Situational Irony In Oedipus Rex

“What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate” (Trump). Sophocles, a Greek playwright, wrote several plays regarding fate. Oedipus Rex is one of these plays that portray fate with the aid of different types of irony. Sophocles uses verbal, dramatic, as well as situational irony throughout the play. These help to portray the main theme of the play, that fate is unavoidable. They are used to set up the background, conflict, as well as the resolution. Sophocles’ use of the different forms of irony strongly reinforce the theme of an undeniable fate and without such literary devices the theme would not be emphasized and fall into greater obscurity. Of the three forms of irony, Sophocles initially uses verbal irony to set the theme of the entire play. In the background of the play, Oedipus was once raised by King Polybus and Queen Merope, however unbeknownst to him they were not his biological parents. After hearing his prophecy from the Oracle at Delphi, Oedipus

When Oedipus seeks the counsel of Tiresias, the prophet refuses to tell him the truth until Oedipus pesters him enough to do so, “Good riddance too! You’re nothing but a nuisance here” (Sophocles 26). After Oedipus hears the “outrageous” truth he claims that Tiresias must have plotted to take the throne. This quotation shows situational irony because Oedipus claims that Tiresias must be lying and planning a power grab from him, even though Tiresias is a prophet who does not lie. The reader would expect that Oedipus would realize the truth, however he vehemently fights against it. Oedipus was expecting a response to find the killer and the response that he had committed the act was simply ludicrous. Oedipus’ refusal to realize the truth seals the theme of a fate that Oedipus cannot run away from because by this point it is being affirmed around him