Theme Of Teiresias In Oedipus The King

794 Words2 Pages

The Blind Leading the Blind Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King brings one to ask oneself an important question; do humans make their own decisions in life? Or is everything already decided for them by fate? Teiresias’ role in the play coincides with those questions. Teiresias is only in one scene of the entire play, and when he enters Oedipus is very pleased to see him because he is the only person who can tell Oedipus who killed Laius. Teiresias is blind and old, but extremely knowledgeable nonetheless. Teiresias is the prophet of Apollo and is clairvoyant through him. Teiresias also gathers his prophetic knowledge from observing the flight of birds, or by inspecting bird entrails. Teiresias is a blind man who can see clearly, surrounded by people who can see clearly but are blind. Teiresias’ name literally means “a blind seer” and that is exactly what he is. Teiresias’ role in this play is to tell Oedipus that his fate has found him despite his best efforts to avoid it. Sophocles wants the reader to question fate when reading this piece. Although Oedipus tried to avoid what was foretold, at the end he could not escape his fate. When Teiresias first …show more content…

Teiresias symbolizes the personification of fate itself and is an admirable character; even so Oedipus does not heed his advice or show him the respect worthy of a prophet of the gods. Citizens of the city rely highly on Teiresias’ knowledge, even when Jocasta and Oedipus are ignorant to it. Teiresias plays a huge part in revealing Oedipus’ character flaws as before Teiresias comes on scene Oedipus is very courteous of his people and seems to be a great ruler, it isn’t until Teiresias arrives that the reader gets a glimpse of Oedipus’ true short-tempered

Show More
Related

  • Oedipus Sight And Blindness Essay

    667 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play when Oedipus asks Teiresias to reveal the murderer of King Laois, Teiresias blames Oedipus as the murderer and Oedipus denies the blame and gets angry on Teiresias. The chorus even denies the blame on Oedipus and takes Oedipus’ side. The chorus says the following lines to protect Oedipus “This is the king who solved the famous riddle, and towered up, most powerful of men. No mortal eyes but looked on him with envy, Yet in the end ruin swept over him”(Freud 988). Oedipus on the other hand who is really mad at Teiresias blames him and Creon for plotting against him. As Oedipus was blind from the start he was unaware of his origins which will cause him to trigger the unavoidable chain of events that would lead to the fulfilment of the prophecy. But he didn’t knew the fate itself was unavoidable. The irony of theme sight and blindness is produced here when Oedipus is compared to Teiresias. Oedipus who is not blind and has the capability to see with both of his eyes doesn’t finds anything wrong in killing a man, who he later discovers was King Laois and his group. He even took over the throne of Thebes and was found to be lying with his mother thinking her as his wife and having babies with her. On the other hand is Teiresias who is really blind and unable to see than...

    Read More

  • Dynamic Character In Homer's The Odyssey

    596 Words  | 2 Pages

    Athena and her allied gods continued to intervene, somewhat unfairly to their opponents, playing the battle as if they were armchair tacticians throwing pointless pawns at the enemy, very little regard to the lives individually, merely wanting to claim victory. In a third, and contradicting, appearance of Athena in Apollodorus’ Library, Teiresias: A Transgendered Seer (GHM 5.7), Teiresias is an unrivaled seer of uncanny ability, even aiding Odysseus in the form a ghost in the Odyssey. The story of how he became blinded is a point of contention, but according to Pherekydes, he was blinded by Athena (GHM 3.6.7). According to him, Teiresias saw the goddess Chariklo “stark naked” (GMH 3.6.7), and Athena, being a dear friend to Chariklo, covered the seer’s eyes with her hands, which blinded him, It is important to note that Athena did not explicitly want to blind him, merely stop him from seeing Chariklo.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Conversation Between Oedipus And Teiresias

    83 Words  | 1 Pages

    This passage was not just one statement but actually an argumentative conversation between Oedipus and the sightful blind man Tiresias.The argument is significant because Oedipus insults Teiresias for living in a dark world.Teiresias rebuttals by stating how his fate is being weaved without him knowing that.What we can infer from this is that Oedipus was quite foolish and blind to seeing the truth.This affected the work as a whole quite similar towards the other passages I’ve sighted since it is tragic and intriguing.

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King

    461 Words  | 1 Pages

    Conversely, the soothsayer Teiresias is blind from the beginning of the story, but has full use of his prophetic vision. He knows the truth of Oedipus and his family, but at first doesn’t want to tell him, as he knows what it will mean for Oedipus and the kingdom. When he does explain his knowledge, Oedipus doesn’t believe any of it, due to his own over confidence. Teirseias says “You have your eyes but see not where you are in sin, nor where you live, nor whom you live with.” He is telling Oedipus the truth, but Oedipus refuses acknowledge that he may, in fact, be living in darkness.

