Oedipus the King and Fences - Essay Example

?Oedipus the King and Fences Introduction August Wilson and Sophocles are two playwrights who created a lasting impression in the field of theater intheir respective generations. While Sophocles is known for his creation of tragic plays, such as Oedipus the King, Wilson also employs the elements of tragedy by presenting mostly stories about the plight of African-Americans in the 20th century without claiming to be a writer of tragedy theater plays. In both of their plays, however, the protagonists are faced by situations of win-loss, but mostly end up losing after being confronted with miseries that are governed either by fate or by their own actions. Unlike the usual categorization of what a tragic play means, Sophocles did not have his own static and permanent “blueprint” for what tragedy must be on stage (Sutton and Foster 317). In fact, he employed several varied fates for his heroes, or that some elements of tragedy postulated by Aristotle were not similar all throughout. On one hand, Wilson had a particular liking towards exposing the harsh realities experienced by African-Americans, and whose characters struggle for recognition amidst racism and slavery. Therefore, both plays, Oedipus the King and Fences are both drama plays that have incorporated different tragic elements practically based also on the prominent events in their times. Oedipus the King’s and Fences’ Approaches to Tragedy Oedipus the King opens with the presentation of Oedipus, King of Thebes, who faces his constituents in the midst of plague, particularly famine and deaths due to diseases. The protagonist, Oedipus, is the son of the former King Laius who was sent away by his parents so that they may avoid the curse of the oracle that Laius may die in the hands of his son while he is going to sleep with his own mother, Jocasta. Oedipus was then adopted by King Polybus of Corinth, who had no child then raised him as his own. In the play, Creon, Oedipus’ brother-in-law, had arrived bearing the news from the oracle who reveals that the plague is caused by the unresolved murder of King Laius, stating that the murderer is in Thebes. Unknowingly, Oedipus sought the help of Tiresias the prophet in order to solve the mystery behind the murder. In this situation, it is ironic that the protagonist does not know that he was the murderer while the audience perfectly knows that he killed his father in an encounter. This portrays that while the audience knows their predicaments because of past events, the main actors do not. Moreover, King Oedipus displays some actions that betray his own self, such as insisting that Creon must announce the news to all of his constituents. Although this is a sign of a virtuous leadership, Oedipus somehow betrays his own sense of leadership by publicly exposing a stepping stone to his committed murder. Sophocles’ play also puts emphasis on the role of fate to the main character, but the protagonist’s decisions and actions state that he governs his own destiny. Oedipus the King approaches tragedy in terms of the responsibility of the protagonist towards his own downfall. Oedipus’ virtuous self and lapses as a human being both contribute to his miseries in the end. On one hand, Fences revolves around the character of Troy, an African-American who has spent some time in jail for committing murder prior to his constant stealing in order to feed his first wife and son. He was able to enhance his skills in baseball while in prison while his wife jumped out of the relationship. Troy later remarried Rose, and they have a son named Cory. Wilson’s approach in making tragic plays involves interplay of different events in the protagonist’s life that tested his patience and relationship towards the people around him. Unlike Oedipus the King whose main story centers around the search of the murderer of King Laius in order to solve the plague, Fences features life of a common man and his daily struggles against racism at work and in sports (denying a spot in a major baseball league because he is black). The protagonist, while insisting on his role as a stern provider for his family, also shows some of his wrongdoings, such as an affair with a woman and an indifference towards his son. August Wilson ended his play with a literal tragic finale which is Troy’s death. Elements of Tragedy Oedipus the King. Sophocles’ play fits Aristotle’s unity of time, place, and plot. Oedipus the King provides a cohesive plot that speaks of a clear beginning, middle, and end. Time, which is during the height of famine and sickness, remains consistent all throughout, therefore, avoiding confusion among the audience. The play also sticks with the main setting which is in Thebes including some closely-related places. In any point, Oedipus the King is a classic tragedy in the history of literature. Consistent as it is, the main play logically narrates the Oedipus’ search for the murderer up until the saddest revelation wherein he discovered his self as the murderer, and the play detailed how he grew up and became blind which is self-inflicted, an element of a tragic hero. Oedipus also plays as a tragic hero because one element of tragedy involves hamartia, which Oedipus gladly commits by executing himself as a murderer being his constituents’ king. The execution was rather in a form of self-inflicted blindness. Catastrophe is also present, not just in Thebes but also in the inner and physical self of Oedipus. Moreover, Oedipus does suffer a reversal of fortune in the play. From being a virtuous and enlightened leader who can see everything using an open-minded mind, Oedipus ended up being blind due to the battle between his character and his own fate. Chorus, as one of the elements in tragedy, is also present as evident in this line, “Creon? Power, but not the glory of king” found in lines 37-38 of Oedipus the King. Lastly, Sophocles achieved the element of catharsis in the play by inflicting his eye with blindness and eventually healing himself alone. This means that he wants to suffer from his past actions, and the audience was moved and pitied him, as well. Fences. August Wilson actually employs the elements of tragedy using a modern perspective and based on a relevant event in his time. Although the Civil War had ended by the time of Fences, racial discrimination persisted at that time. The tragic moments are highlighted using a common African-American man, not a ruler or a king. In terms of the three unities, Wilson emphasized that the plot revolves around the struggling life of a common man and the relationships that centered on him (Shannon 50). The plot was heavy in terms of a goal to prove something about the stereotypes of African-Americans. The timeframe, though, involves mostly of his past relationships because they clearly affect his present, such as spending some time in prison and having a child from a previous marriage. In terms of conflict, there was also a conflict between Troy’s projected self and his inner self because the character wants to build an impression of a responsible and hardworking and disciplinarian father. Tragic hero is also highly emphasized in the play when Troy died seven years later. In this case, reversal of fortune is not really suited because the play records the plight of a common man which is a total opposite of those with the rulers. Overall, the presentation of Troy’s wrong choices when he was young and his demise gladly contributes to a modern concept of tragedy. The interplay of Troy’s disaster and relationship to the other characters constitute another viewpoint of looking tragedy in modern times. Conclusion Both Sophocles and Wilson have portrayed tragedies that are relevant to their times. More importantly, Fences by Wilson can be considered a tragedy because it fulfills some of the most important elements of a tragedy such as a tragic hero, the 3 unities, among such things while offering another approach by using a common man as the protagonist. What is more important in Wilson’s Fences is its ability to invoke emotions from the audience using the miseries of that common man, while the bigger picture displays a serious issue such as racism and slavery. Works Cited Shannon, Sandra G. August Wilson’s Fences: A Reference Guide. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2003. Print. Sutton, Walter, and Richard Foster. Modern Criticism: Theory and Practice. Ohio: Western Publishing Company, 1963. Print. Read More