Weekly topics and posts from Michelle Barron's Humanities 2210-14220.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Question for 2/10 Blog post #4
Has Oedipus done anything wrong? Some say that Oedipus has a tragic flaw, that he is guilty of hubris. Do agree with this? Think of his qualities, think of his actions, his intentions.
I can see where most of Oedipus' actions can be viewed as ego driven and arrogant. When Oedipus learns that his destiny is to murder his father he tries to outsmart the gods by moving far from his family(not far enough). Although this seems like good intentions one could argue that, in spite of the gods plan for him, Oedipus doesn't want the shame that comes with his destiny. Oedipus' search for the truth of his origin has both noble and selfish qualities. His own curiosity of his birth maybe a little selfish but his concern for the curse brought on his people is selfless. The act of gouging out his own eyes was done in haste and guilty of shame. Oedipus felt there was nothing he would ever enjoy again and couldn't bear the shameful looks from his countrymen. Oedipus never considered his children or the compassion of his people before acting so hastily. When Oedipus asked to led out of the country this would have appeased the gods but his reasons for leaving may have been more about his fear of shame. Both Oedipus and his parents tired to avoid their tragic fates by outwitting the gods. In the end all of the scheming proved to be fruitless.
Oedipus did suffer from hubris as he seemed to be very confident and proud of himself. He is told at the begining that he is meant to murder his father and commit incest he is too horrified and tries to avoid this tragedy. He seems to feel as though he controls his own fate, although he later realizes it is out of his control. Some of his actions are selfish while others are selfless. He is selfish in that he commits suicide without thinking of the consequences. He is also selfless because of his concern for his people. Although he did have good intentions and wasn't a bad person, it would seem as though his "destiny" had gotten the worst in him.
Oedipus is a good person over all with good intentions but he landed himself in bad situations. As if these situations he was in was meant for him. I know he is a good person overall because of how he remained concerned for his people. Though he may have seemed like a guy that was egocentric in the beginning he tried his best to remain humble in the end
Oedipus was told he had to kill his father. In shame he ended up killing himself. This was a selfish act as he did not think of the people around him it would hurt. Yes he suffered from hubris. He had children he needed to think about when he killed himself. He had good purposes for doing the things he did however I believe he could have gone about the "destiny" in a different way than he did.
Oedipus was a man destined to killed his father fortold by the gods. He resists them futilely and goes through a journey of pain and suffering. He might have been hasty for gouging out his eyes and not thinking it through. He is also selfish for killing himself without thinking about his children and his people; But he was always concerned with the curse he brought upon his people. To end this, he was a good guy who was just born with a horrible destiny.
Samantha S. Obviously Oedipus had done something terribly wrong in killing his father and marrying his mother but, in his defense, it was not intentional on his part. He was a very arrogant man but I believe he honestly wanted to help his people and wanted them to prosper. However, he was arrogant enough to believe he was the man to make that happen. Unfortunately he was his own downfall. It was he who pushed for his followers to find the man who killed the king in hopes of stopping the plague. He was terribly ashamed and horrified once he learned the whole story of his past and though he started off as a very arrogant man who bragged of his greatness, he was humbled and humiliated in the end. He saved them from the Sphinx and became a famous king for that deed but was shunned and scorned once they learned the truth. He went from a great hero to a disgrace in the eyes of his subjects. In the end he lost everything and lived out his days in solitude.
I think Oedipus over all was a good person, even though he killed his father and married his own mother (yuck). He did some horrible things that made him look like a bad person like he is responsible for the plague that had struck the Thebes. His worst actions is the curse of Polynices. The curse is followed by the onset of a storm, which Oedipus recognizes as a signal of his death.
Oedipus, known for his pride and anger, was a tragic hero who thought he could run from his destiny given to him by the Gods. I believe Oedipus was in the wrong when considering himself higher than a God by believing he could change his fate by running. Oedipus failed to change his fate, and in the end mentally kills himself because he could not find it in him to forgive himself, placing Oedipus as a tragic hero.
the story of Oedipus is a great but sad one. For a mother how believe a Oracle send her son to death but that was part of the plan all ago. He was a good person but like most people when they hear they were adopted he when out n look for his real parents. Then the prophesies was started, he run into his real father and killed him and self defenses , then he save the city from the Sphinx, then was made the new king and married his mother. Just try to find his parents he was put though things that he did not set out to happen. I believe if they wasnt feared of the prophesies and keep there son , theres no way Oedipus would have killed his father or married his mother.