    Read More

  • Free Essays - The Imperfect Oedipus of Oedipus the King (Oedipus Rex)

    547 Words  | 2 Pages

    The last character trait is one that both of the other flaws fall in, and that is Oedipus having hubris or overconfidence. Because of the absence of Laius, the city of Thebes was under a plague. To stop this plague Oedipus must find the killer of Laios. In this instance Oedipus was very confident that he would find the murderer. Again to the Teirasias scene: Teiresias was trying to tell Oedipus that he was the killer and as he said, "I say that you have been living in un-guessed shame with your nearest kin, and do not to see what woe you have come.

    Read More

  • How Does Oedipus Accept His Fate

    479 Words  | 1 Pages

    When the blind prophet Teiresias refuses to tell Oedipus what he know about the murderers of King Laïos, Oedipus insults Teiresias's ability to prophesy, not realizing that Teiresias is withholding the truth for Oedipus's protection. " He [Creon] has brought this decrepit fortune-teller, this collector of dirty pennies, this prophet fraud–Why, he is no more clairvoyant than I am" (Sophocles, 21)! His eyes only open until later when he realizes that the killer of King Laïos is himself. He is so

    Read More

  • Oedipus the King: The Decline of Oedipus

    552 Words  | 2 Pages

    However, that one trait did not alone take away his position of high authority.  Oedipus displayed anger throughout the whole story, which did not help him at all.  During the story, we learn of Oedipus' anger as he knocked a passerby at the meeting of the three highways; "I struck him in my rage".  Later, this passerby whom he angrily and quickly killed, was revealed to be Laios, Oedipus' father.  Oedipus' anger also quickly shifted his judgment of Teiresias.  "We are in your [Teiresias] hands. There is no fairer duty", Oedipus' respect for Teiresias quickly changed as Teiresias refused to tell of what was the trouble's cause.  Oedipus began claiming that "Creon has brought this decrepit fortune teller" to mean that Teiresias was thought of as a traitor in Oedipus' thinking.  Oedipus' anger is also shown as he begins to insult Teiresias by calling him a "wicked old man".  Oedipus' anger throughout the beginning of the play hindered himself.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Devices In Oedipus The King

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    Within these two passages, Teiresias is explaining to Oedipus that the Prophecy admitted he killed his father. Oedipus is denying the fact that he killed his father and looking passed the problem. In the play Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, Sophocles uses rhetorical devices to explain to the readers that Teiresias may be blind, but is seeing through the lie that Oedipus is living, while striking him the truth; this is explained through imagery, metaphors, an allusion, and ethos appeal.

    Read More

  • Sight vs. Blindness in Oedipus the King

    459 Words  | 1 Pages

    Sophocles introduces a prophet, a seer, Teiresias, into the play. Teiresias is a wise, old man who has supernatural powers to interpret the past and predict the future. Ironically, Teiresias is physically blind, but can “see” the truth about Oedipus. Oedipus has trouble imagining that his father life was taken at his hands. It signifies that Oedipus as a man is ignorant to the true appearance of things - this blind man can "see" the truth about Oedipus, yet Oedipus, in all of his physical perfection, cannot.

    Read More

  • Comparison of Oedipus the King and Death of a Salesman

    1016 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dramatic irony in Oedipus the King is evident throughout, which is similar to the latter play, but in a different form. In here, the irony is evident. Oedipus the King revolves around characters' attempts to change their destiny (which fails) - Jocasta and Laius's killing of Oedipus and Oedipus's flight from Corinth. Each time somebody tries to avert the future, the audience knows their attempt is futile, creating irony. When Jocasta and Oedipus mock the oracles, they continue to suspect that they were right. Oedipus discounts the oracles' power, but believes in his ability to uncover the truth, yet they lead to the same outcome. His intelligence is what makes him great, but it is also what causes the tragedy. When he ridded Thebes of the Sphinx, Oedipus is the city's saviour, but by killing Laius and marrying Jocasta, he is its affliction, causing the blight that strikes the city during the opening. Meanwhile, the characters, especially Teiresias, mention sight, light, darkness, &c as metaphors, while referring to `seeing the truth'. However, while Teiresias knows the truth and is blind, Oedipus can see all but the truth. When he discovers the truth, he becomes blind. Also, he does not just solve the Sphinx's riddle - he is its answer. His birth is mentioned throughout the play (crawling on `4 legs'), and he never relies on anybody but himself (`standing on his own `2 legs'),...

    Read More

  • Vision and Blindness In Oedipus Tyrannus by Sophocles

    670 Words  | 2 Pages

    The play Oedipus Tyrannus, written by Sophocles, is a play filled with symbols and irony involving the aspect of both vision and blindness. This aspect of the novel takes on an important role in the life of Oedipus, the ruler of Thebes. He originally feels as though he knows and sees everything, nevertheless, as the motto of the Oracle at Delphi states, he does not "know thyself," as he will find out toward the end of the play. The notion of seeing and blindness becomes an important and ironic symbol in the tragic fall of Oedipus, a man who could not escape his lot or moira.

    Read More

  • The Consequences And Tragedy Of Ignorance In Oedipus The King

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    First off, Teiresias is hinting at the fact that Oedipus’ relationship with Jocasta is a “sinful union” (Sophocles 36). Oedipus is unable to make the connection between what Teiresias is saying and his own prophecy. Oedipus does not want to acknowledge the fact that he has committed a sin and he avoids learning the truth by remaining ignorant of his true parentage. On top of this, when Teiresias outright tells Oedipus that “the killer [he is] seeking is [himself]” (Sophocles 36). Oedipus refuses to believe this and instead accuses Teiresias of lying and plotting against him. Oedipus, as a known intelligent character, should have listened to Teiresias, who is known for being a wise man; instead, Oedipus puts the blame on Teiresias. Teiresias then goes on to foreshadow that the “taunts” (Sophocles 36) Oedipus is throwing at him will “someday [be] cast at [him]” (Sophocles 36). Oedipus does not take the warning of Teiresias seriously instead he continues to insult Teiresias. Oedipus’ inability to face the truth will result in him being banned and blinding himself for his ignorance. Similarly, Jocasta attempts to prevent Oedipus from gaining knowledge by explaining that “[i]t makes no difference now” (Sophocles 55) and to “[f]orget” (Sophocles 55) what has been told to him. Jocasta not only tries to stop Oedipus from learning the truth, she also tries to stop herself from verifying the truth, this later results in her unfortunate suicide. Also, Jocasta’s ignorance and inability to discover Oedipus’ true past causes her to commit incest, a major sin. Jocasta and Oedipus committing this sin then result in the God’s punishing Thebes. Showing that, ignorance leads to

    Read More

  • Examples Of Tragic Flaws In Oedipus

    1291 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oedipus cannot see that Teiresias, one who knows all, has given him the answer he desperately sought after. Oedipus ironically mocks Teiresias for his blindness, he tells him he is a fool for not only can he not see with his eyes but he cannot see the truth as well. Teiresias, however, sets the record straight and provides another dose of truth: “You mock for my blindness, do you? / But I say that you, with both your eyes are blind” (Scene 1. 969). And Oedipus for all he sees with his eyes is blind in the face of truth. For instance, a prime example of Oedipus’s lack of vision when faced with the truth is when he and his wife, Iocaste exchange stories of their truths. His wife tries to comfort him in the fact that the prophecies and the gods are not accurate by sharing her own, which she believes never came true “If it is a question of soothsayers, I tell you/ That you will find no man whose craft gives knowledge/ Of the unknowable” (Scene 2. 977). She finds this knowledge to prove her point, but after Oedipus reveals his own ‘inaccurate’ prophecy, she realizes her lack of perception: “For God’s love, let us have no more questioning! / Is your life nothing to you? / My own pain is enough for me to bear” (Scene 3. 985). She tries to protect Oedipus from himself because while she has opened her eyes to the truth, Oedipus is still blind to it: “The Queen, like a woman, is perhaps ashamed/ To think of my

    Read More

  • Free Essays - The Themes of Oedipus the King (Rex)

    719 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, two themes appear; one that humans have little control of their lives because fate always catches up with them and the theme that when someone makes a mistake, they will have to pay for it.

    Read More

  • Script Analysis of Oedipus the King

    836 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Scene II of "Oedipus Rex," the plot begins in the heart of murder. A King (Laios) has been murdered, and Oedipus seeks retribution. The city of Thebes is suffering from a plague, which is symbolic of the blight about to befall Oedipus. He sends for Teiresias, a blind prophet, to aid his search for the assassin. Teiresias avoids the discussion, for he has envisioned the bleak truth: "Let me go home. Bear your own fate, and I'll bear mine. It is better so: trust what I say." (40. 62-64) Oedipus presses Teiresias for information, and after much prodding, the prophet concedes; revealing that Oedipus has through circumstance, killed his father and married his mother. Oedipus becomes very angry throughout the revelation. He questions the validity of the prophet's skill. Oedipus believes that the prophet has sided with his r...

    Read More

More about Theme Of Teiresias In Oedipus The King

Open Document