Oedipus the King - The Character Transformations of Oedipus

Oedipus is so blinded by his pride that he can not accept the fact that he can not avoid his fate placed upon him by the gods. It is because he is not perfect and has these tragic flaws that in the end makes him a tragic hero. The greatest of his flaws happens to be his excessive pride and self-righteousness. Had Oedipus not listened to his pride, ... ... middle of paper ... ...has lost everything of importance: his kingdom, his family, and his happiness. In the beginning of Oedipus the King, Oedipus is portrayed as an admired and respected ruler.

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A protagonist is a hero of a tragedy who has a high authority or power, and is a somewhat okay person, who is brought down by an error in judgement. A good character example is, Oedipus the King, by Sophocles. Oedipus is a tragic hero who is characterized by the definition described. Oedipus the king had a hard way of life since after his birth he is abandoned by his parents ,who wanted him killed when he was cast out of Thebes. This however, does not stop him from being completely happy in life.

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Due to Oedipus’ blindness and ignorance, he is unable to see past the truth. His hamartia was his poor sense of judgement; he tried to go against his own fate by making decisions on his own. He was warned by many around him but did not seem to be more cautious or stop chasing a hurting truth. Oedipus was responsible for his own downfall, his constant persistence of going against wise people’s words and acting on the belief of his own intelligence ultimately led him to a path of destruction. In the end, he went from being known as the noble King of Thebes to a blinded man who has no point of living anymore.

The tragedy of Sophocles’ Oedipus the King is not only that of a man exposing the horrific truth behind his past. The greatest tragedy is the ever-changing perception of Oedipus, by both the citizens of Thebes, and the play’s audience. Oedipus exudes a gross amount of self-confidence and ego, leading to narrow vision with no room for the perspectives of Tiresias, Jocasta or Creon, thus insuring his own demise. By the end of the play, the audience, along with the other characters, can track the personality flaws that led Oedipus to his personal, living-hell. But the context of the play’s and Oedipus’ history, along with his unfortunate traits, actually highlight another aspect to his character.

At first Oedipus and Creon seem like entirely different people. But through the course of events, they share almost identical personalities and even fates. In “Oedipus the King”, Oedipus is a brash and arrogant ruler while Creon is his patient, thoughtful right hand man. After Oedipus and his sons all die and Creon becomes king of Thebes, he begins to grow wilder and even more out of control than Oedipus was. In “Oedipus the King” Oedipus accused Creon of bribing Tiresias, the blind prophet, to make a prediction that will doom Oedipus.

Odysseus will do anything to protect his image as a great and wise leader, including lying and falsely accusing his own men and, in desperation, even the gods. While Odysseus and many readers of The Odyssey regard him as an admirable and selfless leader, he demonstrates that he is inconsistent with thinking of anyone besides himself. Furthermore, his hubris prevents him from recognizing his own carelessness as a leader and eventually results in the crew’s tragic deaths. Odysseus becomes blinded by his own admirable qualities and successes in war and fails to address effectively both the obstacles at hand during his journey back to Ithaca and the well-being of the men under his command. While many factors contribute to the failure of Odysseus as a leader, at the heart of them all underlies his fatal pride.

Initially, he makes a huge error in judgment that eventually leads to his downfall. Also, his pure arrogance caused to go against the will of the Gods. After he gets over his self-pride, his view shifts away from that of ignorance. In punishing Antigone for burying Polyneices, Creon makes the wrong decision that ultimately leads to his defeat.