How did Oedipus affect Greek drama and literature?

Answer 1

The skillful combination of the technique of dramatic irony and of the theme of fate versus free will into the production of the world's 'perfect' tragedy is the main effect that the telling of Oedipus' story had upon Greek drama and literature. Irony, the path of one's life, and the tragedy of human existence are the hallmarks of the author, Sophocles [c. 496 B.C.E. - 406 B.C.E.]. Many believe that the story of Oedipus never happened because it only is found in a few works from ancient Greek literature. But Sophocles became the world's most famous teller of the ancient tale, and he was from Colonus, the place of death for Oedipus.

Dramatic irony describes a situation that's seen by participants in a way that's totally different from the reality. An example is the perception by Thebans and the royal couple themselves of the role model in clean, happy family living that Theban King Oedipus and Theban Queen Jocasta appear to represent. The irony lies in the unclean actuality of their incestuous relationship as son and mother that's unknown to the couple and their subjects.

Another example is the commitment of Oedipus to find the murderer or murderers of Theban King Laius, his royal predecessor and his wife's first husband. The irony lies in Oedipus being the very criminal that he seeks.

Fate versus free will presents the apparently opposing situations of mortals as having no control over how their existence goes or as being able to change or even avoid unpleasantness in their lives. An example is the prediction that Laius will be killed by any son to which he and Jocasta are the biological parents. The couple thinks that such a fate can be avoided by killing their only child, the three-day-old Oedipus. But neither one can bring themselves to do the dastardly deed. Laius puts the responsibility on Jocasta. She passes it on to her most trusted servant. The servant can't bring himself to child killing, which actually isn't considered heinous in ancient Greece.

So Laius and Jocasta think that a horrible fate is averted. Instead, Oedipus grows up to kill a stranger who looks like an older version of himself and indeed is his own father and sovereign. Such acts even when carried out in ignorance are considered polluting to the doer and to the environment in ancient Greece. Killing a parent and a ruler is considered blasphemous and therefore tantamount to an offense against the all-powerful gods.

Another example is the prediction that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother. He thinks that his foster parents, King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth, are his biological parents. So he believes that he can avoid such a miserable fate by running away from Corinth ... to Thebes. On the way, he kills a stranger who's old enough to be his father and his king. Once in Thebes, he marries a grieving royal widow who's old enough to be his mother and may have some quirk of personality, some inflection of voice or some feature in common with him.

Ultimately, tagically, and ironically, Oedipus finds out that the victim of his temper is his own father and sovereign, and that his beautiful but older wife is his own mother.

In both examples, the people whose lives will be destroyed by such horrific fates don't stand back and let destiny ruin them. Or so they think. But the reality turns out to be otherwise. In fact, their every effort to avoid their fates only serves to make sure that the predicted offenses against mortals and gods are carried out to the very last detail.

That's where the beautifully frightening perfection of the tragedy steps in. Something is tragic when it leads to an unhappy outcome. Oedipus seals his own fate, and guarantees his own unhappy outcome, when he says that the killer or killers will face execution or exile even should they be found in his own household. The mercy that he intends not to show towards others turns on him. He makes no allowance for self-defense or for a lack of intent when he identifies the punishment in store for Laius' killer or killers. He therefore ends up denying himself his very real rights to self-defense in a fatal street brawl that he didn't start.