Oedipus the Hubris Hero

By

Symons

Suzanne Porath

Literature

26 September, 2011

"As I develop in mind, body, and spirit, I pledge on my honor that I have not given, received, witnessed, nor have knowledge of unauthorized aid on this or any [assignment, quiz, paper, test]."

A hero is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a “man admired for his achievements

and noble qualities. ”In the play “Oedipus the King” written by Sophocles around 450 B.C. the

main character, Oedipus, is the King of Thebes. As the king he already meets half the criteria of

a hero by definition, but that may not get him to hero status. The achievements of Oedipus make

him a hero and a hubris king that cannot run from his fate.

There are several examples of achievements within the play “Oedipus the King” that show

how Oedipus was seen as a hero by his people and the reader. The first achievement that is

revealed is done so in the prologue that describes the setting of the play. “Many years have

passed since ODEIPUS solved the riddle of the Sphinx and ascended the

throne of Thebes,”(Barnet 1020) tells how Oedipus had saved the city of Thebes from the

torment of the Sphinx. The author has gone out of his way to show this prior to that start of the

play. The second half of this line also shows the royalty associated with Oedipus by his

positioning on the throne. A second reference to Oedipus saving Thebes from the Sphinx appears

when a priest says “You freed us from the Sphinx, you came to Thebes and cut us from the

bloody tribute we had paid that harsh, brutal singer.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 -

1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) These lines reflect the people of Thebes impression of Oedipus as a hero.

A third reference appears in the prologue, a priest is in a conversation with Oedipus and

addresses the people of Thebes and says, “Rise, my sons. The kindness we came for Oedipus

volunteers himself.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) The

references to Oedipus saving Thebes from the Sphinx and volunteering to find the king’s

murderer fit Oedipus into the definition of a hero.

The fate of Oedipus is the biggest theme of the play. The theme plays out to show that

Oedipus faced his fate because of his hubris decisions. The play opens up with Oedipus

addressing the people of the city and says “My children, the new blood of Thebes...”( B a r n e t ,

B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) This shows that he is referring to himself as

higher or better than the people of Thebes. Oedipus shows his pride again in the play when he

brags about his accomplishments stating, “Here I am myself you all know me, the world knows

my fame: I am Oedipus.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) Later

in the play Oedipus is inquiring into the investigation of the murder of Laius and says “I’ll bring

it all to light myself!”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) Once again

this gives an example of Oedipus’ overwhelming pride in himself as he talks as if only he could

solve this murder. As the play goes on Oedipus continues to make himself seem as if he is

untouchable because of his title and the deeds that he has accomplished. This attitude is evident

in lines 642-643 when Oedipus says “Learn your fill, you never will convict me of

murder.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) It is clear through the

text of the play that Oedipus could be described as a hubris king that deserved his fate.

The use of hubris to characterize characters has been used elsewhere in our readings to

include the short story “Everyday Use” written by Alice Walker in 1973. In the story, the author

went out of her way to describe the hubris ways of Dee. The first time that this is evident comes

when Mama described Dee by saying that “She was determined to stare down any disaster in her

efforts.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) As the story unfolds it

appears that Dee sees herself as being above her family. This is clear when she comes back home

and begins to pick away at the belongings of Mama and Maggie. An example of this behavior

develops when Dee says “I knew there was something I wanted to ask you if I could

have.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) Dee projects an image

that she is smarter or better than her mother and sister throughout the story, but is easy to

distinguish when she says “You ought to try to make something of yourself, too,

Maggie.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) Even though the story

is told through the eyes of Mama, the author was able to paint an image of Dee that was over

flowing with hubris.

When reading the play “Oedipus the King” the reader has an opportunity to disect it in many

different ways. There were several different ideas and thoughts that came to me every time that I

read the play. The first time I thought of Oedipus as an arrogant, lousy king, but reading it a

second time I wasn’t quite as harsh on him. By the end of the third reading I concluded that

Oedipus was a hero that just couldn’t out run his fate. He filled the shoes of the definition of

hubris right to the end, though a little humbled, one of his last lines in the play “Drive me out of

Thebes, in exile.”( B a r n e t , B u r t o , a n d C a i n 1 0 9 - 1 1 6 , 1 0 1 9 - 1 0 6 0 ) gave Oedipus

the chance to go off on his own terms.

Works Cited

B a r n e t , S y l v a n , W i l l i a m B u r t o , a n d W i l l i a m C a i n . A n I n t r o d u c t i o n t o L i t e r a t u r e . F i f t e e n t h . N e w Yo r k : P e a r s o n L o n g m a n , 2 0 0 8 . 9 7 - 1 0 2 . P r i n t .