Oedipus is guilty of hubris, but not because of how he tried to avoid fulfilling the prophecy he was given. Oedipus is guilty of hubris because he thought of himself as being invincible, and that he was the best that there was at everything. When he told the people of Thebes that he would answer the Sphinx's riddle it wasn't because he wanted to save the people but actually because he wanted to prove to everybody that he couldn't be outsmarted by anyone, and by answering the riddle he showed that the Gods couldn't even outsmart him. When Oedipus left Corinth it was because he truly wanted to save who he knew to be his family, and for this he is not guilty of hubris but is guilty of loving those that raised him. Also when he went into exile it was not because he wanted to leave to avoid the shame associated with his crimes, but it was actually because that was what he had to do. In the next act of the Oedipus series Oedipus is actually taken in by another king because it was felt that his forced exile was not fair, not even as a punishment for his actions. Overall Oedipus was guilty of hubris because he believed that he was almost equal to the gods because he had defeated every foe and gotten through every challenge set before him up to that point in his life.
The answer truly depends on how someone views it. In the beginning and in many of his decision, Oedipus was guilty of hubris. He believed himself to be above the gods and that he was invincible. He showed this when he went to answer the sphinx's riddle and when he tried to prevent the god’s prophecy for coming true. Later on, however, he showed that he could be selfless when he left his kingdom. He also seemed to be trying to atone for his crimes through his shame and guilt.
Oedipus was wrong for committing suicide. I believe he was a person who was destined for a bad life. To me, he was a good man for trying to escape his life the Gods gave him. He did not want his family to die so he left. His intentions were good, but killing his father and marrying the mother was crazy. At the end, it was not enough to defy the Gods.
Oedipus believed he was indestructible and like many other god like heroes fell into tragedy. His pride was his flaw which led to his downfall. One example of his hubris is the confrontation with the peasant went he claims him who is real parents are. His compulsion to act quickly without investigating caused a lot of p0roblems for him which he would not have made.
I don't think that we can effectively label Oedipus as being a bad person or from making a bad decision but rather it may be more appropriate to label him as foolish. He is told of his destiny and tries to change it based on his own terms, this decision of him ultimately brings about his downfall. It is evident that he does have flaws which drove him to create his own path, he should have known that what the gods laid out for his life was inevitable. By resorting to suicide I think that shows his weakness, he was ill-equipped to face the things that he was destined to come up against.
Oedipus was meant to kill his father, but in the end he killed himself. I think he did suffer from hubris. He thought of himself as higher than the gods and invincible. When Oedipus committed suicide it was a selfish act for he didn't think about his children who would suffer nor the people. Overall, Oedipus was a good man with a bad destiny.
Some say Oedipus has a flaw of being hubris which I believe to be true. He has great qualities and features about him but his flaw ended up being the one to impact him the most. That self pride could have led him to believe only what he wanted to. Which caused him not to be able to see past the reality into the result of King Laius. By him being arrogant he feels as though nothing he does could ever be wrong and it has to be someone else. By placing the faults on others all the time and not realizing this is his own mistake he has been blinded by the truth of reality. Seeing as though he had the knowledge and understanding at a later time, when he finally realized he was wrong and that he made the mistake, now had to deal with the truth behind it all. Jeffrey Z.
Oedius had good intentions by trying to avoid his fate by the god's. Although he was arrogant at times and believed to be unstopable he left because he thought it was the best thing he could do in order to avoid committing the acts that he was warned of. I think that he was hubris on certain occasions, but he was also still a good person trying to preserve his image.
In my opinion, yes, Oedius is found in the wrong and guilty of hubris. Yes, it was told to him by the gods, but he didn't need to let it effect him the way it did. In a lot of ways to though, he was arrogant. Oedius saw himself as being a god therefore trying to make himself also appear that way. Leaving may have been what he thought was best so he could try and avoid his fate, but he ended catching up to his fate anyways. His biggest failure was committing suicide. We all go through hard trials in life but we choose the reaction we have towards it.
(Clint McGalliard) Oedipus actions in reality were very wrong. I think though when he learned of his adoption he became rebellious in a way and also conflicted about the oracle of Apollo's prophecy.
i think in short,he just had the burden of a horrible destiny,and the more he fought his destiny,the worse his life became.As for him killing himself,he took the easy way out,like so many have done,and like so many-they never put the feelings of those they leave behind,before there own selfish actions.all n all,he was just a tormented soul from the start,who thought he could ignore his destiny.
I wouldn't call Oedipus' actions all hubris. I do not agree with his action's by any means, however, learning his fate put him in a down ward spin. Gouging his eyes out was a little extreme, yet it made me feel the depth of his pain. He is selfish to think of himself after all that has happened. He was seeking way too much pitty. After finding out his destiny it would have been more honorable to to deal with what has happend and not just run away.
Nolan Chiger I think that Oedipus was doomed from the beginning, so no matter what he did whether it be right or wrong he could not change his pre-determined fate according to the prophecy. Because the shepard did not kill Oedipus as a baby (commanded by Jocasta) the prophecy would have to come true since Oedipus was kept alive.
