Fate, Free Will, and Divine Law in Sophocles' Antigone and Oedipus Rex

Overview of the Two Plays and Their Connections

Antigone and Oedipus Rex are both tragic plays by Sophocles. In many ways, these plays are similar to one another as tragedies. They are part of the same set of texts — Antigone is the first installment in the series of three plays, and Oedipus the King (Oedipus Rex) is the second of the trilogy. The title characters in the plays are related, as Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus, and therefore they share the same fate due to their common blood. The outcome of Antigone has an influence on Oedipus Rex and vice versa.

In addition to the continuity of characters and events between the two plays, there are significant thematic similarities. One theme shared by both Antigone and Oedipus Rex is that of fate versus free will. In both plays, fate constrains the main characters and prevents the full expression of their free wills. Free will is also shown to be contrary to one's greater good. Sophocles suggests in both plays that the will of the gods will always be stronger than the will of human beings. Another theme shared by both plays is the distinction between human laws and divine laws. How the characters obey and disobey divine versus human laws becomes central to the respective outcomes of each play.

Although Sophocles wrote Antigone before he wrote Oedipus the King, the events in Antigone actually occur after the events in Oedipus the King. Telling the story of the Oedipus family out of chronological order has a profound impact on the reader. Sophocles knew that his audience was already familiar with the stories of Oedipus and Antigone, so he was not delivering a "spoiler" by telling Antigone's story first. The Chorus in Antigone introduces the title character by mentioning the bad luck of her father. When the Chorus states, "O hapless, and child of hapless sire — of Oedipus!" the audience is reminded that Oedipus killed his father and married his mother (Sophocles, Antigone). Antigone is Oedipus's daughter, suggesting that the ill fate of the father is passed down to his children.

Fate and Free Will in Oedipus Rex

Fate versus free will is one of the most prevailing themes in both Antigone and Oedipus the King. In both plays, the title characters have their fate established for them by the gods — that is, their fates are preordained. The gods have determined that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother, thereby setting in motion a great chain of tragic events. The Oracle of Delphi is the first to point this fate out to Oedipus. Tiresias the blind prophet is the second to remind Oedipus of his fate, which he chooses to ignore. Tiresias states:

"And of the children, inmates of his home, / He shall be proved the brother and the sire, / Of her who bare him son and husband both, / Co-partner, and assassin of his sire" (Sophocles, Oedipus Rex).

Interestingly, Tiresias tells Oedipus that he is "blind of seeing" (Sophocles, Oedipus Rex). By this, Tiresias means that Oedipus is blind to the truth. Oedipus is symbolically blind, whereas Tiresias is physically blind. By the end of the play, however, Oedipus is literally blind. He creates a self-fulfilling prophecy by gouging out his own eyes, making himself blind and thereby fulfilling the oracle's initial prophecy. This is deeply ironic because Oedipus uses his own free will to bring about precisely what the gods had fated him to do.

The truth delivered by the Oracle and Tiresias — that Oedipus has killed his father and married his mother — is too painful for the king to accept. It makes sense that he would rebel against his terrible fate and dismiss what the oracle and Tiresias tell him. Unfortunately, Oedipus cannot escape his fate. He had a chance to change it, but he refused to listen. Sophocles seems to suggest that a person does have the opportunity to use free will to alter one's fate, but that doing so requires tremendous personal strength — strength that Oedipus ultimately cannot summon. The Chorus in Oedipus Rex states that the gods despise the king, calling him "the god whom gods abhor." In many ways, Oedipus is more a victim of the gods' ill will toward him than Antigone ever is.

Antigone's Free Will Compared to Oedipus

Antigone does not have the same opportunity to change her fate that Oedipus does. She never visits the Oracle of Delphi and never speaks with the blind prophet. She does not know the outcome of her fate, which sets her apart from Oedipus entirely. Oedipus knows the truth but refuses to listen to it, and therefore his free will is wasted. Antigone knows the truth about what is right for her brother, and therefore her free will is not wasted. It is highly unlikely that Antigone would have acted differently even if she had known that burying her brother would lead to her own death. She was determined to do what was right, and she sacrificed her life for truth and justice.

Like Oedipus, Antigone is also destined to live out her fate. The Chorus in Antigone describes her as being fated to die, not least because she is the daughter of the unlucky Oedipus. Antigone is also a victim of the fate that Creon imposes on her. Creon's hostility toward her — because she disobeyed his decree — makes her a victim of both divine will and human will. As king, Oedipus has slightly more control over what other people do to him, but he has no control over what the gods have willed. Oedipus also uses his free will in a less constructive way than Antigone does.

Antigone uses her free will to do what is good, right, and just. She does nothing evil. Instead, she attempts to combat injustice by burying her brother. Creon was acting unjustly by decreeing that Antigone's brother would be denied a proper religious burial. Antigone recognized this as a terrible transgression against the will of the gods. For her, it was more important to use her free will to defy the king than to remain passive, as her sister Ismene chose to do. Therefore, Antigone uses her free will more wisely than Oedipus uses his. Oedipus uses his free will in ways that ultimately fulfill the terrible prophecies of his birth. As Tiresias warns, neither character enjoys a happy ending — both are destroyed because fate has decreed it so.

Conclusion

Sophocles wrote a trilogy of plays about Oedipus, King of Thebes, his fate, and his family. Antigone and Oedipus the King are the first and second installments of that trilogy, respectively. Characters and events are continuous throughout both plays: Oedipus is Antigone's father, and his story casts a long shadow over hers. Both Oedipus and Antigone meet terrible fates, making both plays tragedies in the fullest sense.

Oedipus is a tragic hero who is ultimately undone by his own hubris. Antigone is also a tragic hero, but in her play it is Creon who most fully embodies the destructive pride that brings about ruin. Antigone herself is resolute, but she is doing the right thing — her death is viewed as a just sacrifice. Creon, on the other hand, erred by placing his limited human law above the eternal laws of the gods. It is this act of hubris that causes the downfall and death of those around him. Across both plays, Sophocles consistently argues that defiance of divine law, whether through ignorance or arrogance, leads to inevitable destruction — and that true wisdom lies in recognizing the limits of human power.

Works Cited

McManus, Barbara F. "Antigone." Retrieved online: http://www2.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/antigonebg.html

"Oedipus Plays: Antigone, Themes." Retrieved online: http://www.litcharts.com/lit/antigone/themes

"Oedipus Plays: Oedipus Rex Themes." Retrieved online: http://www.litcharts.com/lit/oedipusrex/themes

Sophocles. Antigone. Translated by R.C. Jebb. Retrieved online: http://classics.mit.edu/Sophocles/antigone.html

Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Translated by F. Storr. Retrieved online: http://www.ancient-mythology.com/greek/oedipus_rex.php

Vernant, Jean-Pierre and duBois, Page. "Ambiguity and Reversal: On the Enigmatic Structure of Oedipus Rex." New Literary History 9(3). 1978.