Sophocles: Oedipus Rex - Book Report/Review Example

Oedipus Rex Order No. 274820 No. of pages: 5 1st 6530 Monsters play a crucial role in the development of literary culture and art; historian Heinz Mode (1973) says that these serve as “integral components of the mental schemes that underlay the developing social order” (Gilmore) The sphinx, one of the monsters in Oedipus Rex, is a malevolent creature who terrorizes passers by with its difficult questions and kills them when they are unable to solve its riddles. The sphinx is depicted historically as risky and terrifying, but in this play it is the very “embodiment of evil’ (Scafella 1987, 180) Heroes play a major role in the plays and stories of Greek mythology. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus is the central hero around which the whole play revolves. Even though he commits some of the most dreadful acts, yet there is no getting away from the fat that he is the one who saved the people of Thebes from ruin. Therefore, it is befitting to call him a hero, even though he had to pass through pain and devastation to achieve it. The sphinx is a threat to the Greek society of the day and threatens the survival of humanity, because it is bent upon killing all those who cannot answer its riddles. These questions are so ambiguous that only a person of high intellect, like Oedipus, can answer it. The sphinx is a liminal (threshold) creature, with the head of a woman, the haunches of a lion and the wings of a great bird. She represents all that can go wrong with nature, and her terrifying looks are matched by a ruthless intellectual capacity. This intellectual superiority is a hallmark of ancient monsters who, through their reasoning and questions, threatened the very survival of the society of the time. Oedipus saves the people of Thebes from certain ruin by answering the sphinx’s riddle correctly. The answer to the riddle posed by the sphinx was ‘man,’ and Oedipus came to this conclusion because as a child man is four-footed, while as an adult he is two-footed and when he enters old age, he gets a third limb in the form of a staff, which he uses as a crutch. The sphinx is left with no alternative but to destroy herself by throwing herself down from the citadel. Oedipus annihilates the threat to Theban society, but he has unknowingly and unwittingly become a greater threat to the state he now rules. He has inadvertently committed the sins of patricide and incest, which threatens the moral fabric of society. Sophocles may have intended his audience to know that man is ultimately responsible for the preservation and destruction of the society which he has created as seen in the character of Oedipus. When he answers the riddle correctly, he is the savior of Thebes, but his marriage to Jocasta pollutes society, which he was bound to protect. (Siegel) The riddles of the sphinx are a metaphor for life, because just like the sphinx which confounds the Thebans with its riddles, in life human beings too are confounded by the unexpected which accosts them, and only after solving these riddles can a person move forward. In the play, the sphinx is a key element which helps Oedipus to gain the trust and gratitude of the people. The riddle is also indicative of the three phases in the life of Oedipus. As a child Oedipus is at his weakest, while in manhood he is made strong not only physically but also politically, since he rules the nation. The third phase of his life is spent with a walking stick since he is now blind and needs support. Oedipus Rex is considered to be one of the most classic the tragedies to be written by Sophocles. (496 – 406 B.C) Many of the greats think that it exhibits extraordinary power and resonance. Aristotle considers the “Oedipus Rex” as being a ‘masterpiece of dramatic construction’ and quite often makes reference to it in his Poetics. Sophocles dramatic use of irony intensifies the scenes further by impacting upon the agonizing events while heightening the emotions and feelings of those involved. They key theme in Oedipus Rex is that both fate and character are intertwined. Oedipus was destined or fated to perform such detestable acts but what was more repugnant was ignoring the many signs which would have helped him to avert the tragedies of killing his own father and marrying his own mother. Though Sophocles believed that humans had their own free will but yet they were limited by a higher order that controlled everything. It was Oedipus going against this higher order that he was fated to fall. The other theme in “Oedipus Rex” is that of self knowledge which is the key to understand an individual’s place in the universe. By Oedipus making an inquiry into his heritage, He comes to know the painful truth about his parentage and what it meant to be human. Oedipus is given the chance to gain insight into self knowledge even though it meant that he had to abandon and destroy his family, and abdicate the throne. It is rather highly ironical that he gains an actual insight into himself only when he becomes blind. Right from the beginning the mood of the play is one of destruction and devastation. The mood gets more polluted with suffering as it proceeds. All the attempts by the parents as well as Oedipus of avoiding the Divine pattern as foretold by the Oracle could not be achieved. It was finally the triumph of the Divine will over fate which paved the way of Oedipus fulfilling it. The ‘Oedipus Complex’ (the sexual attraction and/or union of mother and son) - gets its name from this. Though Oedipus was innocent of the goings on, yet he experienced the Divine punishment, which served as a sort of Catharsis for the ancient Greeks for who is was a way of projecting their own unacknowledged needs and desires. In Greek mythology, folklore or even classical literature, a symbolic being or a supernatural being is made use of. At times the symbolic being is in the form of a heraldic beast. In Oedipus, the inclusion of a symbolic element heightens the drama and circumstances within the play, which is what makes it even more unique in its structure and presentation. According to David Gilmore, heroes, monsters and demons are present in a very deep way in the human mind, in every epoch and culture. It is these imaginary beings that haunt all our dreams and fantasies. While heroes are given much prominence through their superhuman achievements and unimaginable strength and vigor, the depiction monsters seems to be neglected. In his famous book- Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, and All Manner of Imaginary Terrors, anthropologist David D. Gilmore gives us some valuable insight as he explores the human traits of monsters and how they capture the imagination of the human mind. According Gilmore, monsters are huge man -eating and exceedingly violent characters with enormous strength and power. They are alien in nature, non human and are our worst nightmares. In Oedipus too, Sophocles was right in making use of ‘The Sphinx’ and the Oracles which is what made the play all the more mysterious and yet captivating. The Sphinx which was a terrible monster in ‘Oedipus Rex’ had the body of a lion and the torso and head of a woman. She posed riddles to every person who entered or left Thebes and if they were unable to answer she killed and devoured them. The hero of the play, Oedipus entered the gates of Thebes and had to answer the riddles put forward by the Sphinx. Oedipus answered the riddle correctly which angered the Sphinx so much that she threw herself down from the city walls and died. Oedipus was considered a great hero in having faced this monstrous character and coming out victorious, thus saving the people of Thebes. References Monsters By David D. Gilmore Sir George Young. (1991) Sophocles – Oedipus Rex. Dover Thrift Editions. Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, and All Manner of ... - Google Books Result books.google.co.in/books?isbn=0812237021... OEDIPUS REX  by  Sophocles: Fitts, Dudley(translator); Fitzgerald, Robert (translator)    2007 Dr. Js Lecture on Oedipus and the Sphinx Read More