Sophocles

Amber Lyles Humanities HNS Period 9th 18 September 2011 Wisdom From Suffering “Suffering is the price of being alive. ”; “make use of suffering. ” These straight forward quotes sourced from the thoughts of Judy Collins and Henri-Frederic Amiel are produced from different origins but compatible. Collins’s is stemmed from the idea that suffering cannot be avoided and Amiel’s is from his philosophy of the art of living. Most people try to deny and avoid the path of suffering. Yet, they often fail to realize that no matter how many detours they take around suffering, the construction of it is still going to be there.

Might even relocate closer to them where they are forced to really deal with it. In Sophocles play Oedipus Rex, Oedipus, the king of Thebes suffering comes from personal and criminal revelations. Somewhat similar but not nearly as extreme is and/or was the origin of my suffering. Good thing is that, people gain wisdom from suffering through growth and acceptance. Being king is hard, title alone comes with high prestige and expectations. Oedipus was put on a pedestal by the citizens of Thebes like he was their God. That was their biggest mistake.

So when the land of Thebes is plagued by disease and death, Oedipus pleas that “I know that you are deathly sick; and yet, sick as you are, not one is sick as I. Each of you suffers in himself alone his anguish, not another’s; but my spirit groans for the city, for myself, for you. ” Oedipus not only wants the city to know that he suffers with them but that he suffers substantially because his suffering not only includes himself. Now not saying that what was said wasn’t sincere, just the fact that he knew of how they saw him put pressure on him to over exaggerate a little to make a point that he cared.

His greatest suffering came through the process of finding out who killed King Laius; a king before him, whose death was believe to have brought the plague. During that process Oedipus was told by Teiresias, a blind prophet, “…. you are the murderer you seek. ” Of course Oedipus dismissed the statement; cursed the prophet and his words. Not only was Oedipus being the murderer revealed, but the fact that he was a Theban; born to Iokaste who is his current wife and mother of his kids. That means that he married and had kids with his own mother.

From that moment on Oedipus is confused, enraged and accuses Kreon bringing Teiresias to him to as a way to try and his throne. The suffering of the city of Thebes caused by the plague-wind brought about by a way of the death of King Laius leads to the wisdom brought about by Teiresias. The knowledge that Oedipus gains is that he killed his father, married and had kids with his own mother. Oedipus brought about his own doom and “served his own destruction“; in the words of Kreon. Anyhow, I’d like to share my own story.

I was born in Chicago on March 4, 1994 to Brenda Yarbrough and Marvin Lyles. Well that’s what I’d thought. Found out when I was 8 or 9 that Marvin Lyles wasn’t my father and that my real dad wanted nothing to do with me. I blamed my mother for a lot a lot of things, which I’ve felt bad for because she’s had enough to deal with. Stage 4 cancer survivor, only has one kidney, has had heart attack, high blood pressure, single parent mother for me and my two brothers most of her life, list goes on and on. She doesn’t need me to make her feel guilty.

In 2002, we moved to Aurora because my mom had met this man and got married. I wasn’t to happy about leaving Chicago and family but the idea of having a “father” and sister appealed to me and made the situation more comfortable. Well that marriage started off good then a lot stuff happened and it all went downhill. The marriage really produced a lot of trust issues and fears that I have today. They got divorced and from then on it’s mainly been me and my mom. To return to the topic, my biggest suffering I would have to say stems from the situation with my father.

I’ve been in some dark places even to the point where I didn’t want to live. Just felt unwanted, that something was wrong with me that my own father didn’t want me and that I was just a burden to my mom. The knowledge I’ve gained is that life is precious, I’m not a mistake, it’s not my fault, just his lost and that my mother is and has done the absolute best she can/could; she’s my greatest motivation. I’ve just had to grow and mature quicker, stay strong and accept things that I can’t control.

On to Oedipus situation , don’t think that he should do it again. Fate is fate, it was suppose to happen. He probably could’ve handled the Teiresias situation differently and been more mannered. Then again Oedipus would’ve probably had to figure it out the truth by himself, instead of forcing it out of Teiresias. That probably would’ve took forever and the people in the city would’ve suffered more. So, either way would produce the same outcome of wisdom for Oedipus, just a difference in time, the amount of suffering and when death would come.

