Yefry Salazar

Essay 2. Draft #1

Professor Jeef Peer

November 28, 2017

Can you be considered guilty when faith has already set your future? This is the story of “Oedipus The King” by Sophocles, a Greek tragedy that ensures us destiny can’t be escape from. In the city of Thebes, a Sphinx kept captive their citizens until someone solve her riddle, if not she will kill them. Happens that Oedipus was the only one able to solve her puzzle and he became king. This is where you think becoming king is a great way to live, not for Oedipus. In his mind he was son to Polybos king of Korinth and Merope, but we know this wasn’t true. Son and husband to his mother-wife, father and brother to his children, Oedipus story is a tragedy we all want to escape from.

As we know, Thebes is being strike by a plague and all their citizens are looking for kings help, Oedipus regarding this problem send his brother in law Creon to the oracle to find a solution. When Creon came back the solution was to find the murderer of Laios former king of Thebes and put him to exile. We the spectators already know who did it but what we have to argue is what’s he responsible for killing his father and marrying his mother? At a banquet a man demanded he was not son to the king and queen, this disturbed his mind, so he went to the Oracle to find news of his origin: “So with no words to my parents, I traveled to the Pythian oracle. But the oracle would not honor me with the knowledge I craved. Instead his words flashed other things horrible, wretched things at me: I would be my mother’s lover, I would show the world children no one could bear look at, I would murder the father whose seed I am” (728) future has been set for Oedipus and I would of condemned him if he didn’t try to fight it or revoke it, but when he found out of this news he ran away trying to escape this legacy that would ashamed him for the rest of his life. A lot of times we encounter problems that we don’t fight and let them go, but when the consequences arrive is when we notice we should’ve deal with it before. In this case we are responsible for what we didn’t do but Oedipus was loyal to his principles and ran away from his town, he was convince Korinth and Merope were his parents: “When I heard that, and even after, I traced the road back to Korinth only by looking at the stars. I fled to somewhere I’d never see outrages like those the god promised, happen to me” (728). Oedipus had the will to escape his path, unfortunately we can’t escape our fortune, is something inevitable. When we think we’re running away from it is when it happens. This is what happened to Oedipus he ran away from his home town Korinth trying to change his destiny, in result, he went right in to it. His journey led him where three roads meet exactly where Laios was killed, there he recalls how he killed the man that where trying to crowd him off the road “As I approached the place where three roads joined, a herald, a colt-drawn wagon, and a man like the one you describe, met me head on. The man out front and the old man himself began to crowd me off the road. The driver, who’s forcing me aside, I smash in anger” (728).

Once he notices he could be the killer of Laios he did everything at his hands to find out if this was true, if you were the murderer of a crime would you tell others to collect proofs to find out who was guilty? No, I believe we will stay in silence, but Oedipus had an innocent mind “I pray this too: if he’s found at my heart, inside my house, and I know he’s there, may the curses I aimed at others punish me.” (715) he’s innocent mind show us how he more than anyone wanted to find the cure for the disaster that slowly brought him to the news he was the murder.

Also, he told Jokasta to bring the last survivor of the attack to question him about the crime with the hope to find out there were more than one murderer “He told you Laios was killed by bandits. If he still claims several, then I cannot be the killer. One man cannot be many. But if he says: one man, braving the road alone, did it, there’s no more doubt” (729). Reading these lines made me felt as if I was reading a kid book, Oedipus had such an honest mind that even though we knew he was the killer and responsible for this plague we can’t blame him for what he did, its like punishing a kid for doing pipi on his pamper. Besides, Jokasta assure Oedipus oracles weren’t to trust. She told him the story of Apollo, how he told her Laios was to be murder “Apollo, said plainly: my son would kill Laios. That poor doomed child had no chance to kill his father, for he was killed first. After that, no oracle ever made me look right, then left, in fear.” (730) These lines brought peace to Oedipus and even more tranquility after a messenger came from Korinth to announce Polybos, “father of Oedipus” was dead. Now what the oracle told Oedipus was to be ignored, he couldn’t kill he’s father because he was dead, he just had to be aware of marrying he’s mother “Oh, yes, wife! Why should we scour Pythian smoke of birds shrieking overhead? If signs like these had been telling the truth I would have killed my father. But he’s dead. He’s safely in the ground. And here I am, who didn’t lift a spear.” (732) once again, we see how Oedipus never knew he was guilty of he’s father murder, this particular event that occurred before brought him to disgrace: Jokasta and Laios handing him to a herdsman who was to put him to death, but didn’t. The herdsman handed him to the messenger who then gave it to Polybos and Merope. The news came to light when the messenger told Oedipus Polybos wasn’t he’s father “No more than I am. Exactly the same” this terrified Oedipus, he was about to discover what he didn’t want to discover, the prophecy was about to become a reality which he couldn’t escape from. Once he discovers it he’s heart broke in to pieces “All! All! It all happened! It was all true. O light! Let this be the last time I look on you. You see now what I am the child who must not be born! I loved where I must not love! I killed where I must mot killed!” (738) we infer from these lines Oedipus was facing a difficult time, knowing all he did to change his fate was in vane made him blind himself.

I defend Oedipus because since the very first pages we can tell he was a good king, the chorus agree with him when Tiresias told him he was the reason for their disgrace “All of us saw his brilliance prevail when the winged virgin Sphinx came at him: he passed the test that won the people’s love. My heart can’t find him guilty.” (722) a good king is the one who cares for his people and Oedipus was the first one to put his chest at the plague.

No one should judge someone for what he doesn’t know, we should judge others for what they don’t know and stay at the shade. But Oedipus was determining to find the truth this ma