I can see where most of Oedipus' actions can be viewed as ego driven and arrogant. When Oedipus learns that his destiny is to murder his father he tries to outsmart the gods by moving far from his family(not far enough). Although this seems like good intentions one could argue that, in spite of the gods plan for him, Oedipus doesn't want the shame that comes with his destiny. Oedipus' search for the truth of his origin has both noble and selfish qualities. His own curiosity of his birth maybe a little selfish but his concern for the curse brought on his people is selfless. The act of gouging out his own eyes was done in haste and guilty of shame. Oedipus felt there was nothing he would ever enjoy again and couldn't bear the shameful looks from his countrymen. Oedipus never considered his children or the compassion of his people before acting so hastily. When Oedipus asked to led out of the country this would have appeased the gods but his reasons for leaving may have been more about his fear of shame. Both Oedipus and his parents tired to avoid their tragic fates by outwitting the gods. In the end all of the scheming proved to be fruitless.
ReplyDeleteOedipus did suffer from hubris as he seemed to be very confident and proud of himself. He is told at the begining that he is meant to murder his father and commit incest he is too horrified and tries to avoid this tragedy. He seems to feel as though he controls his own fate, although he later realizes it is out of his control. Some of his actions are selfish while others are selfless. He is selfish in that he commits suicide without thinking of the consequences. He is also selfless because of his concern for his people. Although he did have good intentions and wasn't a bad person, it would seem as though his "destiny" had gotten the worst in him.
ReplyDeleteOedipus is a good person over all with good intentions but he landed himself in bad situations. As if these situations he was in was meant for him. I know he is a good person overall because of how he remained concerned for his people. Though he may have seemed like a guy that was egocentric in the beginning he tried his best to remain humble in the end
ReplyDeleteOedipus was told he had to kill his father. In shame he ended up killing himself. This was a selfish act as he did not think of the people around him it would hurt. Yes he suffered from hubris. He had children he needed to think about when he killed himself. He had good purposes for doing the things he did however I believe he could have gone about the "destiny" in a different way than he did.
ReplyDeleteOedipus was a man destined to killed his father fortold by the gods. He resists them futilely and goes through a journey of pain and suffering. He might have been hasty for gouging out his eyes and not thinking it through. He is also selfish for killing himself without thinking about his children and his people; But he was always concerned with the curse he brought upon his people. To end this, he was a good guy who was just born with a horrible destiny.
ReplyDeleteSamantha S.
ReplyDeleteObviously Oedipus had done something terribly wrong in killing his father and marrying his mother but, in his defense, it was not intentional on his part. He was a very arrogant man but I believe he honestly wanted to help his people and wanted them to prosper. However, he was arrogant enough to believe he was the man to make that happen. Unfortunately he was his own downfall. It was he who pushed for his followers to find the man who killed the king in hopes of stopping the plague. He was terribly ashamed and horrified once he learned the whole story of his past and though he started off as a very arrogant man who bragged of his greatness, he was humbled and humiliated in the end. He saved them from the Sphinx and became a famous king for that deed but was shunned and scorned once they learned the truth. He went from a great hero to a disgrace in the eyes of his subjects. In the end he lost everything and lived out his days in solitude.
I think Oedipus over all was a good person, even though he killed his father and married his own mother (yuck). He did some horrible things that made him look like a bad person like he is responsible for the plague that had struck the Thebes. His worst actions is the curse of Polynices. The curse is followed by the onset of a storm, which Oedipus recognizes as a signal of his death.
ReplyDeleteOedipus, known for his pride and anger, was a tragic hero who thought he could run from his destiny given to him by the Gods. I believe Oedipus was in the wrong when considering himself higher than a God by believing he could change his fate by running. Oedipus failed to change his fate, and in the end mentally kills himself because he could not find it in him to forgive himself, placing Oedipus as a tragic hero.
ReplyDeletethe story of Oedipus is a great but sad one. For a mother how believe a Oracle send her son to death but that was part of the plan all ago. He was a good person but like most people when they hear they were adopted he when out n look for his real parents. Then the prophesies was started, he run into his real father and killed him and self defenses , then he save the city from the Sphinx, then was made the new king and married his mother. Just try to find his parents he was put though things that he did not set out to happen. I believe if they wasnt feared of the prophesies and keep there son , theres no way Oedipus would have killed his father or married his mother.
ReplyDeleteOedipus is guilty of hubris, but not because of how he tried to avoid fulfilling the prophecy he was given. Oedipus is guilty of hubris because he thought of himself as being invincible, and that he was the best that there was at everything. When he told the people of Thebes that he would answer the Sphinx's riddle it wasn't because he wanted to save the people but actually because he wanted to prove to everybody that he couldn't be outsmarted by anyone, and by answering the riddle he showed that the Gods couldn't even outsmart him. When Oedipus left Corinth it was because he truly wanted to save who he knew to be his family, and for this he is not guilty of hubris but is guilty of loving those that raised him. Also when he went into exile it was not because he wanted to leave to avoid the shame associated with his crimes, but it was actually because that was what he had to do. In the next act of the Oedipus series Oedipus is actually taken in by another king because it was felt that his forced exile was not fair, not even as a punishment for his actions. Overall Oedipus was guilty of hubris because he believed that he was almost equal to the gods because he had defeated every foe and gotten through every challenge set before him up to that point in his life.