It’s like having the option of the death penalty or life in prison; person knows they’re going to die either way just a matter of time. Oedipus brought his tragedy upon himself; even though he seemed ignorant to fact until the end. He killed his father, married and had kids with his mother and had to reap the repercussions of his own decree. That was meant to happen. The reason why, unknown, but someone could’ve found light in it and shouldn’t be revised. Next, is the question of , why or why not would I do my situation with suffering over again?

I honestly can’t say that I would. Reason being is, because as I look back over my life; from being homeless, crying myself to sleep at night, struggling with the situation with my dad, feeling alone, jail visits, health scares to the littlest lie have all help me grow and learn. The greatest thing I’ve learned through my suffering though, is the importance of my momma. I appreciate her so much for the sacrifices she has made and her strength. Our life isn’t the best, but we have each other. She cries, I cry, she hurts, I hurt, when she’s happy is when I’m the happiest.

That’s why I strive to stay focused in school and do the right thing because I know that what she has been through when she was younger is what she doesn’t want me to experience. She’s is the just best friend/mother/father I just don’t know where I would be without her. I still have my underlying issues and occasional problems but now I know that I’m going to be okay. Can’t change the fact that my real dad doesn’t want me, but I can change how I handle it. Yes it hurts, but as long as I got God, my momma, family and those that care truly care for me in my corner; can fight anything.

All in all, people gain wisdom through growth and acceptance. Oedipus gained wisdom through knowledge that the suffering of his city was the result of a plague-wind brought about by his killing of king Laius. In the process leading to his own suffering with the revelations that her was the murderer that he sought after and that he married and had kids with his very own mother. The wisdom that that I gained through my suffering stemming from the situation with my father is that I’m not a mistake, have to accept that it’s out of my control, his loss, and that my life is to precious to consider taking.

I continue to progress and Oedipus is dead. Revisiting the words of Judy Collins and Henri-Frederic Amiel, “Suffering is the price of being alive. ”; “make use of suffering. ” Everybody experience suffering; whether brought about themselves, by circumstance or environment. Suffering is apart of life and the art of living is to make use of it to gain wisdom. People should just accept it, there’s no shortcut; just drive through it and learn. Suffering is everywhere. If a person doesn’t agree, dare them to just look around, listen to the news and tune in to reality.

A comparison of the influential role of the chorus in Sophocles’ Antigone and Euripides’ Medea It has been said by Napoleon Hill, “Think twice before you speak, because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another”. This has been put to use in the plays Antigone by Sophocles and Medea by Euripides. The chorus which was an integral part of ancient Greek drama was used in the dramas to play an influential role. However, the group they mainly influenced contrasted and thus will be explored in the essay.

The chorus in Antigone is composed of Theban men who were summoned by the newly crowned king Creon. Its interaction was mainly with Creon. Sophocles has shown a relation between the chorus and Creon, both being old and wise men of Thebes. They are introduced rejoicing the victory of Thebes over Argos. As the play develops they get actively involved commenting on every action and decision of the main actors. Its support wavers from Creon to Antigone during the course of the play. The women of Corinth formed the chorus in Eurpides Medea. They chiefly served as a commentator to the play.

Euripides has shown a relation between the chorus and the character they interact the most, Medea, as both belonged to the group of women living in the male-dominated society. The involvement of chorus has been minimized after Medea asks them not to interfere in her action of revenge towards Jason. The chorus feeling sympathetic towards Medea gives her their consent on the future happenings in the play, “I will. You are right to take revenge on your husband. ” Being women and able to understand Medea’s miseries, the chorus was moved to such an extent that they supported Medea, a foreigner to their land in killing the daughter of their ruler.

This shows them primarily as women before good subject of Creon. Both Sophocles and Euripides have used the chorus to influence the audience. They have conveyed emotions the writer wants the audience to feel for the proceedings of the play. The chorus has also been used to influence the minds of the actors. The chorus in Antigone has little role in influencing the emotions of the audience. They enter the play and introduce Creon to the audience also creating a doubt in the mind of the viewers of his immediate plans which made him call the old Theban men.

The chorus is also given the responsibility of informing the viewers of the status of Ismene over her sister being caught denying the law. They introduce Ismene as, “Here comes Ismene from the palace, Shedding a fond sister’s tears. Her face is flushed” This is different from what was observed in the opening scene where Ismene besides refusing to help Antigone with the burial also warned her of the consequences of her act leading to Antigone telling her, “you will earn my hatred” .

