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And had Oedipus remained with the parents who raised him, the prophecy would also have been unlikely to come about.
On the other hand, one might also argue that Sophocles appears to indicate that, no matter what decisions were made, free will would never have been part of it. Indeed, destiny and prophecy are so overwhelmingly strong that whatever decisions were made would have led to the final and inevitable conclusion.
Indeed the way in which the characters make use of their free will indicate that their very personalities contribute to the fulfillment of the prophecy: Oedipus' tendency towards the truth balanced with the opposite urge to hide from the deeper reality, in concomitance with Jocasta's deliberate blindness, lead inevitably towards the tragic conclusion of the play.
Source
Sophocles. Oedipus the King. Online version: http://classics.mit.edu/Sophocles/oedipus.html
At lines 651-690, Creon argues that he has no desire to usurp Oedipus as king because he, Jocasta, and Oedipus rule the kingdom with equal power -- Oedipus is merely the king in name. This argument may seem convincing, partly because at this moment in the play we are disposed to be sympathetic toward Creon, since Oedipus has just ordered Creon's...
In response to Oedipus's hotheaded foolishness, Creon sounds like the voice of reason. Only in the final scene of Oedipus the King, when Creon's short lines demonstrate his eagerness to exile Oedipus and separate him from his children, do we see that the title of king is what Creon desires above all.
Creon
Cause of blindness rather than blind himself - uses O's tendency towards deliberate blindness for his own end;
In the end is revealed for what he is.
Jocasta
Destiny & free will
Free will: parents and Oedipus attempt to change his destiny by separating Oedipus from the perceived danger. His real parents send him away. Oedipus is not aware of this - blindness - and flees the only home he knows to meet his destiny. Free will brought him to his destiny. No attempt or warnings from trusted sources could change this.
According to the play, there does not appear to be any choice for Oedipus, despite his attempts to run from his fate. He uses his free will to investigate the matter only when it is too late. It appears that his destiny has been determined before his own attempt to change it. Ironically, it is exactly this attempt to change his destiny that brings it to fulfillment.
Oedipus is one of the most famous names in Greek mythology. His name has become both a psychological complex as well as a familiar joke. His story has come to be a synonym as well for the capriciousness of fate. But a truer picture of the character of Oedipus suggests that, rather than being an unwitting victim, Oedipus a clear hand in his own demise. Despite its reputation, Sophocles' play
Oedipus's Tragic Flaws Oedipus Rex is the classic story of Oedipus, King of Thebes, a tragic hero whose fate was in the hands of supernatural forces and who was doomed to murder his father and marry his mother. In the play, Oedipus has many characteristics that allow him to be labeled a tragic hero. The philosopher Aristotle states that a tragic hero is an influential person that because of an error
However, the play goes even further than these hints in demonstrating the irrelevance of any supernatural force to the story's action when Tiresias mocks Oedipus for suggesting that the blind seer is the source of the plague (Sophocles 27). When Oedipus accuses Tiresias of a being "a conspirator" to Laius' murder due to his reluctance to tell what he knows, Tiresias responds by asking "Sooth sayest thou?" (Sophocles 26-27). While
Oedipus as Tragic Hero In most dramatic plays, tragedy usually strikes the protagonist of the play and leads him, or her, to experience devastating losses. While tragic instances can be avoided, there are other instances where one's fate and future is out of the protagonist's control. In Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles and first performed around 249 BC, Oedipus cannot escape his destiny and even though he tries to overcome
This is because they are not learning from the lessons of the past and they do not see things for what they really are. When this takes place, there is a possibility that they are open to more problems through failing to understand and address critical issues. Oedipus is used to show this sense of arrogance and contempt for the truth. (Sophocles) ("The Oedipus Plays") Evidence of this can be
Oedipus the King At the beginning of Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus clearly sees it as his purpose in life to be the best leader he can. In his mind, this meant to be as close to his people as possible, especially when the play opens and the land being in trouble. This is clear in what he says to those who come to him with the problem of their