Oedipus the King by Sophocles

An avid reader has the tendency to question what promotes to haunt their inner most thought. Another reader is curious to what degree of uncertainty does one owe an unparalleled fear. Often an individual finds themselves in angst due to an unknowing of what comes next in the future. It is a perfectly rational fear shared amongst all their fellow men. However, what happens to be the most terrifying concept is one that only comes to fruition when it casts the dark shadow of reality. While the fear of the unknown seems to be scary, when that exact same unknown becomes known and is detrimental to an individuals current state of being, the true fear is acknowledged. In Oedipus Rex, King Oedipus expresses fear of not knowing who killed Laius, which he believes is the cause of the current plague in the City of Thebes. However, his true fear comes when he finds out that not only is Laius his father, but that he killed him. While the unknown for Oedipus is a problem for him, he does not realize his true fear until he finds out what actually happened. The situation in which Oedipus has been placed in is one that is an exceptionally graphic and terrible example of a common occurrence in everyone’s lives. I have personally found that while I may have recurring fears about the unknown, fears such as what the future holds, what others around me think, what grade I will make on this paper, or how my final exams will end up, these are perfectly rational fears. Oedipus has a perfectly rational fear of not knowing who killed the King because the plague has set on his city. This fear is heightened even more when Tiresias, the blind prophet, accuses Oedipus of killing the king and also begins hinting at other terrible things that Oedipus is has done... ... middle of paper ... .... Sophocles’ work in this manner is applicable to just about any situation in life. He gives us a lesson that we can use in any situation where we are given the opportunity to decide between knowledge and ignorance. If we choose to stay in ignorance, the price that may accompany that decision is one like Oedipus’, where in which every denial and every sprint away from the truth drives us deeper into a fear in which getting out of becomes more of a tragedy. Sophocles gives us the advantage of seeing what denial and running from the truth can do to someone. He also gives us the ability to see through another man’s story the differences between the two fears. Through this advantage, Sophocles helps us realize the ability to effectively problem solve by addressing our problems early on before they manifest into a web of wretchedness and become dreadful and unbearable.