While Creon and Haemon are fighting over Creon’s decision of executing Antigone, Haemon’s fiancee, the chorus justifies both their points for the audience. The play ends with chorus’ last words with the message the writer has tried to convey through the drama. The chorus takes its responsibility of burying the dead while propagating the . They also criticize Creon’s pride and arrogance associating with Zeus’ hatred towards ‘boasts of a proud tongue’ . The chorus in Medea in the first scene provokes the feeling of sympathy towards Medea from the audience when they say, “I don’t like the family suffering.

I sympathise with them. ” This conveys the thought to the audience that the society is sympathetic towards Medea thus she indeed has been done great wrong by Jason. Further in the play when Creon banishes Medea and her sons from the kingdom and gives them only one day in Corinth, the chorus enlightens the audience of the troubles she faces after being banished from the land which gave her refuge. This increases the sense of sympathy from the audience towards Medea. The chorus emphasizes, “What an impassable sea of troubles, Medea, God has launched on you! Later in the play when Medea confides about her plan of killing Jason’s new wife, the chorus accepts her decision and supports her completely in taking her revenge. But when Medea tells them that she is also planning to kill her sons to punish Jason, the Chorus reacts in a way the audience should have as only it, the chorus and the audience know about her plans, “Since you have confided this to us… We want to help you, but we can’t reject The laws of human life. We say, Don’t do this! ” The chorus also shows curiosity when Medea goes inside her house to kill her sons.

The same feeling would have developed among the audience to know whether she is actually committing the sin. The chorus in Antigone also plays the major role of influencing the decisions of Creon and making Antigone realize her mistake. After listening to the sentry about the burial of Polyneices, the chorus, superstitious in nature proclaim suggest Creon, “Lord, all this time my thoughts have been saying that this might be the work of the gods” This was the first attempt of the chorus to influence Creon to take back his decision of not giving Polyneices a respectful burial.

However, this was only responded with anger by Creon who warned the chorus that they might prove it insane and senile as the Gods will not give an honorable burial to the person who came to burn their temples and pillars. Creon had decided to prosecute Ismene along with Antigone; they was then the chorus who questioned him about Ismene who was not involved in the burial leading to a change in mind and Ismene being set free. The chorus and Antigone have a long conversation after Antigone is declared to be hanged. The chorus informs her that she departs from the world with a glorious death.

When Antigone compares herself to the Gods, the chorus informs her that she has not resembled the goddess Niobe in her life but they is honorable for her to die like gods. The chorus press on her that she is at fault as she defied the royal orders and make Antigone reflect on the curse on her family regarding marriages. First, her mother married her son, followed by her death just before her marriage. The prophecy by Teiresias leaves a doubt in Creon’s mind and they are the chorus who give her the advice to “Go and free the girl from her cell of rock, and set up a tomb for him who lies unburied. Creon takes this advice and he rushes to the place of Antigone’s assassination. Hence, a strong influence of the Theban men can be seen on the main characters of the play Antigone. The influence of the chorus in Medea over the characters is negligible as the women only serve as commentators over every action and decision. The chorus attempts to influence Medea not to kill her sons when she confides her plan to them. However, Medea turns down their advice without much consideration. This shows the negligible impact of the chorus on the character.

Both the plays were written in ancient Greek times when the society was dominated by men. As the chorus of Antigone consisted of men, they had an active role in the play, their advice was sought, their opinions were heard and they were respected. On the other hand, the chorus of Medea consisting women played a passive role talking to itself and the audience most of the times. Their interruptions in conversations were ignored by the other characters. They also portrays the feministic views of Euripides.

They sympathized with Medea and supported her in her decision to avenge Jason for betraying her. They condemned men, who are unfaithful to the wives, a thought common in most women. Therefore, while in Antigone, the chorus has a major influence on the actors, the chorus of Medea mainly influences the audience. Sources referred http://ancienthistory. about. com/od/greekliterature/a/GreekTheater_4. htm http://www. sparknotes. com/drama/antigone/characters. html http://www. shmoop. com/medea/themes. html http://www. shmoop. com/antigone-sophocles/themes. html

Knowledge Brings Sorrow; Fate vs. Free Will The themes of “fate versus free will” and “knowledge brings sorrow” are present throughout the play Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles. Fate and free will are antitheses of each other, just as knowledge and sorrow are. Many years before Oedipus began his journey to Thebes, his father, King Laius, heard a prophecy saying that his son would kill him (65). In order to prevent this from happening, Laius had the baby abandoned, and had his feet bound together with a nail for extra precaution.

