A Tragic Desire: The Tragic Hero Of Oedipus

With every acclaim to success, there is a falling as intense as the ascent. Failure is the building block for success and without failure being the constant reminder that perfection is non-existent, great achievements could not be obtained. After an accomplishment, the world seems utopian, but not for everyone. Some feats end in the catastrophic demoralization of an individual. Aristotle believed the tragic hero to leave the mortal world in consternation after rising to a high societal stature, and using this as a basis, he developed the six characteristics of a tragic hero. Oedipus and Blanche, two tragic heroes with strong symbolic resemblance, rise to social success that ultimately seals their fate. Through desire for social attraction,

Oedipus slowly unravels his quarry and purges through extreme catharsis resulting in permanent blindness. “ O God-all come true, all burst to light! O light-now let me look on my last on you! I stand revealed at last-cursed in my birth, cursed in my marriage, cursed in the lives I cut down with these hands!” (Sophocles 1455) This moment is obvious and defined. Oedipus had many opportunities to identify his causation for turmoil but refused to face the facts. His superior attitude created a barrier for the recognition and thus, when the recognition did occur, it was instantaneous and overwhelming. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche experiences difficulty interpreting the cause of her situation. This is mostly due to her lack of mental stability. However, she believes herself to be the cause of her husband’s suicide. Blanche lacks the recognition for the reasons her life has been permanently destructive. After this tragic occurrence, Blanche’s life spirals down the hill onto a pile of deaths. These lead to her inability to function within society. “And then the searchlight which had turned on the world was turned off again and never for one moment since has there been a light that’s stronger than this-kitchen-candle…” (Williams 115) Her love and cheery outlook on the world was forever dimmed by the death of her husband. Oedipus suffers an instantaneous

Oedipus and Blanche are exact opposites of each other. Hubris defines the flaw of Oedipus whereas Blanche is the exact opposite. Oedipus’s trust in his actions and knowledge lead him to deny any information. His overbearing pride creates an egotistical man who refutes any answer that demoralizes him. “Oedipus fits this precisely, for his basic flaw is his lack of knowledge about his identity. Moreover, no amount of foresight or preemptive action could remedy Oedipus ' hamartia.” (Struck) If he had pushed aside his desire to be right, Tiresias could have helped him deal with his misfortunes. However ignorant he may be, he lacked humility. Blanche and her low self-esteem believed she had to trick everyone to believe she was something she was not. This leads to her becoming a pathological liar. She also is stuck in the mind frame of a 17-year-old girl due to the death of her husband. Her ignorance is blissful in that she is unaware of the consequences her actions take on the people around