The play “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles is about fate and how one’s attempt to change it can inadvertently cause it to happen. This is mostly because “man” cannot change what the gods have already predestined. In “Oedipus the King” Laius is told by the Oracle at Delphi that his son will murder him and marry his mother. He and his wife Jocasta decide that the prophecy must be prevented as make the decision to expose their three-day old son to the elements. Nevertheless, things do not go as planned and their son is saved and grows up as Oedipus the son of the King and Queen of Corinth. Through a series of events Oedipus unknowingly fulfills the prophecy that was told to Laius years before. One important part of a play that many times gets overlooked in my opinion are the objects that are used by the characters. This is because many times these objects have a purpose within the play. In this paper I will look at some of the objects that are used in “Oedipus the King” by Sophocles.
While not exactly an object the Sphynx’s riddle plays and important role in the story as the Sphynx had cursed the city of Thebes and Oedipus must answer a riddle to get inside the city "what is it that goes on four feet in the morning, two feet at midday, and three feet in the evening?" (Sophocles et.al). Oedipus answered “man” (Sophocles et,al). Which was the correct answer. However, he was unable to realize that the Sphynx’s riddle was about him. He crawled on four feet as an infant and child as a result of the injury done to his ankles, as an adult he is walking on two feet without aid from others and later he will leave Thebes using a cane because he is both old and blinded. So Oedipus is both the answer and solver of the riddle.
The oracle, which like the Sphynx speaks in riddles that refer to Oedipus. For example, saying that someone in Thebes had killed their father. This speaks of Oedipus himself. Nonetheless, he does not realize this until it is too late. Later when Jocasta, who does not believe in the oracle. Uses it to prove to Oedipus that the oracle is wrong by telling Oedipus the story of her son and the prophecy. She ends up revealing that the oracle was right all along. This also exhibited the idea that a person cannot run from fate.
The triple crossroad. Generally, in stories a crossroads is a place where a person must make a chose that will forever alter the course of their destiny. This is also true here. Since Oedipus killed Laius over a traffic dispute at the crossroads, thus unknowingly fulfilling the prophecy that caused both his parents Laius and Jocasta to wound his ankles and abandon him to die in the first place. I think that the crossroads consisting of three paths represents the fact that Oedipus was three days old when the actions of his parents forever changed his fate and as a consequence theirs as well. The triple crossroad could also signify the decisions that each of them have taken in regards to bringing about their predestination
Bad ankles are something that Oedipus has been afflicted with since infancy due to Laius putting pins through them. He was even named Oedipus which means “swollen foot” because of it. Even though Jocasta is aware of the injury to her son’s ankles she never questions the fact that her husband also has injuries to his ankles, which causes him to limp.
In the play blindness is an important concept because even though Oedipus can see and the seer Tiresias is blind. Oedipus is metaphorically blind because he refuses to believe what Tiresias has told him and the knowledge that is in front of him. This causes Tiresias to cry out "have you eyes, / And do not see your own damnation? Eyes, / And cannot see what company you keep?" (Sophocles et.al). Later after Oedipus learns the truth he blinds himself with his dead mother/wife’s broach. This is also an event that is foretold by Tiresias, when he says "those now clear-seeing eyes / Shall then be darkened" (Sophocles et,al). The concept of blindness is interesting because Oedipus is extremely perceptive about things outside of himself and his family. This seems to indicate that perhaps he subconsciously knows the truth, but chooses to be “blind” to it.
Works Cited
Sophocles, H D. F. Kitto, and Edith Hall. Antigone: Oedipus the King; Electra. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1994. Print.
