The Character of Oedipus-Oedipus the King
The character of Oedipus, as portrayed in the play Oedipus the King, possesses both favorable and unfavorable qualities. Among the first of his attributes are his bravery and intelligence. Oedipus exemplifies both of these virtues through a single act, the solving of the sphinx’s riddle. By taking on a foe which no other was willing or able to, he displays the admirable traits that one would expect from a legendary hero. In addition to bravery and intelligence, Oedipus also shows great consideration for his people. Instead of abandoning them after gaining power, he demonstrates his great concern for their safety by sending Creon to Delphi to seek a solution to the terrible plague that is devastating his subjects. Still another of his virtues is his stubborn persistence. This characteristic is illustrated by his constant pursuit of the truth. Even when he realizes that this quest might lead to his own guilt, he continues to search for the basic facts that would both satisfy his curiosity and relieve his people of their terrible suffering. Finally, the foremost of Oedipus’ virtues is his independence. Once he has his goal in mind, nothing can alter his search for the truth. To achieve this goal, he overcomes both the refusal of Teiresias and the herdsman to talk and Jocasta’s attempts to discredit prophets. Even after he has met his doom, he insists that his decision to live is right and proceeds to give orders to Creon, as if he were still king. Thus, his independence is preserved, even after he has realized the truth of his birth. On the other hand, Oedipus’ character contains several flaws, which eventually lead to his downfall. The first of these liabilities is his excessive pride. This characteristic, in the scene with Teiresias, causes him to eschew the very information that might spare him his fateful doom. Another defect in Oedipus’ character is his bad temper. In the scene with Teiresias and the herdsman, he goes nearly berserk and threatens to kill them if they do not disclose the information he desires them to. In a scene with Creon, he completely loses his sense of reason and is shown in an inferior light as compared to Creon’s calm plausibility. In fact, it is this very temper that causes to kill Laius in the first place. By far the predominant flaw in his being is his ignorance. This is truly his one fatal flaw. Ignorance is first shown on his trip to Delphi, when he fails to discover the truth of his birth. All of his actions from this point forward up to his downfall are then conducted in total ignorance. Instead of emulation an intelligent human being, as he feels he is, Oedipus is proven to be the most ignorant of all, as he doesn’t even know himself. Therefore, although Oedipus’ character contains many virtues, it does, indeed, also contain one fatal flaw. Therefore, Aristotle’s theory concerning the tragic hero is verified and Oedipus’ downfall is assured.