A Misconception Punishment of Oedipus King of Thebes

In many plays a character could have a misconception of his or her world. In return this could destroy a major turning point in the story. Oedipus Rex by Sophocles is star of such story. At the end of the story Oedipus King of Thebes ends up banished forever from his soil. Additionally, Oedipus tangiblely establishs taboo his testify look, for several reasons which will be discussed later. The question is Did Oedipus deserve his penaltys? There atomic number 18 many factors that must be considered in answering this, including how Oedipus himself felt about this situation.His blinding was as much symbolic as it was physical pang. After all factors have been considered, I think that all Oedipus banishment was the necessary punishment. It is important to hold open in mind the whole basic reasoning for Oedipus search for Laios killers he wished to put an end to a deadly plague, and that plague would only be stopped when said stillcherer is killed, or driven from the come (S ophocles 723). Consequently, when it is revealed that Oedipus himself murdered Laios, then banishment have the appearance _or_ semblances to be the only option.Death, in my mind, is not valid simply because of what it expertness do to the faggotdoms people. Even though it seems that Oedipus has not been a particularly good monarch, in fact his only major accomplishment seems to be killing the Sphinx all those years ago having a king put to death could have serious repercussions on the rest of the kingdom. So in the end, the only way to redress the affliction and keep the kingdom stable seems to be the banishment of Oedipus.In this case, the question of whether or not he deserved to be punished seems irrelevant Oedipus only goal was to stop the problem and by leaving, he has accomplished that goal. Banishment was the only choice. But what exactly was Oedipus being punished for? Even afterward re- reading the play, this still seems to be a gray area. Incest? Immoral to be sure, b ut Oedipus was obviously stolid to his actions, and to my knowledge in Sophoclean times, there was no written law against it and therefore no punishment for it (The terce Goddesses4).Oedipus punishment may have been for killing Laios, but how could you punish someone for being a dupe of fate? Greeks believed at the time of the plays writing that a mans life was woven by the 3 fates (Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos) and that he was irrevocably bound to that destiny (The Three Goddesses 2) . Knowing this and knowing that Oedipus became king of Thebes only because it was his destiny to murder Laios and kill the Sphinx, how could he rightfully be punished?Even Oedipus himself knows that his actions are not by choice, but by acts of the gods, he mentions this twice in the play Some savage power has brought this down upon my corpus (745). As well as My god, my god what have you planned to do to me? (755) Such quotes clearly submit that Oedipus knew that he had no choice in his actions . With this approach alone, Oedipus is undeserving of any set punishments. Oedipus may not have been a particularly good man, but in the end he knew what was best for his kingdom Out of this kingdom cast me with all speed (757) or only that would save his problems.Was that Oedipus only punishment the play might have been quite a bit simpler, but Oedipus vigorously stabs his own eyes with Jocastas dress pins. This was Oedipus way of trying to punish himself, as well as an escape for him. Oedipus would no month farsighted stare upon the faces of his issues, his brother (uncle? ) Kreon or even those of his children. He is plunged into a world of darkness. It must be famous that this was more than a simply punishment, though Im sure that it was one of the ways Oedipus intended it.The physical pain in the neck alone seems to prove that. There are much easier ways of become blind to the world than wound ones eyes out. As I have stated before, Oedipus was blinded by his foolish pride long before the beginning of the story. He only realized the truth behind Laios murder when it was right in front of his nose. He was by no means stupid, in fact he came off as quite a clever man, but his was a world of blindness because of pride and power. After concentrating on the two most obvious of Oedipus punishments, but there is another one that may not seem so clear.Keeping in mind that Sophocles made it very clear that Oedipus was a man of so much pride that he may have thought of himself to be related to a god. even Oedipus basically stripped of that pride at the end of the play, then the true punishment was revealed. Oedipus life was ground on pride. It was what led him to the murder of Laios, which in turn led to the killing of the Sphinx, then led to his becoming king. As he continues on his particular way of life, Oedipus becomes more and more powerful, and as such, his pride excessively increases proportionately.He threatens both Teiresias and Kreon, and tries to untangle the mystery of Laios death. What must go on inside his min d when he finds out that not only did he murder his father, the king, but he also slept with his set about? Knowing full well that his kingdom would eventually find out his acts, how could he hold his degree up when walking through the city streets? How could his people respect and look up to a king who was a murderer and an incest committer? Oedipus is therefore stripped of his pride, the driving force behind his whole personality.He has been crushed, and that which he had so much of before has been denied him. Where he was once at one extreme, he is now at the other. To take away the very thing that drives a man is worse than any physical pain or even death itself. That is truly, as Sophocles intended it, Oedipus ultimate punishment. When the curtain falls and the lights go out on Oedipus Rex, the kings punishments total three. Though in my mind at least, one far outweighs the other two, they are all important and they all contribute to the total experience of the Greek tragedy.In the end, I do not feel that Oedipus truly deserves the punishments he is handed, but that is only because of the fact that I place myself in the time period that this was written in, using the beliefs of that time for my own. If this story took place in modern times, Oedipus certainly would have deserved his punishment, but this idea is irrelevant because, quite simply, this did not take place in our advanced civilization. Oedipus was a victim of fate, incapable of free will, and as such he should have not been punished, save banishment only to cure the affliction.