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The Role of Fate, Free Will, and Divine Intervention in Oedipus the King by Sophocles Essay

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Introduction

Fate is a typical theme in Greek tragedies, whereas the application of prophecy brings this to life. The insistent use of divination and destiny during Greek works such as Aeschylus’s Agamemnon, Euripides’s Phoenician Woman, and Homer’s Odyssey is essential to the Greek realm. In this perspective, using the two key themes incites an argument when delving into Fitzgerald and Fitts’ translation of Sophocles Oedipus (Pye and Handley 178).

Oedipus desires to confront and govern his doom, whereas Jocasta strives to shun the truth. The king of Thebes exemplifies a man who understands everything, even though he and Sophocles apply irony to permit Oedipus to realize reality in a way that Freud perceived in “The Interpretation of Dreams” compared to the psychoanalysis work (Waggoner 86). The depths of tragic ambiguity in Oedipus the King’s fate reveal the profound significance of prophecy and irony in Sophocles’ portrayal, as explored further through Marxist and Feminist literary approaches.

The Hubris of Oedipus and the Question of Guilt

In the play “Oedipus the King,” Sophocles does not depict the man who reveals to his horror that he is powerless to control his life other than the play provides an example of how a person can find means to claim their independence within the constraints determined by their destiny. Certainly, fate drives the characters’ lives in this play, even though it does not define them entirely.

The prophecies persistently come to reality in play, which confirms that fate is the actual force in the realm of the play (Fosso 7). Nonetheless, the paths people take towards their pre-ordained destinations persist for them to choose, as do the approaches they adopt towards the decrees of their gods. From a feminist perspective, the gendered power dynamics and societal expectations that contribute to Oedipus’s tragic fate illuminate the destructive consequences of patriarchal structures.

Consequently, Oedipus experienced a significant challenge as the tragic hero in the play because of his prearranged future. Oedipus’ bashful norm was the source of Thebes’ downfall. However, being ignorant of reality, Oedipus tried to evade his future, although it was the reality he might not escape. Further, Oedipus’ arrogance made him believe he has outsmarted fate and gods (Finney 4). Oedipus in this case, is a victim of fate. Persistent avoidance of his prophesized future contributed to his self-destruction path, affirming that one’s destiny is inevitable.

In the opening scenes of “Oedipus the King,” Oedipus’s impulsive actions and the subsequent revelation of his heinous crime underscore the tragic ambiguity surrounding his fate. Driven by a genuine desire to aid his people, Oedipus seeks guidance from the oracle, only to be confronted with a cryptic prophecy (Sophocles 98-99). The irony lies in the fact that the very person Lauis sought to avoid by abandoning Oedipus is, in reality, his son. From a Marxist view, Oedipus the King exemplifies the intricate interplay between individual actions and the oppressive social forces that shape fate, highlighting the tragic ambiguity inherent in the protagonist’s struggle.

Oedipus, unaware of his true parentage, unknowingly fulfills the prophecy by slaying his father, Louis, during their chance encounters on the road. The unfolding events demonstrate the complexities of fate and irony, as attempts to escape destiny inevitably lead to its fulfillment. In the end, the truth of Oedipus’s actions remains concealed, reflecting the depth of the tragic ambiguity that pervades the play’s narrative.

Moreover, dramatic irony is present when Oedipus realizes that he is an impurity, leading to the despair of Thebe’s city, all because of his irrationality. Therefore, the ignorance of the implications of his actions and permitting his anger to rule him contributed to him fulfilling one of the prophecies and causing pain to others. It implies that Oedipus is a depiction of how irrational thinking is associated with anger since his anger towards the stranger led him to beat him, eventually murdering the older man.

Oedipus confessed that he had committed a grave sin because it is depicted to him that “he is sinful in his begetting, sinful in marriage, and sinful in shedding of blood” (Sophocles 1230). Typically, the problems brought upon the city of Thebes because of the bashful nature of Oedipus remind people that the capacity to manage one’s irrational thinking may avoid ruining their lives and other people’s lives.

The Paradox of Free Will and Determinism

In the play, Oedipus supports the concept of free will. In lines 791 to 800, he features the idea, when he remembers the time he thoroughly understood his forecasted fate, responded, and unwittingly surrendered to the behavior that contributed to his downfall. It is asserted that “As that I should lie with my mother, bred/children from whom all men would turn their eyes…father’s murderer” (Sophe 791-92). In addition, long before opening the play, Jocasta and Laius left their son to die to prevent the terrible foresight that he would, at some point in life, murder his father and wed his mother.

