meets his biological father and kills due to a minor confrontational issue. The story proceeds with Oedipus becoming the king of another city, where he unintentionally marries his biological mother and conceives four children. Later he realizes that he was involved in an incest relationship, which leads to his and the familys downfall.

In the case of Macbeth, the main character is introduced as a brave and righteous warrior, who raises to higher ranks of power due to the king recognizing his efforts. Three witches tell the prophecy of Macbeth becoming a king, which fuels his desire for power. His wife and he make an immoral decision to make Macbeth the king by killing the current monarch and his sons. By continuously ignoring his righteousness, Macbeth becomes more and more afraid and paranoiac of the possible revenge, which results in Macbeth seeking more prophecies in order to prevent them from happening. He learns that he will be dethroned and killed by the previous kings descendant, which ultimately becomes a reality. In Oedipus, the main characters primary intention is to escape the prophecy to avoid murdering his father. In Macbeth, the main character learns about the prophecy and wants to fulfill it by deliberately committing immoral actions.

Reasons that Support the Thesis Statement

Righteousness

The overall role of righteousness is paramount in both stories, where the characters initially possess it, but the instances where they ignore their righteousness leads to their demise. In Oedipus case, he was mostly righteous through the story, ut committed the crime of murdering the king, who is his biological father, due to a small confrontation. Both parties were not aware of the fact that they are related. It is stated: When the old man saw this he watched his moment, and as I passed he struck me from his carriage, full on the head with his two pointed goads (Sophocles 13). During this moment, Oedipus becomes a victim of his rage and anger, which resulted in him killing his father, and thus, fulfilling the prophecy. This single instance of the unrighteous act was a turning point of the story, where he unknowingly fulfills the prophecy and proceeds with setting up the conditions for future ramifications.

In Macbeths case, righteousness is the highest at the beginning of the story, where he was a simple warrior. He continuously loses it as he becomes more lustful for power, which begins when he becomes a thane. His ambition was manifested in the desire to acquire more power, where he wants to remove any potential rivals for the throne. The story contains multiple episodes where Macbeth had the freedom to choose eto to remain loyal to the king or betray him and seek out his interests (Shakespeare). The main character repetitively chooses immoral options in order to become a king and fulfill the prophecy. After killing the king, he wants to prevent the second part of the prophecy, which stated that his best friends descendants would become kings, by sending killers after them. The overall picture becomes clear when the character becomes less happy and more paranoid about his future. The lack of righteousness was the main issue that led to the tragedy.

Prophecy

Prophecy plays a major role in both stories, where the characters become aware of their future at the beginning of their storylines. In Oedipus case, he does not want to kill his father, therefore, the main character flees the city with the goal of finding his biological father. The prophecy becomes fulfilled early on in the story, but it is revealed to Oedipus only later. The main approach of the primary hero is to prevent the prophecy from becoming a reality, which is because Oedipus is not devious or evil. His desire to keep his adopted father safe was an act of righteousness, but the prophecy is fulfilled nonetheless. By trying to escape the city, he unintentionally kills his biological father and puts himself in an incest relationship. A persons free will and his doom are the main contradiction in tragedy, which manifests itself in a series of consequences.

In Macbeths case, the main character becomes aware of the prophecy early on in the storyline. However, his approach is different, because Macbeth wishes to fulfill the prophecy of becoming a king. Three witches plant a seed of thought in his head, which grows and influences the characters further actions. This primarily affects his ambition and lust for power, which requires Macbeth to commit a series of murders. All these choices are morally wrong, because the king rewarded him for his loyalty, and the key person of the second part of the prophecy was his best friend. Nevertheless, Macbeth consciously makes a decision under the influence of his wife to become king by murdering his rivals (Shakespeare). Therefore, the main characters overall approach to their corresponding prophecies leads to their demise.

Power

Power is a core element of two storylines, where the main characters start out as ordinary man but become kings later in the story. In Oedipus case, he is not interested in power as much as Macbeth did but acquires it by defeating the sphinx and saving the city of his biological father (Sophocles 7). However, power played a major role in establishing the characters position in becoming his mothers husband. The latter was the most shocking realization that Oedipus experiences, which results in him abandoning his sons and the city.

In Macbeths case, the concept of power becomes more relevant, because the main character actively seeks it and makes attempts to preserve it despite the prophecy. Macbeth hhas several of occasions where he could have adhered to his righteousness, but in every instance, he ignores it and goes in a downward spiral. Macbeths lust for power makes him less happy and moreparanoidc of possible revenge plots. In desperation, he consults witches, but the prophecy remains unchanged where he will be cast down by his best friends son.

Counter Arguments and Responses to Them

It is important to note that despite the prophecies, power, and righteousness, it is the main characters wrongdoings that led to their demise. The key element here is the fact that both characters committed atrocities by murdering mostly innocent people. The price for their actions was the result of prophecy becoming a reality. In Oedipuss case, the moment of anger and rage, which resulted in him killing an entire group of people, including his father, was a turning point. All further actions worsened the issue, where he becomes the king, marries the queen, and conceives children with her. The given case can be considered as an exaggerated one, but it is evident that such major wrongdoing would result in some form of ramification for the murderer.

In Macbeths case, the main fuel is a hunger for control and power, which leads to the fact that the main character abandons all forms of morals and betrays everyone. Macbeth starts off by killing his own king, who rewarded him for his loyalty. Later, he kills his best friend for being a potential rival for the throne according to the prophecy. He also orders to kill his best friends son, because he is also involved in witches predictions. This case is a more simplistic and realistic one, where a person becomes a victim of his own lust for power and commits a series of immoral actions to prevent his demise.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is important to understand that both Oedipus and Macbeths cases are illustrations of a person deliberately wanting to change the prophecy, and thus, fulfilling it. Although the stories have some significant differences in the overall attitudes of the main characters towards their corresponding prophecies, there are common elements, such as righteousness, power, and prophecy. Oedipus fulfills his prophecy by unknowingly killing his father for small confrontation, whereas Macbeth wants to fulfill a part of the prophecy and wishes to prevent another one. Both main characters effort only facilitates the prophecy progression, which implies that ones destiny is unavoidable. The problem of righteousness is present in both storylines, where Oedipus is mostly righteous and Macbeth starts out as such, but gradually loses it. Prophecy is also a common subject of these two stories, where the main characters become aware of their future in the beginning and take deliberate actions to either prevent it entirely or partially. Power is a central feature of the writings, because both Macbeth and Oedipus eventually become kings. However, it can be argued that these elements might not be relevant, because any atrocity will result in some form of ramification.

References

Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. Dover Publications, 1993.
Sophocles. Oedipus the King. University of Chicago Press, 2010.

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