Is Oedipus Responsible For His Crimes

Oedipus is a tragic man haunted by a cruel fate, of that there is simply no doubt. But does that fate excuse a man’s crimes. It is an important question that needs to be answered before we decide the Oedipus’s guilt. Are the murder of his father and incest with his mother somehow mitigated by the circumstances of the situation that led to them. I think not, a man is responsible for his actions a king more so than any man. In fact as a king Oedipus is responsible for all of Thebes. If he is not held responsible what kind of example is he setting with his authority.

So it is decided Oedipus is guilty of murdering his father and committing incest. He himself was the one who said he killed a man at the same crossroads that Laius was murdered at. I believe Oedipus was compelled by fate to kill his father because of the malicious act of infanticide that Lias and Jocasta had orchestrated for the young Oedipus. So when he met him up at the crossroads and slaughtered the king and all of his allies is was undoubtedly a fate instilled on him by Apollo that led the situation down that path.

Unfortunately for Oedipus no jury has ever exonerated a man of murder because his fate lead him to commit the murder. Nor is it truly possible to prove fate caused the crime. How would one begin to orchestrate

Then it is easier to see Oedipus as guilty because he would have had the option to avoid killing his father and thereby avoid end up marrying his mother. It is frustrating in the extreme too come to a decision. but if a choice must be made I am of the opinion that Oedipus is equally guilty of incest with his mother if only because the prophecy outlined the possibility of such an event occurring. In that circumstance the diligent thing to do is figure out if one of the people I just killed happened to be my father. A few pointed questions once he reached Thebes and he could have avoided the situation