Since prophecies usually turned out to be true, this is an example of how Laius tried to escape his fate. However, he didn’t know that Oedipus survived. On his way to Thebes, Oedipus ran into Laius on the road, not knowing he was his father. He ended up killing him, just as the prophecy said. The prophecy also said that Oedipus would marry his mother. You can infer that fate yet again fulfills its role, and the prophecy becomes true after Oedipus kills his father and continues to Thebes. Just as Oedipus didn’t know that Laius was his father, he didn’t know that Jocasta was his mother.

He became the new king of Thebes because he married Jocasta (65). Throughout the play, Oedipus believes that all of his actions are based on free will, not fate. He doesn’t find out that he killed his father and married his mother until awhile after it happened. Everything that happens to Oedipus is really his fate. Once Jocasta and Oedipus Strineka 2 realize they are mother and son, Jocasta kills herself. Here, fate plays another role. Free will really isn’t present in this play. Everything that happens is due to fate.

As Amit Sodha said, “All events are fated in some way. ” This is also where “knowledge brings sorrow” comes into play. Because Jocasta and Oedipus found out that they were mother and son, Jocasta kills herself and Oedipus gouges out his eyes. They do not want to accept the fact that they were mother and son and married. Sodha also said “The trouble with fate is that it can leave you with a feeling of helplessness. ” It’s obvious that Oedipus and Jocasta definitely felt helpless in their situation. Although the prophecy said nothing about Oedipus killing himself, it said hat he would kill his parents. He didn’t kill Jocasta himself, but the reason she killed herself in the first place was because of Oedipus and their marriage. This is a good example of how some things are better off left unknown. In this situation, knowing everything was obviously not such a good idea. People wouldn’t want to know every single detail if things were said clearly, and not in such an ambiguous manner. When things are said so that they could possibly have multiple meanings, people become curious to figure out what is actually meant.

The outcome of figuring out meanings could be good or bad. Just like the saying “curiosity killed the cat,” curiosity killed Laius, Jocasta, and Oedipus, and placed a curse on their whole family. In the play, fate triumphs over free will, and knowledge definitely brings sorrow. It’s ironic that fate triumphs over free will and knowledge brings sorrow because most people do things without thinking that it’s part of their fate, and you would think that knowing more would enlighten you rather than bringing you grief and sorrow.

In reality, people who are generally “smarter” and have more knowledge are usually the ones who are most successful in life, and being successful is usually associated with having a good life and being happy. Strineka 3 However, it makes more sense that people who are more aware of life and their surroundings are the ones who feel sorrow and grief. They’re the ones who know what life is really like. They see the flaws of the world and how careless and ignorant people can be. It is possible for knowledge to limit the lives of people, because those who know what is going on often try to change things so the outcome will hopefully be different.

For example, if someone had a serious illness but didn’t know about it, they would go on living their life normally without any worry. But if this person knew about the illness, they would probably live their life worrying about what’s going to happen to them. In Oedipus, Laius worries about whether or not the prophecy that his son would kill him will come true. He takes ridiculous actions just to prevent it from happening, but he ends up being killed by his son anyways due to his fate.

Essay # 2 Kim Pham English 104-017 Professor James Place October 15, 2012 Pham 1 In the play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (rpt. in James P. Place, Literature: A reader for Freshman Composition II, 1st ed. [Boston: Pearson, 2011] 122-168), the oracles had prophesied that Oedipus would kill his father and beget children by his mother. Oedipus does not want to do the things that Apollo predicted; he is no puppet, but indeed the controller of his own fate. Oedipus was unwilling to have his fate come true; he was frightened that he would kill his adopted parents.

He believes they were his real parents, therefore he left to Thebes. The decision he made was based on the stories he heard. This led to Oedipus’s own downfall. Oedipus is not the puppet of his own fate, but indeed the creator of his own fate. Oedipus creates his own fate because after hearing the oracle, he did not return to his hometown, Corinth, but went to Thebes. He was afraid of making his fate come true, so he did everything possible to avoid the fate.

