The Great Controversy Of Sophocles Oedipus The King

The Great Controversy Rather fail with honor than succeed by fraud were the inspirational words spoke by the great Greek playwright Sophocles. This inspiring quote sets the controversial atmosphere of Sophocles women in the Greek tragedy Oedipus The King. However to fully understand this controversy, you must first look at how compassion and selfishness flooded the lives of Sophocles women. Throughout the play, Sophocles presents two prestigious women to his audience, Queen Merope of Corinth and Queen Jocasta of Thebes. Queen Merope was the adopted mother of Oedipus and Queen Jocasta was his wife and mother. Both women shared a common link to Oedipus as they both played the maternal role in his life and showed him compassion. Although Jocasta was his biological mother, Merope was more of a mother to him than she was. This is evident at the beginning of the pay when Jocasta abandoned her child because she feared a prophecy but on the other hand, Merope who had no children was given the child, whom she loved. In contrast to Jocasta who saw Oedipus existence as a curse, Merope saw it as a blessing. Following this further, Merope raised Oedipus and taught him all the guidelines he needed to know to become the strong ruler that he was. She also took him under her wing as her own and presented him the love he was never shown. For the most part, this was genuinely acceptable however, she allowed this love to blind her from Oedipus erroneous actions. He becameShow MoreRelatedOedipus : The King Of Thebes And Tragic Hero Essay728 Words   |  3 PagesOedipus: The King of Thebes and Tragic Hero Ancient Greek Literature encompasses an assortment of poetry and drama to include the great masterpieces of tragedy. 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