Man Of Admirable Feats Essay, Research Paper

Man of Admirable Feats

In the epic tragedy, Oedipus the King, we see the example of a man whose life is already determined by his own fate. What more can we ask? How admirable is that? Who would not want to admire Oedipus? For instance, the man had his feet pierced together after he was born for goodness sake, that s admirable! Swollenfoot Oedipus was a prime example of a tragic hero . Although in the tragedy Oedipus is brought down by his own fate, in the end we can still consider him a hero. Throughout the whole epic Oedipus never once denied the truth but rather tried to find the mysteries of his life.

Oedipus the King was like a murder mystery, involving numerous amounts of affliction which all led up to one man s misery, Oedipus s. Oedipus s admiration began when he killed the monstrous Sphinx who had been terrorizing the countryside by answering her riddle: What goes on four feet at dawn, two at noon, and three at evening? At that point the Theben people proclaimed him as their hero and appointed him King following the death of their deceased King Laius. Little did he know though that Laius was his father whom he himself had killed.

At that point the prophecy of his fate that he learned from an oracle begins to come true. The oracle had told him that he would kill his father and marry his mother. Which is exactly what happened after he was appointed king. He married Jocasta, his mother, and bore four children.

In Oedipus s attempt to still remain Thebes hero, he tries to uncover the mystery of the death of King Laius in hopes to try and lift the plague that threatens the city. At first Oedipus asks for the blind prophet Tiresias who only accuses Oedipus himself of killing Laius. Oedipus mocks and rejects Tiresias the prophet angrily, ordering him to leave, but not before Tiresias hints darkly of an incestuous marriage and a future of blindness, infamy, and wandering.

Oedipus then attempts to gain some advice from Jocasta. She encourages him to ignore prophecies, explaining that a prophet once told her that Laius, her husband, would die at the hands of their son. At that suggestion Oedipus remembers the oracle that he was told when he was younger, that he would kill his father and marry his mother.

This really worries Oedipus and he sends his only living witness to learn the truth, a shepherd. In the mean time, Oedipus learns that whom he once thought were his real parents, Polybus and Merope, are not truthfully his parents. Confident that the worst he can hear is a tale of his lowly birth Oedipus eagerly awaits the shepards return. At first the shepherd refuses to speak, but under threat of death he tells what he knows Oedipus is actually the son of Laius and Jocasta.

At this point in Oedipus s exploit, everything including the death of Laius that was said to happen in his fate came true. After realizing this Oedipus frenzied around to find Jocasta has killed herself, and then takes the pins from her gown and rakes out his eyes, so that he can no longer look upon the misery he had caused.

What makes Oedipus so admirable is that through every oracle and prophecy he manages to still be the hero of his own fate. He still remains the hero at the end of the tragedy because he finally knows the truth. A hero is not only looked up to by others because of his or her great achievements or fine qualities but is also a person who has accomplished something for his or her self. Oedipus isn t considered a hero because of the fact that he was recognized and looked up to by others because of his achievements but instead he found what he was looking for. From the very beginning all Oedipus wanted was the whole truth no matter what circumstances. He never tried to hide the truth or deny reality but instead was eager to learn more. Although, much pain and suffering was involved, Oedipus was finally informed of the truth with a little help from a shepherd. Despite all that had happened Oedipus was a hero because he finally knew the truth. He knew for himself who his real parents were and the fact that the prophecy that was foretold had come true. Oedipus had killed his father and married his mother. It doesn t matter if one does or does not seek the truth because in the end the truth will come out no matter what. In the end Oedipus was the hero because he had finally found the truth he had been looking for.

A man of such existence who was trampled over and over with many different feats and can still be admired as a hero is very admirable. From Oedipus s birth to his point of blindness Oedipus proved what it takes to be a man of admiration. He seeked for the truth and found the mystery of a life long treachery.