Dr. Faustus “As Tragic Hero"

Q.        Marlowe’s heroes confront the fate; they are not the support of destiny. Discuss with reference to Dr. Faustus.

OR

Discuss Marlowe’s Faustus as an over-reacher, drawing closely on the text. (PU-2005)

Ans. One of the greatest contributions of Marlowe in the development of English tragedy is the concept of a tragic hero. Marlowe was the first playwright in England to realize that a tragic action must have its origin in the mind of the character.

Marlovian tragedy is significant due to its newness, Renaissance influence, Machiavellian morality, powerful and passionate expression, element of tragic inner conflict, tragic hero, popular literary type, high seriousness, bombastic language and blank verse.

Before Marlowe, there was no convention of a tragic hero in the early English plays, e.g. Moralities and Miracles of the pre-Elizabethan age. Even in his contemporaries and in the writers of early tragedies, there was no awareness of any such need. Hence, Marlowe was the first to introduce such titanic and secular minded characters as his heroes, like Tamburlaine, Barabas and Faustus. Thus:

“Liberating English tragedy, Marlowe widened its scope.”

Marlowe introduces ordinary persons as the heroes in his tragedies. He picks up day-to-day themes and in accordance to these themes, he selects commonplace persons as his heroes. However, these persons are distinct in their respected groups because of their special qualities. As Barabas is an ordinary moneylender, Tamburlaine is a shepherd, while Faustus is an ordinary scholar in divinity. Hence, Marlowe makes his tragedy the story of everyone. According to the Greeks, a tragic hero is a conspicuous man, such as king and princes, falling from prosperity to adversity. But Marlowe’s hero struggles against the hostile forces. Thus he brings the drama out of the forte.

            “Marlowe’s heroes reflect the struggle of a brave soul”.

His protagonists have a towering personality, who play the most dominant role, rising head and shoulders high above all the minor characters and attain a titanic stature of a superman size. They are just like Gulliver amongst the various Lilliputians. In “Dr. Faustus”, Faustus is the only figure focused throughout the play and “The Jew of Malta” focuses the “Jew” everywhere. Hence, hero is the sole interest of Marlowe’s play. However, Shakespeare takes much care of his minor characters too.

Maarlovian heroes are ambitious and passionate men with their great but limited capabilities. But they want to fly high in the sky. He desires:

“His waxen wings did mount above his reach.”

He wants to hold the powers of the world.

He says:

            “All things that move between the quiet poles shall be at my command”.

Their passion urge them to undertake mighty actions; even they violate all the accepted moral codes. They are terribly inclined to evil. Faustus wants to attain the highest power of Omnipotence, even at the cost of God and religion. He says:

“Divinity adieu: These metaphysics of magicians and necromantic books are heavenly.”

He further thinks:

            “A sound magician is a mighty God: Here Faustus tire thy brain to gain a deity.”

Another great contribution of Marlowe is that he interiorized the drama. Greek tragedies and the Pre-Elizabethan dramas focus at the outer conflict of the protagonists, with the forces of nature or destiny. But Marlowe introduces both inner as well as outer conflicts in the minds of his heroes. The minds of his heroes are generally tom off between two extremes. In “The Jew of Malta” and “Tamburlaine”, the conflict is mainly external but in Dr. Faustus it is most of the time internal. The object of the author is to delineate the psychological conditions of Faustus, though Faustus wants to repent yet he has to carry on his passions as well:

“Ay, and Faustus will turn to God again,

To God? He loves thee not”

All of the heroes of Marlowe also reflect the zealous spirit of renaissance. They are embodiments of Machiavellian ideals.

Renaissance is famous for adventure, ambition, extremely individualistic approach, sensuous pleasure and the longing for infinite power and knowledge. And Marlovian protagonists are true representatives of these qualities. They are self-made individuals, working at cross ends with the world for personal benefits. Marlowe presents three basic of his age in his three well renowned and genuine heroes. In this regard, Tamburlaine strives for universal power, The Jew runs after infinite riches while Doctor Faustus longs for universal knowledge. All these thing are unattainable yet fascinating. Hence, Faustus says:

“O what a world of profit and delight,

            Of power, of honour, of omnipotence,

           Is promised to the studious artizan!”

Marlovian heroes are the portraits of the author himself. Marlowe himself held renaissance spirit and was fascinated by the various ambitions of this age. Therefore, he portrayed his own passions and ambitions in his heroes. Shakespeare did not project himself in his heroes, but Marlowe did it successfully but they are not the thorough picture of Marlowe himself. His heroes are very prominently the mouthpiece of their author in their poetic expressions. Dr. Faustus of all Marlowe’s heroes is the most poetic with his passionate love of beauty and yearning for sensuous pleasure. He says:

“Was this the face that launched thousand ships,

And burnt the topless towers of Ilium!

Sweet Helen make me immortal with a kiss”.

           Another major characteristic of Mariovian heroes is that they are very skeptical and anti-dogmatic. They do not hold any regard for social norms and values confronting their policies. They are irreligious and even atheistical in their views.

Faustus is also anti-religious and says:

“Never name God, or to pray to him,

To burn his scriptures, slay his ministers,

And make my spirits pull his churches down.”

He also holds an opinion:

“That holy shapes becomes a devil best.”

