Oedipus Rex: Character is Destiny

“Oedipus Rex” is a tragedy of fate. The crucial events in the

play have been pre-determined by fate or the gods. Man
seems helpless facing the circumstances which mould his
destiny. King Laius was told that his own son by Jocasta would kill
him. Laius did everything possible to prevent such a disaster.
Once Jocasta gave birth to a son, Laius had him chained and
handed him over to a trustworthy servant with strict orders that
the child be exposed on. Mt. Cithaeron and allowed to perish. But
the servant, out of compassion, handed over the child to a
Corinthian shepherd who passed him on to the Corinthian King.
The child grew up as the son of the King and Queen of Corinth
and later killed his true father, Laius, in complete ignorance.
Apollo’s oracle was fulfilled even though Laius and Jocasta took
the extreme step to escape the fate foretold by the oracle.
Oedipus had also to submit to the destiny which Apollo's oracle
pronounced for him. He learnt from the oracle that he would kill
his own father and marry his own mother. He, too, tried his
utmost to avert a terrible fate and fled from Corinth. His
wanderings took him to Thebes, where people were facing a great
misfortune. King Laius had been killed and the city was in the grip
of the Sphinx, who was causing a lot of destruction because
nobody was able to solve her riddle. Oedipus solved the riddle
and put an end to the monster. Oedipus was joyfully received by
Theban people as their King and was given Laius’s widow as his
wife. Thus, in complete ignorance of the identity of his parents,
he killed his father and married his mother. He performed these
disastrous acts not only unknowingly, but as a result of his efforts
to escape the cruel fate which the oracle at had communicated to
him.

It is evident that the occurrences which bring about the tragedy

in the life of Laius, Oedipus, and Jocasta are the work of
that mysterious supernatural power called fate or destiny or
be given the name of Apollo. This supernatural power
had pre-determined certain tragic events and even informed
the human beings in advance. These human beings take
whatever measures, to avert those events; and yet things turn
out exactly as they had been foretold by the oracles. Oedipus has
done nothing at all to deserve the fate which overtakes him. Nor
do Laius and Jocasta deserve the fate they meet.

According to Aristotle the tragic hero is a prosperous man who

falls into misfortune due to some serious defect or hamartia. No
doubt that Oedipus is an able ruler, a father of his people, a
great administrator and an outstanding intellect. His chief
care is not for himself but for the people of the State. The people
look upon him as their savior and worshipped him. He is also
a religious man in the orthodox sense. That such a man should
meet the sad fate is unbearably painful to us.

Oedipus is not, however, a perfect man or a perfect King. He

does suffer from a hamartia or a defect of character. He is hot-
tempered, rash, hasty in judgments, easily provoked and
somewhat arbitrary. Though in the beginning his attitude
towards Teiresias is one of reverence, he quickly loses his
temper and speaks to the prophet in an insulting
manner accusing both him and Creon of treason and showing
a blind suspicion towards friends. His position and
authority seem to be leading him to become a tyrant. Creon
has to remind him that the city does not belong to him alone.
Even when blinded he draws the reproach: