Tragedy in Sophocles Oedipus The King and Antigone Essay -- Sophocle

Tragedy in Sophocles Oedipus The King and Antigone The Greeks considered tragedy the sterling(prenominal) form for literature. even, the tragic ends for the pieces were not ordained or set by fate, but rather caused by certain characteristics belonging to that person. Such is the geek with the characters of Sophocles plays Oedipus the King and Antigone. Oedipus from King Oedipus, and Antigone and Creon from Antigone posses characteristics, especially pride, that caused their tragic ends. As the play progress, early(a) characteristics appear and further add to the problem to such a pane that it is inevitable that it will end in tragedy. therefore the trage go aways were not a result of a plot by the fates, but rather a result of the characteristics that the characters possessed. The characters posses a multitude of traits, some of them common to all of them. congratulate is especially prevalent. This characteristic seems to be the major tragic flaw or hamartia that eventually causes the downfall. Oedipus exhibits a vast measure of pride, which seems to border on sheer arrogance. This is demonstrated in the beginning of the play where he states, I, Oedipus, whose frame is known afar.(p. 25). This is reinforced by the priests replies of, Oedipus great and glorious,(p.26) and, O greatest of men.(p.26). Therefore it may be concluded that Oedipus obviously posses a large amount of pride. Antigone, daughter and sister of Oedipus also posses the same trait. Creon acknowledges this when he says, This girls proud spirit,(p.139) and Antigone confirms this with her mebibyte speech to Creon, where she states, I knew that I should have to die... living in routine torment as I do, who would not be glad to die? (p.138). Thus the pri... ...in both King Oedipus and Antigone there were characters whose lives ended in tragedy. However these falls from grace were no the deeds of fate, but rather that of the character themselves. The characteristics, especially pride, of the people set them on the path. Therefore the faults of the characters were the cause of their doomed end.Works CitedDodds, E. R. On Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex. Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex A compendium of Critical Essays. Ed. Michael J. OBrien. new-fashioned Jersey Prentice-Hall, 1968. 17-29.Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. An Introduction to Literature, 11th ed. Eds. Sylvan Barnet, et al. New York Longman, 1997.Sophocles. Antigone. Exploring Literature Writing and thinking About Fiction,Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. Ed. Joseph Terry. New York Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc, 2001.