Oedipus Summary Essay

Submitted By dmillibaseball
Words: 514
Pages: 3

Oedipus Almighty Oedipus was abandoned and left for dead as an infant by his parents. He was found, adopted, and became the king of Thebes. Throughout the story, Oedipus is working to go against the fate that was chosen for him, but he couldn’t break free from the fate. Oedipus is a very complex character who exhibits many different characteristics. He is super clever and good at solving riddles. He is also quick to act while showing that he is also a very confident character. Oedipus’ cleverness is shown when he solves the difficult Riddle of the Sphinx. “What walks on four feet in the morning, two in the afternoon and three in the evening?” Oedipus answered correctly, “Man.” He knew that babies crawl, adults walk, and older people use a cane. When Oedipus solved the riddle, the sphinx killed herself. The priest expressed his gratitude toward Oedipus when he said, “ You saved us from the Sphinx, that flinty singer, and the tribute we paid to her so long, yet you were never better informed than we, nor could we teach you: a God’s touch, it seems, enabled you to help us.” Oedipus shows again that he is also quick to act. This quickness of action was a good thing and a bad thing for Oedipus. When the plague hit Thebes, the citizens went to Oedipus for help. They begged him to do something, or fix the plague. Little did they know that Oedipus was already ahead of them, Oedipus had already sent Creon to Delphi. There he hoped that the oracle in Delphi could help them fix the plague back in Thebes. Oedipus’ quickness to act also got him into trouble. When he met the men at the crossroads, he acted rashly and committed murder. Little did he know that by doing this, he killed his father which is one of the main conflicts in this play. Another trait presented by