Sophocles through his great tragedies of Oedipus and Creon illustrates the best examples of how intelligent and well-educated men, recognized for their great strengths, fall prey to the temptations of power (kingship in particular) and absolutely become unable to identify good advice as such upon ascending the throne. It is power, in particular, of kingship that makes Oedipus and Creon foolish who were once recognized as great wise men.
The Oedipus story provides the actual reason for this specialized effect of king’s power that makes wise men foolish. Sophocles designed the play, most significantly, to be one of tragic in effect caused by fate along with the tragic flaws that result from pride, insistent determination and rudeness. Through the celebrated tragedies, Sophocles has been able to bring out the most essential element of a great tragedy i. e. the flaws of the major characters which bring about the tragic situation in the play and the two kings Oedipus and Creon represent flaws in persons of eminence such as pride, insistent determination, and impudence.
These turn out to be the reason for their ruin too Thus, though the two kings of the Oedipus story possessed the most desirable quality of a king as considered by the Greeks, i.e. wisdom, the effect of the royal powers undid their wisdom to make them mere foolish human beings.
It is particularly mentionable that the most important element contributing to the tragedy of the play is the challenge of fate by the human powers especially that arises from the pride of kingship. It is evident from the story that both Oedipus and Creon were obsessed by the powers of kingship and the glory that it provides. It is most clear in their behavior where they do not pay any attention to the various types of advises from the most dependable sources. To elucidate this point let us consider one of the themes of the dramatic plays Antigone and Oedipus. The central theme of the former is that many often people discover the hard ways from their mistakes.
The final lines of the play communicate this theme. They confirm that there is no happiness without wisdom and no wisdom without submission to the gods. Arrogant utterances are punished forever and proud men learn to be wise when they are old. Thus, these lines convey the real meaning of the play and point to the relation between pride and power which interestingly turns out to be the flaw leading up to the tragic situation in the play.
Accordingly, we confirm Creon’s bad decisions, his disobedience to the gods, the penalty he paid owing to his proclamation, and the wisdom he gained because of all his mistakes. The statement in the last lines that there is no happiness without wisdom is obvious how when we consider how Creon paid for his decision that lacked wisdom. In both the dramas, Creon is underhanded and power-thirsty and his desire for political status is the motivation for him to deceive the family members and deities.
In the same manner, Oedipus also loses wisdom once he came to power at the murder of the previous king and own father, Laius. At the time of the plague in Thebes, this lack of wisdom in accepting the most desirable advice that would keep everything in tact is visible which arises mainly due to the effect of the power that the kingship provides. Ultimately, he also pays the price of the lack of wisdom. The tragic element of the play results from the fate that runs through the life of Oedipus and this also provides the right basis for the pride and loss of wisdom due to the overplay of power. One of the most essential elements for a tragedy, as Aristotle has established, is the tragic flaw that results in the atmosphere for tragedy to happen.
Therefore, an investigation to the reason for power (kingship in particular) leading from wisdom to foolishness links it to the tragic element of the play. This is the real justification for the failure of Oedipus and Creon in accepting the good advices as such upon ascending throne, which makes them foolish men at the loss of the status of wise men.