Term Papers on King Oedipus

Term Paper Title	King Oedipus
# of Words	871
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.48

King Oedipus

King Oedipus by Sophocles

                           Blindness is the downfall of the hero Oedipus in the play “King Oedipus” by Sophocles. Not      only does the blindness appear physically, but also egotistically as he refuses to acknowledge
                           the possibility of him actually being the murderer of Laius, the former King of Thebes.
                           Coincidentally, he is also Oedipus’s biological father. The use of light and dark in the play is
                           strategically applied in order to better understand the emotion that lies within the characters.
                           As blame is placed upon Oedipus for the murder of Laius, he blinds himself from the possible
                           reality that he may be the killer. The people of Thebes are informed that there is an impending
                           curse upon them as a result of the murder mystery of their previous king, Laius. In order to
                           quicken the cure, Oedipus calls on Teiresias, the blind prophet to aide them. Excessive pride
                           fuels his inability to believe the prophecy of Teiresias stating Oedipus is the killer, and that he
                           has married his mother. “Until I came – I, ignorant Oedipus, came – and stopped the riddler’s
                           mouth, guessing the truth by mother-wit, not bird-love.” Because he continually boasts about
                           how he has saved Thebes from the Sphinx, he believes that no one could know more than he,
                           especially if he is the one to be accused of a crime he “knows” he didn’t commit. In response
                           Teiresias argues, “You are please to mock my blindness. Have you eyes, and do not see your
                           own damnation? Eyes and cannot see what company you keep.” This is a pivotal component to
                           the irony behind the idea of blindness throughout the play. Although Teiresias is physically
                           blind, he is able to accept and “see” the truth, while Oedipus physically being able to see is left
                           in the dark rejecting truth. The blindness of Oedipus leads to the darkness of Thebes also
                           known as The City of Light. “We cannot believe, we cannot deny; all’s dark. We fear, but we
                           cannot see, what is before us” worry the townspeople. Dark, here, symbolizes the confusion
                           that is placed upon the people of Thebes. They are in a chasm trying to decipher what is to be
                           determined as true, the prophecy of Teiresias, or the good word of Oedipus.
                           After several testimonies, Oedipus opens his eyes and accepts the blame. In order to deliver
                           justice for his wrongs in killing his father and marrying his mother, Oedipus chooses to blind
                           himself physically. The Attendant explains the people regarding the Oedipus...

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