ReplyDeleteThe answer truly depends on how someone views it. In the beginning and in many of his decision, Oedipus was guilty of hubris. He believed himself to be above the gods and that he was invincible. He showed this when he went to answer the sphinx's riddle and when he tried to prevent the god’s prophecy for coming true. Later on, however, he showed that he could be selfless when he left his kingdom. He also seemed to be trying to atone for his crimes through his shame and guilt.
ReplyDeleteOedipus was wrong for committing suicide. I believe he was a person who was destined for a bad life. To me, he was a good man for trying to escape his life the Gods gave him. He did not want his family to die so he left. His intentions were good, but killing his father and marrying the mother was crazy. At the end, it was not enough to defy the Gods.
ReplyDeleteOedipus believed he was indestructible and like many other god like heroes fell into tragedy. His pride was his flaw which led to his downfall. One example of his hubris is the confrontation with the peasant went he claims him who is real parents are. His compulsion to act quickly without investigating caused a lot of p0roblems for him which he would not have made.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that we can effectively label Oedipus as being a bad person or from making a bad decision but rather it may be more appropriate to label him as foolish. He is told of his destiny and tries to change it based on his own terms, this decision of him ultimately brings about his downfall. It is evident that he does have flaws which drove him to create his own path, he should have known that what the gods laid out for his life was inevitable. By resorting to suicide I think that shows his weakness, he was ill-equipped to face the things that he was destined to come up against.
ReplyDeleteOedipus was meant to kill his father, but in the end he killed himself. I think he did suffer from hubris. He thought of himself as higher than the gods and invincible. When Oedipus committed suicide it was a selfish act for he didn't think about his children who would suffer nor the people. Overall, Oedipus was a good man with a bad destiny.
ReplyDeleteSome say Oedipus has a flaw of being hubris which I believe to be true. He has great qualities and features about him but his flaw ended up being the one to impact him the most. That self pride could have led him to believe only what he wanted to. Which caused him not to be able to see past the reality into the result of King Laius. By him being arrogant he feels as though nothing he does could ever be wrong and it has to be someone else. By placing the faults on others all the time and not realizing this is his own mistake he has been blinded by the truth of reality. Seeing as though he had the knowledge and understanding at a later time, when he finally realized he was wrong and that he made the mistake, now had to deal with the truth behind it all. Jeffrey Z.
ReplyDeleteOedius had good intentions by trying to avoid his fate by the god's. Although he was arrogant at times and believed to be unstopable he left because he thought it was the best thing he could do in order to avoid committing the acts that he was warned of. I think that he was hubris on certain occasions, but he was also still a good person trying to preserve his image.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, yes, Oedius is found in the wrong and guilty of hubris. Yes, it was told to him by the gods, but he didn't need to let it effect him the way it did. In a lot of ways to though, he was arrogant. Oedius saw himself as being a god therefore trying to make himself also appear that way. Leaving may have been what he thought was best so he could try and avoid his fate, but he ended catching up to his fate anyways. His biggest failure was committing suicide. We all go through hard trials in life but we choose the reaction we have towards it.
ReplyDelete(Clint McGalliard) Oedipus actions in reality were very wrong. I think though when he learned of his adoption he became rebellious in a way and also conflicted about the oracle of Apollo's prophecy.
ReplyDeletei think in short,he just had the burden of a horrible destiny,and the more he fought his destiny,the worse his life became.As for him killing himself,he took the easy way out,like so many have done,and like so many-they never put the feelings of those they leave behind,before there own selfish actions.all n all,he was just a tormented soul from the start,who thought he could ignore his destiny.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't call Oedipus' actions all hubris. I do not agree with his action's by any means, however, learning his fate put him in a down ward spin. Gouging his eyes out was a little extreme, yet it made me feel the depth of his pain. He is selfish to think of himself after all that has happened. He was seeking way too much pitty. After finding out his destiny it would have been more honorable to to deal with what has happend and not just run away.
ReplyDeleteNolan Chiger
ReplyDeleteI think that Oedipus was doomed from the beginning, so no matter what he did whether it be right or wrong he could not change his pre-determined fate according to the prophecy. Because the shepard did not kill Oedipus as a baby (commanded by Jocasta) the prophecy would have to come true since Oedipus was kept alive.
comments for credit closed 2/10/2011 midnight
ReplyDelete