Oedipus and Antigone Questions Answered

Oedipus and Antigone Questions Answered

Oedipus is not a helpless victim because at any moment during the play, he could have stopped searching for the answer. Instead, he becomes indignant when those around him attempt to stop him from pursuing his mission. Teiresias, Jocasta, and the Chorus plead with him to stop but he will have no part of it.

Oedipus even puts his pride first even when his wife begs for her sake and those of Thebes. She tries to distract him with logic and when that does not work, she tries to convince him that his curiosity is nothing more than a waste of time.

Because Oedipus accepts his fate at the end of the play, we see that the Greeks placed an importance on religion. The Greek religion was one of myth and fate and gods and goddesses interfering with human life. Oedipus accepts his fate because he believes that is all he can do. There is nothing left for him.

Jocasta is Oedipus' wife and mother. Her role in the play is pivotal because without her, there would be no play. Her role as wife illustrates how she loved her husband and would do anything to keep him from pursuing this mission. In the same way, as his mother, she does not want him to find out the answer to this mystery because it would not only destroy her life but his as well. Jocasta commits suicide because she has no other choice. She was no doubt hopeless and knew that her future from this point forward would be empty because she would be without a home and a family. Had she lived, her life would have been a difficult one because of the societal conventions placed on marriage.

Jocasta's character tells us that Greek women lived in a subordinate society. While Jocasta was somewhat independent, she was still the king's wife and was treated as such. Jocasta's suicide tells us more about women in the Greek society in that without a family, a woman was nothing. Even though Jocasta was a queen, she was absolutely worthless without that title. We learn that women are very dependent on the men in their lives for social standing.

Creon is more sympathetic than Oedipus. While he is very straightforward, he does not express the same opinions for Oedipus that Oedipus does to him. When Oedipus does not hear the answer he wants, he becomes arrogant and then tells Creon he is not a good friend. He even goes on to accuse him of being "evil incarnate" (II.111). Creon actually tries to change Oedipus' mind while Oedipus is nothing but a man on a mission and no one should get in his way. Creon does not change his position throughout the entire play and from this, we can gather that Creon is more stable than Oedipus.