- Introduction - Context
In general, I am a person who lives under the sign of “Carpe Diem” – “Live the Moment” and I am doing this every day, living my life to the fullest. This is not to say, however, that I do not have a personal plan, but I am not forgetting to live, to enjoy the little joys and emotions that life has to offer, for the sake of strictly following my personal plan. I never considered too much the expression “You can’t escape your destiny”, until this year. It is probably because I consider that we, as people have a defined trajectory in life, but the way we reach there, depends totally of us. However, this saying influenced me throughout the year, in the context the prediction according to which the world will end in 2012.
- Parallel between “Oedipus the King” and the Predicted End of the World in 2012
What is the relation between this situation and the saying “You can’t escape your destiny”? I am continually analyzing this prediction considering the tragic Greek play – “Oedipus the King” of Sophocles. Besides its uncontestable literary value and artistic expression, the play also proposes a philosophical discussion about destiny. Oedipus’ parents knew what his fate was: to kill his father and marry his own mother (“Oedipus who has accidentally killed his father and married his mother” (Sophocles, p. 85)). They tried to avoid this situation by any means, so they made the arrangements for killing their own son, giving it to a shepherd. However, the man could not commit this sin and he gave it to the King Polybus of Corinth, who had no child and who raised Oedipus as his own child.
However, when he grew, Oedipus learned about his own fate and to escape this tragedy he ran away from home. However, this did not help him escaping what he considered his fate was, as on his runaway he meet his natural father, who was running away from Thebes (which was confronting a severe crisis – a ferocious Dragon was killing the men from the state). He killed Laius, his father, who was pretending to be a beggar. Next, he reached Thebes and killed the ferocious Dragon and as a reward the people of Thebes made him King, automatically marrying him with Thebe’s Queen, Jocasta, his own mother.
I want to connect this literature work and the saying “You can’t escape your destiny” with the Mayan and Aztec predictions, according to which the end of the world will occur in 2012. Nostradamus, the famous French prophet who lived in the 16th century also forecasted the end of the world in December 2012. Just as in Oedipus case, this event was predicted by something similar to an oracle. Just like in “Oedipus the King”, people are trying to escape this sad and tragic outcome.
On different forums, people are discussing about going to the Kailash Mountains in Himalaya, as the target of the safest place on Earth, which will protect them from the floating from December 21st (“2012 and Safest Place on Earth”, para 3).
- Comparison
This solution is meant to help people to avoid the end of the world, which is an ancient prediction. This suggests that nowadays, people are putting their lives in the hands of the destiny, just as Oedipus and his parents did in Sophocles’ tragic play.
This indicates a similarity in humans’ perceptions about destiny, about reality and about life. It is in humans’ nature to consider that a superior force, like destiny, can control their lives. The situation exposed in “Oedipus the King” and the one with which we are confronting nowadays, the predicted end of the world for December 2012, illustrate that people who believe in what is predicted to be will act against it and concentrate their energy into avoiding the predicted tragedy/disaster.
“Oedipus the King” is a literature work, controlled by Sophocles. For this play, the author is almighty, having at his hands the destinies of his characters. He chooses to write that a bad thing, a spite called “Destiny” haunts the lives of his other characters, making them run in circle, hiding and running away from this negative character.
The case of the end of the world predicted for 2012 is a situation happening in the real life, predicted by other people, who lived in different periods of time. Just like in Sophocles’ play, some people nowadays choose to consider the predictions real and are searching for solutions to avoid their death in the floating.
Nevertheless, there are people, like me, who choose to live their lives to the fullest, without being influenced by the thought of dying in a tragedy, when all the Earth will sink. What is the purpose of running around in circle trying to escape a cruel and tragic fate if you will end right from where you left?
In addition, there are other perceptions that we need to consider nowadays. The scientific and technological advancements allow us to think further and to understand that actually, the world cannot end this year, because according to the scientists and the astrological discoveries, it will live for other billion years. The scientists in NASA say that the prediction that the Earth will come in 2012 is a result of the fact that a planet discovered by Sumerians, Niburu, will head to Earth. But this event was meant to happen in 2003 and because it did not occur then, it was just postponed for 2012 (“Beyond 2012: Why the World Won’t End”, para 7).
3. Learning Outcomes
The comparison between Oedipus’ situation and the one regarding the predicted end of the world in 2012 indicates two aspects for me: (1) Regardless of any predictions, we should live our lives in the present and as we choose to; (2) We should consult more sources, become more informed about the actual value of the information we receive.
4. Literature in the Context of Contemporary Culture
Creating a parallel between “Oedipus the King” and the Mayan predictions one can perceive differently Sophocles’ play and the forecast about the world ending in 2012. The literary, artistic and philosophical power of the literature work cannot be ever denied. However, analyzing it in parallel with the Mayan and Aztec predictions (demolished by NASA’s scientists), there can be stated that the tragism of the play shadowed the human ability to be autonomous and responsible for their own actions and fate.
References
2012 and Safest Place on Earth to Survive and Escape Disaster? Accessed on 28 November 2012, retrieved from . Web.
Beyond 2012: Why the World Won’t End. Accessed on 28 November 2012, retrieved from . 2012. Web.
Sophocle, Oedipus Rex: Oedipus the King. Digireads.com Publishing. 2005. Print.