He did not realize that by avoiding his fate, he was actually heading toward it. In Thebes, he fulfills his fate by killing his father and taking his mother as his bride. Soon, he tries to investigate who killed Laios, but he does not know it was actually himself. None of Oedipus’s choice were predetermined, and nor were they accidental. The premise of the play is how Oedipus’s decisions unknowingly lead to his fate. Oedipus was free to make his own decisions, and his decisions tied in with his fate.

Oedipus did not know that all his decisions would lead to the killing of his father and the marrying of his mother. Oedipus was a very stubborn and curious person; he forced the servant of Laios and also Teiresias to tell him the truth about his past, even though neither one wanted him to know the truth. The servant stated, “… if I speak the truth, I am worse than dead” (p. 165). Both warned Oedipus that he did not want to know the secrets of his past. As he finds out the full truth, Pham 2

Oedipus accepts responsibility for his actions. Oedipus believes that was his own destiny, and his decisions and actions fulfilled it. The premise of the play is how freedom harmonizes with fate. Careless decisions and curiosity tie in with fate. Curiosity and the knowledge of the truth, in certain situations should be avoided. Within this play, ignorance is indeed better than knowing the truth. It is obvious that the fate of Oedipus is his own fault. Avoiding his fate, Oedipus makes his own fate occur.

Oedipus: A Tragic Hero Aristotle’s tragic hero is one of the most recognizable types of heroes among literature. A tragic hero combines five major points all of which have to do with the hero’s stature in society, his faults, how these faults effect him, the punishment his faults gets him, and how he reacts to this punishment. Aristotle explained that the story of Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, is a perfect example of a tragic hero. In the play, Oedipus is given a prophecy in which he is told that he will kill his father then marry his mother.

As in many Greek plays, Oedipus tries to run from his prophecy and ends up fulfilling exactly what it is foretold. Through the play we see that Oedipus posses many of the characteristics of a tragic hero such as: he is of noble stature, his downfall was his own fault, and that his punishment was not wholly deserved. The first trait that Oedipus possesses that makes him a tragic hero is that he is a man of noble stature. Within the first lines of the play, Oedipus immediately supports this in saying, “Here I am myself-/you know me, the world knows my fame:/I am Oedipus” (7-8).

This quote shows that Oedipus is so confident in people knowing who he is that he is willing to put this out there, though he is not being overly confident. This quote is later given reason to when we hear from other characters such as the Priest when he explains things that Oedipus has done such as, “You freed us from the Sphinx, you came to Thebes/and cut us loose from the bloody tribute we had paid/that harsh, brutal singer” (44-46). The Priest depicts when Oedipus defeated the Sphinx, which is the task that gains him the position of king of Thebes.

The next characteristic that Oedipus possesses that makes him a tragic hero is that his downfall is of his own doing. The act that ultimately contributes to Oedipus’ downfall is that of when he kills his father and he explains to Jocasta that he killed everyone, “I killed them all-every mother’s son! ” (898). Since he is talking about his father’s caravan it shows that he, indeed killed his father even though he was unaware that it was his father at the time.

That is only the beginning of his downfall though as he earlier told the Chorus that anyone harboring the murderer would be cursed, even if it was himself, “…if by any chance/he proves to be an intimate of our house…may the curse I just called down strike me! ” (284-287). This shows just how serious that Oedipus was about punishing this person and even though he doesn’t understand that it is himself, and takes awhile for him to realize, that he was responsible for what happened to him. The final discussed characteristic that Oedipus possesses is that his punishment was not wholly deserved.

There are three main punishments that Oedipus has to go through because of his crime. Those punishments are his exile from Thebes, the suicide of Jocasta, and the loss of his sight. However, the punishment that pushes everything over the edge is when Oedipus strikes out his own eyes. When he appears to the Chorus he comes out and speaks of how horrid he feels for everything in saying, “The blackest things/a man can do, I have done them all! ” (1541-1542). During this very scene the Chorus speaks, not to Oedipus directly, but to each other and the literally shrink away from him.

It is obvious that they don’t believe he deserves this through their words, “O the terror–/the suffering, for all the world to see/the worst terror that ever met my eyes,/what madness swept over you? ” (1432-1435). The Chorus continues to speak of how Oedipus cursed himself by the gods and that this is his punishment, but cannot understand what god would force such a punishment on any man. Works Cited Mifflin, Houghton. Language of Literature World Literature. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005. Print.