From a similar perspective, when Oedipus discovers his fate, he escapes Corinth, presuming that the forecast applies to Polybus, his biological father. Nonetheless, in Oedipus the King, when he learns that he should be gotten rid of to save the city of Thebes from the natural catastrophe and sicknesses, he instantlyconcurs to succumb to the decree and departs from the city. Although he has proven his loyalty to his people throughout the play, and his choice to exile is equally prompted by his desire to maintain Thebes (Nikolarea 13), his determination appears somewhat inspired by an acute sense of dread and humiliation. The forecast determines the constraints of Oedipus’ freedom, which he could not have avoided.

Moreover, the early decisions Oedipus and his parents made could have been arrogant and foolish, even though his final decision affords him the determination of tragic formality. The play claims that people can gauge the quality of their characters if not often the results of their lives (Laccino 95). Oedipus fled to avoid himself from murdering his parents, but he came across his biological father and murdered him, being uninformed of the truth. He applies his ignorance to illustrate the logic of killing Louis because he asserts that “he whom I killed/had sought to kill me first…” (Sophocles 554-556).

Sigmund Freud coined the term Oedipal complex, a developmental phase that entails the desire of males. Typically, ages 3 to 5 years sexually possess their mothers and show hatred toward their fathers (Ahmed 5). Several instances in the play could lead to their marriage suspicion, although because of his ignorance and pride, Oedipus declines to accept his fate. The writer reveals Oedipus’ struggles with his unavoidable desire toward his mother during these psychological developmental stages; hence, the myth revolves around Oedipus’s journey of self-awareness.

The Influence of Divine Intervention and Predestination

Gods were considered revered and dreaded in ancient Greece, although Oedipus’ character defies the norms. His arrogance leads him to trust he is above everything, including fate and gods. In “Oedipus the King,” Oedipus established that his Corinthian King, his adoptive father, whom he considered his biological father, died, although a natural death due to old age. It provided him solace since he felt he had overcome the gods and avoided his fate because he was not the one who caused his father’s death (Nikolarea 16). It is ironic because he had already murdered Laius, his biological father.

However, keeping in mind that the themes of fate and gods are repetitive, mostly the recurrence of the gods to punish people who had sinned, as Teiresias had cautioned Oedipus that “he will leave to Apollo what concerns the god” (Sophocles 378). He proposes that earthly power, for instance, Oedipus and his birth parents’ trials to evade their fate, is irrelevant in the presence of divine influence, meaning the gods. In addition, he thinks of himself as the son of Fortune, the great goddess, and Oedipus claiming to be the son of Fortune means that he feels himself to be of grandeur because he does not know his true parents (Sophocles 262). Ironically, he considered himself under the directive of Fortune, even though, other than favoring him, he later got ruined by it.

Conclusion

In conclusion, fate’s predictability contributed to Oedipus’s destruction despite aspects guiding him to depart from his prophecy, affirming that one cannot evade the clasp of destiny. This ignorance compelled most of Oedipus’ actions, and he was unwilling to seek reality earlier. In summary, regardless of how much people try to alter their fate, a more substantial influence inhibits them. This supports the idea that tampering with destiny cannot transform their fate and may only lead to more suffering.

Works Cited

Ahmed, Sofe. “Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory Oedipus Complex: A Critical Study with Reference to D. H. Lawrence’s “Sons and Lovers.”” International Journal of English and Literature, vol. 3, no. 3. 2012. Web.

Finney. “.” Journal of Film and Video, vol. 72, no. 3-4, 2020, p. 64. Web.

Fosso, Kurt. “.College Literature, vol. 39, no. 3, 2012, pp. 26–60. Web.

Laccino, James F. Jungian Reflections within the Cinema : A Psychological Analysis of Sci-Fi and Fantasy Archetypes. Westport, Conn., Praeger, 1998.

Nikolarea, Ekaterini. “Athenian Law and Classical Greek Tragedy: The Case of Oedipus the King.” Law & Literature, vol. 3, no.5, 2021, pp. 1-24.

Pye, Lucian W., and Paul M. Handley. “.” Foreign Affairs, vol. 85, no. 6, 2006, p. 178. Web.

Sophocles. Oedipus the King: A New Translation. Harper Perennial, 2012.

Waggoner, Joshua. “.” Humanities, vol. 6, no. 4. 2017, p. 86. Web.

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IvyPanda. 2025. "The Role of Fate, Free Will, and Divine Intervention in Oedipus the King by Sophocles." January 28, 2025. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-role-of-fate-free-will-and-divine-intervention-in-oedipus-the-king-by-sophocles/.

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