Oedipus Rex Guide Questions

Brandon Ong 9/28/14

Mr. Waddell B Block

Oedipus Rex Guide Questions

1. Creon tells Oedipus that he has “lost his sense of balance” and is “sullen in yielding and brutal in rage”. He also asks aloud: “Was he in his right mind?”.  How would you describe Oedipus’s madness?  Is he crazy or merely confused?  Is his pursuit of the truth noble, or merely insane?

Oedipus pursuit of the truth is insane, instead of what he believes it to be: noble. In trying to find out the murderer of Laos to stop the plague of Thebes, Oedipus loses all rational thought and fair judgement. He accuses Creon for being the murderer of Laos with very little supporting evidence. Even when the legendary Tiresias, sent by Choragos, comes to reluctantly offer his wisdom to Oedipus, Oedipus, who dislikes what he hears, irrationally ignores what Tiresias tells him at first. Failing to realize that the person who murdered Laos and thus the person who would cure Thebes of the plague is actually himself, Oedipus goes insane in trying to find the culprit, ultimately turning the search for the murderer into a search for his true identity, yet even then, he constantly ignores the clues and hints that surround him throughout the entire play, contributing to how insane he is in pursuit of the truth.

2. Oedipus calls himself an “abomination” for killing his father and marrying his mother. If he was aware of neither, why does he call himself evil? Is a man responsible for the evil of his actions if he is truly unaware that they are evil? In other words, is ignorance a good excuse?

A man should not be responsible for the evil of his actions if he is truly unaware that they are evil. Especially for Oedipus, who unknowingly killed his father, and is seemingly powerless in this twisted prophecy that he is part of, Oedipus should not be held accountable, as he even made an effort to prevent the prophecy he was given which said he would murder his own father by moving away from Corinth. Oedipus did everything he could to avoid it and it is only through unknowing fate that he killed his father and married his mother. Oedipus calls himself evil despite being unaware of neither, probably because of the fact that despite not knowing it, he is still the one who committed the atrocities. Oedipus also calls himself evil for seemingly to fail to realize it all sooner, as the hints and clues were all there, whether it be his name, his injury, or what the messengers told him, Oedipus might feel disgraced that he had unknowingly ignored it in the past.

3. Recount the events that lead up to the self-blinding of Oedipus.  Why does Oedipus choose this form of self-punishment and what is the symbolic significance of this act?

Prior to the self-blinding of Oedipus, the messenger who took baby Oedipus to Corinth is brought forth, revealing the truth, and Jocasta kills herself after hearing the news. Oedipus chooses to blind himself with Jocasta’s pins. His self blinding contributes to the theme of sight. The symbolic significance of blinding himself is that it goes to show how Oedipus failed to see all that he has done despite being surrounded by clues and hints, such as his injured foot, name, and the information given by the messengers and prophet, Tiresias.  Also, it is quite ironic as Oedipus disrespected Tiresias for being blind earlier on and now Oedipus himself is blind.

4. What is the significance of Jocasta’s constant admonitions to Oedipus that he stop thinking about the prophecies and stop worrying about his fate?  When does she really learn the truth, in your opinion? Support your answer with examples from the text.

The significance of Jocasta’s constant admonitions to Oedipus that he stop thinking about the prophecies is that it demonstrates that Jocasta is fearful of the truth being revealed, and her fear of the truth signifies that deep down inside, Jocasta most likely knows that Oedipus is responsible for the death of her first husband, and even worse, that she is married and had children with her own son. Arguably, Jocasta really learns the truth when she tells Oedipus: “Why should anyone in this world be afraid, Since it is fate rules us and nothing can be foreseen? A Man should live only for the present day,” as she attempts to persuade Oedipus to forget about the past and to only live for the present day, even going as far as to say: “Have no fear of sleeping with your mother: How many men, in dreams, have lain with their mothers!” which is all in all, pretty sick and disturbing but ultimately goes to show that Jocasta, at this point, has the vague idea that the worse may be true and is now attempting to persuade Oedipus to pursue the prophecy no further.  

5.  How is this play actually about repression?  What are some examples of Oedipus repressing memories or feelings that he would prefer not to confront?

There are many moments throughout Oedipus Rex that show Oedipus, and others, such as Jocasta, repressing memories or feelings that they would prefer not to confront. All in all, this play is about finding Oedipus finding out his true identity. Initiated by the plague on Thebes which causes Oedipus to seek that who killed Laos, Oedipus, through messengers and prophets such as the shepherd and Tiresias, receives hints and clues about himself, with many leading to him being the murderer who killed Laos, as well as him being the son of his own wife, Jocasta. With that being said, there are straightforward clues which point to him being the person the prophecies speak of, such as his injured ankle, the result of his fathers doing, as well as his name itself, Oedipus, which means swollen foot. Also, it is seemingly clear that Oedipus is responsible to Laos death, but Oedipus seemingly denies the truth and goes to all efforts to have it be confirmed by the shepherd/messenger, putting aside all the hints and clues which surrounds him.

6. While the entire play contains multiple references to the eyes and sight, there are also many references to light and darkness as well.  How are these motifs related to ideas related to personal responsibility and self-knowledge?

The motifs of eyes and sight, and light and darkness, are related to the ideas of personal responsibility and self-knowledge in that one holds to their very own responsibility and self-knowledge what they know and what they don’t know, what they can see and what they already know. Oedipus has no sight of the future, but through his own knowledge, what he already experienced, and the information provided by the messenger and prophet(Tiresias), Oedipus holds the responsibility of putting the clues and hints together, that is, that he is the one who killed his father, Laos. While it may be true that Oedipus has very little say in what happened or what will happen, it is his own personal responsibility to not ignore what he already knows or has seen, and to put together his experiences and the clues surrounding him to make the twisted realization.

7. Discuss a few ways in which Oedipus Rex demonstrates the conflict between fate and free will. Ultimately, is Oedipus more a victim of prophecies and fate or is he a victim of his own bad decisions?

Oedipus is a victim of prophecies and fate. One cannot control their circumstances at birth. It is due to fate that Oedipus is born to King Laos, who received a prophecy telling him that he would be murdered by his own son, causing Laos to leave young Oedipus to die. And even after being saved by the pitying shephard and then being raised as a prince in Corinth and hearing that he would one day murder his own father, Oedipus` actions of moving away from Corinth to prevent the prophecy from occurring demonstrates that his own decisions are all part of an unavoidable, twisted fate, for no matter what he does, his tragic demise cannot be stopped.