This piece of literature was interesting to read because it is an absolute tragedy. Man marries his mother, kills his father, and then gouges his eyes out. Can you get any more tragic? Well, yes, you can. What makes it even more tragic is the lengths he went to to make sure the prophecy didn't 'come true. That's the saddest part of these sort of stories -- nobody seems to really have a say on what happens on their life. However, one could argue that not having a say in your future or the events that happen to you could be somewhat freeing. If you don't have any say in what happens to you, and your life is ruined, then you can just say "Whoops, not my problem. Those pesky Gods! Always messin' up everything, am I right?" I'm sure Oedipus was not thinking that, however. I'm sure he would have longed for the opportunity to make his own mistakes and not have a prophecy looming over his head.
To me, the greatest tragedy in Oedipus is the fact that his life was already planned out for him. There was nothing he could do to make it go his way, and have the prophecy not come true. A life planned out may sound appealing, but life without spontaneity isn't all that exciting. Not to mention that the things on the prophecy's to do list were: kill father, marry mother. Comments are closed.
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