Oedipus The King By Sophocles - 1432 Words

The play â€Å"Oedipus the king† by Sophocles began with Oedipus as a King, and ended with his downfall. Oedipus’s fall from his noble status was not by accident or caused by another person, rather Oedipus himself is to be blamed for his adversity. The play uses many symbols, places, motifs, themes, ideas, and imagery to give the audience a sense of reality and foreshadow the fate of Oedipus. Symbols relating to the three way crossroad and Oedipus’s swollen foot were referred to a number of times. Motifs of sight and blindness were recurrent throughout the play. The use of dark and light imagery is present in many parts of the play. These symbols along with clear motifs and the addition of light and dark imagery are used to foreshadow†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"well, there was a murder, yes, but done by the brigands in another land, they say, where three highways meet† (40) Jocasta said this to calm Oedipus but the statement above just makes Oedip us remember his forgotten past but to Oedipus it stays very unclear and does not make sense, whereas the audience can recognize it as a foreshadowing of his ultimate downfall. As a grown man, Oedipus still limps from what he thinks is a childhood injury inflicted on his ankles, this reference provides the clues for audience to realize that his swollen ankles symbolize his downfall. Oedipus is the Latin form of the Greek word Oidipous which means swollen foot, so even his name is a symbol relating to his swollen ankles which symbolize his fate. His swollen ankles does not bother Oedipus until Jocasta says â€Å"the son, not three days old, is left by Laius (through other hands of course) upon a trackless hillside, his ankles riveted together.†(40). This does not really ease Oedipus’s mind as all of it seems so similar to his past. But even after listening this story Oedipus does not realize that he is the son of Laius and the child Jocasta is talking about is him, instead he works harder to uncover the truth hoping there is another explanation. At this point to the audience it is very clear that Oedipus’s injury is being used to foresha dow his downfall. References towards eyesight and vision are used in both literal and metaphorical sense, these are also quite recurrent in the