Oedipus The King

What qualities do people attribute to Oedipus? What attributes does he give himself? And besides from saving Thebes, what is Oedipus called on to do?

The People of Thebes view Oedipus as a natural born savior. The people say that he cannot equal the gods, but that his people rate him first of men. Because he had saved them from the Sphinx, without and training or knowledge from the people of Thebes, they viewed it as if a god was with him bringing Oedipus luck and power. Oedipus is the closest thing to a physical embodiment to a good as Thebes has. Oedipus does not see himself as such. “…Not one is sick as I. Your pain strikes each one of you alone, each in confines of himself, no other. But my spirit grieves for the city…” (Page 162, Lines 71-75). Oedipus is slightly modest in this quote, but also very arrogant in saying that he has a connection/suffers with all his people. Just because he has the crown, it does not mean that he feels pain of everyone. It seems that he felt that he needed to say that because it was a competition in suffering (?), and OF COURSE Oedipus had to win. Also, besides having to save the town from quote un-quote destruction, Oedipus must now deal with the riddle of “who killed Laius?” Also, from what I know about the previous play with Oedipus, (which is not a lot), is that he had to solve the riddle of the Sphinx. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus is now forced to solve yet another riddle of who killed Laius?

Why does Tiresias initially refrain from divulging the truth to Oedipus and assembled others? How does Oedipus try to get the truth from Tiresias? How is Oedipus' attitude towards Tiresias and the kind of knowledge he represents inconsistent?

I believe that Tiresias does not tell Oedipus and the others the truth because the prophet believes that Oedipus and the rest would be blinded by the truth. Tiresias says, “How Terrible—to see the truth only when the truth is only pain to him who sees!” (page 176, Lines 358-360). Meaning, that those who do not feel pain from the truth at all can only see the truth, which in this case, is not Oedipus. At first Oedipus starts out by complementing Tiresias about the noblest of work that Tiresias was about to show. Tiresias said that he did, in fact know who killed Laius, but he would not say. Tiresias answered in very murk, short ways to all of Oedipus’ questions, which angered and confused Oedipus. Tiresias continued to be very rude to the King without Oedipus even knowing why. Oedipus then became very angry with the prophet, which did not help persuade the prophet’s previous decision to not say whom was the murderer. After Oedipus re-asked Tiresias to repeat what he has said, Tiresias says that The King is the murderer you hunt. Believing the prophet to be insane. Oedipus challenged the prophet’s powers of prophecy; Tiresias then began to speak in riddles, because of Oedipus’ knowledge far beyond the prophet’s. Enraging Oedipus, due to the fact that he himself could not figure out what the prophet had meant, commands the prophet to leave at once. In the end resolving nothing.

After revealing to Oedipus that he himself is he murderer in which they are searching, Oedipus then calls upon the fact that the prophet is blind and cannot be held useful or wise anymore. Oedipus is associating eyesight with knowledge and, previously in the play, power, and because the prophet has no sight to speak of, he must be unequal to Oedipus. The association between sight and knowledge came up many times throughout this scene in the play, which means that is must have some relevance to the story.

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