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One of the classical Athenian playwrights for tragedy is Sophocles, and is well known for his drama, Oedipus Rex. His plays contain characters who have noble qualities and are liable to their tragic fate. Fate is inevitable in the context of the play. Sophocles intentionally presents fate to be inevitable to ensure the submission of society. In the play, Oedipus Rex, written by Sophocles, displays a society who fully worships the gods and defying them leads to consequences, the certainty of fate, and experiencing hardships. Therefore, the characters associated with the prophecy and planning to escape from truth confirms the idea of the inescapable fate.
Furthermore, Oedipus and his birth parents decides to act upon unreasonable behavior that leads to self-harm and teaches a lesson. In the end of the play, Oedipus punishes himself by banishing from the country and gauging his eyes out when he realizes that the Oracle came true; to kill his father and marry his mother. According to Oedipus as he declares his banishment to Choragos, “Do not counsel me anymore. This punishment that I have laid upon myself is just. If I had eyes, I do not know how I could bear the sight of my father…” (Sophocles, Antistrophe 2. 140-144) . The gesture of gauging his eyes, teaches the cohesion of fate and the consequences of eluding the unpleasant future revolves around the god’s decisiveness. Additionally, the mother and wife of Oedipus, Jocasta fails to accept and tolerate of the prophecy becoming true. In correlation to the notion of retribution to the gods, “[Second Messenger] The queen is dead… I do not know: it was none of us who aided him. But surely one of the gods was in control,” (Exodos 35. 26-34). As the second messenger announces the death of queen Jocasta, it is evident that the messenger assigns the responsibility upon the gods of the situation. Thus, proves the immeasurable powers of gods the ability to set a person’s role in society. Moreover, the name Oedipus translates to swollen foot, and refers to the consequences his birth parents plan to stop from the prophecy happening. The messenger of Corinth reveals the truth of Oedipus’ foot, “[Oedipus] Ah stranger, why do you speak of that childhood pain? [Messenger] I pulled the skewer that pinned your feet together…. That was why you were given the name you bear!” (3.113-116). It is apparent that his experience traumatizes his childhood, and as a result, the pain uncovers that his fleeing from Corinth acts as bait of the inescapable fate. Likewise, the gods have capabilities to bring destruction upon the people by punishing those who do not abide from the rules, and teach a lesson of the importance of fulfilling the roles as an individual.
Secondly, the gods ensure the prophecy to be predetermine through natural forces and the irrational decisions Oedipus make to cheat his way from freedom. First in foremost, the gods cast upon a sphinx to cause a plague in the city of Thebes as punishment for their crimes, as a result, Oedipus fulfills his prophecy of becoming king and marrying his mother. Oedipus’ people beg for their savior to save them, “You saved us from the Sphinx, that flinty singer, and the tribute we paid her so long; yet you were never better informed than we, nor could we teach you: A god’s touch, it seems, enabled you to help us,” (1. 38-42). The play writer, Sophocles purposely enforce this quote to indicate that the gods have full control of Oedipus’s fate since the beginning and are impotent to avoid fate. Furthermore, once the plague starts, the truth starts unravelling the actions Oedipus brings into the city of Thebes. Kreon, brother of Jocasta, goes to Delphi to find answers to end the plague, “In plain words the god commands us to expel from the land of Thebes. An old defilement we are sheltering. It is a deathly thing, beyond cure; We must not let it feed upon us longer,” (1. 98-103). This quote manifests the resolution to end the suffering, but proves that fate will retaliate in response to Oedipus’s refusal towards his destiny. Additionally, the prophet, Teiresias, acts as a god of being able to see the future and his encounter with Oedipus assures that his destiny came true. As Oedipus argues with Teiresias, “What does it matter? Whether I speak or not, it is bound to come,” (Parados. 125-126). His bold statement of Oedipus’ destiny proves that a strong entity has an obligation to keep life balance. In conclusion, the gods’ determination to keep life in order causes fate to be inevitable under no circumstances, and the source of the characters’ agony.
Also, those who are below the hierarchy functions as the proletariats in the society, because they do not have full control of their fate and need to undergo failures to learn. In the beginning of the play, Oedipus’s children are the working-class people who suffers from a disease specifying a lesson from the gods for glorifying the sinful man, Oedipus. The city of Thebes continues to suffer, “Must tell you: Thebes is tossed on a murdering sea and can not lift her head from the death surge… The herds are sick; children die unborn, and labor is vain. The god of plague and pyre raids like the detestable lightning through the city,” (1. 26 – 31). Without doubt, the Thebans are indicating the terrifying powers the gods can afflict upon Thebes and her downfall, and is due to the fact of their foolishness and unwary of the situation. Furthermore, Oedipus’s adversity keeps the stability of the hierarchy between the bourgeois and the proletariat. Oedipus’ cluelessness of the state of his position, “Thus I associate myself with this oracle and take the side of the murdered king. As for the criminal, … And as for me, this curse applies no less if it should turn out that the culprit is my guest here, sharing my hearth,” (3. 27 – 33). Oedipus lacks knowledge and intelligence which brings the gods to purposely cause him misfortunes, and therefore he is incapable of changing his role in society. Finally, the daughters of Oedipus will continue to suffer and feel miserable because of their father’s name. “Is there any evil wanting? Your father killed his father… Endangered you at the fount of his own existence! That is why they will say of you. Then, whom can you ever marry? There are no bridegrooms for you, and your lives must wither away in sterile dreaming,” (5. 263 – 267). Obviously, Oedipus curses his own daughter and declares that his daughters will be in a position of loneliness because they carry their fathers’ name in vain, and implies that fate is unavoidable. Hence, misfortune will continue to follow Oedipus and those who associates themselves to him will need to condone the consequences.
The city of Thebes abides from the rules of the gods, and disobeying them leads to further consequences. The gods serve as an equilibrium in the society and ensures that each person has a role, and if the person does not fulfill their role, there will be repercussions. Oedipus, a victim of trying to outrun fate from the gods, face hardships and learns that fate is inevitable because gods are powerful. Gods will guarantee the preordain prophecy of a person through having full control of their life, the power to plan events and fall into deep misery. In the end, fate is a cycle that a person must follow and choosing to break the cycle will disrupt the future.
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