Oedipus and Antigone
Truth in the Eyes of Justice
Greek theater encompassed many aspects that reflected the moral values and ideals of society. Their customs were tightly woven into the scripts of plays. Antigone and Oedipus the King, two renowned works of the Greek playwright Sophocles, explore these values through a plot thick with corruption, virtue, and determination. These plays reveal the burdens two Theban kings, Oedipus and Creon, as their lies and poor judgment corrode the integrity of their city, their families and themselves. Possessing a strong faith in their respective gods, the characters of these Greek plays are often led astray as they try to escape the twisted hand of fate, further warping their perception of reality. As their vain attempts leave their lives in ruin, Sophocles stresses the importance of upholding these values by finding a sense of morality. Greek theater reinforces the necessity to guide one’s own fate free of corruption and make choices backed by veracity.
By placing their faith in various gods, individuals easily become subject to their twisted wills. Every action or unguided step has the potential to reverberate throughout ones entire life. The renowned playwright Sophocles develops the role of a higher power as the harbinger of justice. The characters of his plays prove their inability to govern their own lives as they are swept along by a cruel breeze. Is it prophecy and fate that determines their demise or the simple fact that one must pay for ones crimes? The role of a driving force that can be referred to as fate or karma is apparent. Upon the birth of the doomed Oedipus, it is prophesized that he will kill his father, Laius, and sleep with his mother, Jocasta. Laius’s fear of death causes him to dispose of Oedipus “…and the child’s birth was not three days past when Laius pinned its ankles together and had it thrown, by others’ hands, on a trackless mountain (Sophocles 94). The abandonment of his child is a sin and an
Greek theater encompassed many aspects that reflected the moral values and ideals of society. Their customs were tightly woven into the scripts of plays. Antigone and Oedipus the King, two renowned works of the Greek playwright Sophocles, explore these values through a plot thick with corruption, virtue, and determination. These plays reveal the burdens two Theban kings, Oedipus and Creon, as their lies and poor judgment corrode the integrity of their city, their families and themselves. Possessing a strong faith in their respective gods, the characters of these Greek plays are often led astray as they try to escape the twisted hand of fate, further warping their perception of reality. As their vain attempts leave their lives in ruin, Sophocles stresses the importance of upholding these values by finding a sense of morality. Greek theater reinforces the necessity to guide one’s own fate free of corruption and make choices backed by veracity.
By placing their faith in various gods, individuals easily become subject to their twisted wills. Every action or unguided step has the potential to reverberate throughout ones entire life. The renowned playwright Sophocles develops the role of a higher power as the harbinger of justice. The characters of his plays prove their inability to govern their own lives as they are swept along by a cruel breeze. Is it prophecy and fate that determines their demise or the simple fact that one must pay for ones crimes? The role of a driving force that can be referred to as fate or karma is apparent. Upon the birth of the doomed Oedipus, it is prophesized that he will kill his father, Laius, and sleep with his mother, Jocasta. Laius’s fear of death causes him to dispose of Oedipus “…and the child’s birth was not three days past when Laius pinned its ankles together and had it thrown, by others’ hands, on a trackless mountain (Sophocles 94). The abandonment of his child is a sin and an