We Cannot Escape Fate

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Recommended: the role of the gods in the fall of oedipus

Not knowing who you are can put many hard strains on your life. For many, it can lead to a path of failure and ruin, but knowing who you are, and where you came from often helps you decide where you want to go. For Oedipus, the journey of finding out who he was lead him to his destruction. The play depicts the working of the inner layers of the subconscious mind through the words and the actions of Oedipus and his parents. When king Laius and queen Jocasta of Thebes, have a son, the God Apollo prophesizes that he will kill his father, then marry and have children with his mother. Horrified by the disgusting future, the parents attempt to kill the baby by leaving him exposed on a mountain, but he is taken care of by a shepherd that finds him. This is the first mistake committed by the parents. The actions start the vicious circle, with Oedipus’ lack of knowing who he is leading him right into his doom.

The subconscious of Laius becomes active 25 years after he and Jocasta left Oedipus to die on the mountain when he was three days old, and he attempts to go to Delphi to check and see if the prophecy is still destined to be true. The subconscious mind is at work because if he is confident that Oedipus is dead, then there is no way for the prophecy to be fulfilled, but because he subconsciously knows that the probability of Oedipus being saved was high, he subconsciously knew his son was still alive and that the prophecy was going to happen. Unfortunately, Laius never makes it to Delphi because he upsets a traveller and is murdered, the murderer being Oedipus, completing one part of the prophecy. Had they cherished and kept the child in spite of impulsively believing the prediction, maybe Oedipus would know who he is and migh...

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... a riddle for him to solve, but Oedipus becomes angry thinking that Creon set him up and wants to take his place as king. When he is convinced not to let Creon be executed, he reluctantly states “Very well. It will probably mean my own death and banishment –” (Page 27) Oedipus' subconscious mind is becoming more dominant in the conclusions he makes as he finally realises that the prophecy was fulfilled. As the play closes, compassion is felt for Othello as he honourably casts himself out of Thebes.

In the play Oedipus, the main characters’ subconscious minds were depicted through their actions and words. Laius and Jocasta’s actions at the beginning of the play start a series of unfortunate events that lead Oedipus, Jocasta and Laius through tormented lives and miserable deaths. The play shows that, combined with the subconscious mind, we cannot escape our own fate.

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