Marlowe’s major characters also do not believe in matrimonial bliss or marriage e.g., when Mephistophilis tells Faustus about marriage, he says:

            “Tut, Faustus, Marriage is but a ceremonial toy.”

Another important characteristic of Marlovian heroes is that they meet their death because of their over ambitiousness. As in “The Jew of Malta” Barabas dies because of his excess lust for wealth and this lust leads him to his death.

“Die, life! Fly, soul! Tongue, curse thy fill, and die!”

And same is the case with Faustaus, he says:

            “My God, my god, look not so fierce on me!

            Adders and serpents, let me breath a while!

            Ugly hell, gap not! Come not, Lucifer!

            I’ll burn my books! - Ay, Mephistophilis!”

We can conclude that Marlowe conceives his heroes as ordinary men, capable of great qualities, raise to high position, because of their over ambitiousness and their insurmountable ambition brings their fall and doom. Thus, we can say that Faustus suffers from his fall because of his unconquerable will and unrelenting ambition.

Points to remember:

1.                  Marlovian hero is a common person with exceptional qualities.

2.                  His protagonist has towering personality.

3.                  He is an ambitious and passionate man.

4.                  He has an inner conflict.

5.                  He has Machiavellian morality.

*****

Marlowe’s Contribution to the development of English Drama

Q.         Write a comprehensive note on Marlowe’s genius as a playwright (PU-2003)

Ans. Marlowe is considered to be the founder of English tragedy. Before him the drama was merely an exercise of theological disciplines. It was he, who gave the proper dignity and grandeur of a tragedy to the English plays swinbume says:

“Before him, there was neither genuine blank verse nor genuine tragedy in our language. After his arrival, the way was prepared; the paths were made straight for Shakespeare.”

Marlowe made his tragedy significant due to its newness, renaissance influence, Machiavillian morality, powerful and passionate expression, element of tragic inner conflict, tragic hero, popular literary type, high seriousness, bombastic language and the use of blank verse. Marlowe, under the influence of great Italian tragedies of Seneca, introduced the senecan characteristics such as long sententious speeches, lack of action, talkative ghosts and horrible scenes of gruesome murders.

One of the greatest contribution of Marlowe is the introduction of a new kind of tragic hero. Marlowe broke away from the medieval conception of tragedy and evolved a real tragic hero. Unlike medieval princely or a conspicuous hero, Marlovian heroes are common person with humble parentage but they are endowed with great heroic qualities. He picks up day to-day themes and in accordance to these themes, he selects commonplace persons as his heroes. However, these persons are distinct in their respected groups because of their special qualities. As Barabas is an ordinary moneylender, Tamburlaine is a shepherd, while Dr. Faustus is an ordinary scholar in divinity. Hence, Marlowe makes his tragedies the story of everyone. Marlowe’s heroes struggle against the hostile forces. As a critic says:

            “Marlowe’s heroes reflect the struggle of a brave soul.”

His protagonists have a towering personality, who play the most dominant role, rising head and shoulders high above all the minor characters and attain a titanic stature of a superman size. They are like Gulliver amongst Lilliputians.

Another great contribution of Marlowe is that he introduced the element of powerful passion and ambition in his heroes. Marlovian heroes are ambitious and passionate men with their great but limited capabilities. They want to fly high above the sky, as Marlowe says about Faustus:

“His Waxen wings did mount above his reach”.

And again he says:

            “All things that move between the quiet poles shall be at my command.”

Their passions urge them to undertake mighty actions; even they violate all the accepted and established moral codes. They are terribly inclined to their passion and ambition. As Dr. Faustus wants to attain the highest power of Omnipotence. He says:

“Divinity adieu:

These metaphysics of magicians and necromantic books are heavenly.

Again he says:

A sound magician is a mighty God:

Here Faustus tire thy brain to gain a deity.”

Another great contribution of Marlowe is that he interiorized the drama and introduced the element of inner conflict in his heroes. Greek tragedies and pre-Elizabethan dramas focus at the outer conflict of the protagonists, fighting against the nature or destiny. But Marlowe introduced both inner as well as the outer conflict in his heroes. The minds of his heoes are generally tom off between two extremes. In “The Jew of Malta” and “Tamburlaine” the conflict is mainly external, but in Dr. Faustus, it is, most of the time internal. The object of the playwright is to delineate the prick of mind of Dr. Faustus. He says:

Ay, Faustus will turn to God again,

To God? He loves thee not.

Another great contribution of Marlowe was the introduction of the popular literary type and the use of blank verse and bombastic language with mighty lines suited to the subject, theme and the hero. Thus a new spirit of poetry was breathed into the artificial and monotonous verse of medieval plays and this gave a new poetic grandeur to the Renaissance drama.

Marlowe also discarded the Medieval morality plays which aimed at inculcating some moral lesson by showing the fall of the hero into adversity. Whereas Marlovian heroes are Machiavellian.

A very notable feature of Marlovian tragedy is its high seriousness and the lack of humour and the absence of female characters and his sole interest in the main hero with his towering personality. And probably because of these limitations, Morlowe could not succeed in reaching the disered loftiest summits of the tragic art. But he was the pioneer, path­finder and the ‘morning star of Elizabethian drama’ and the real grandeur of English tragedy. He proved to be ‘the Columbus of the new literary world’. According to the illuminating remarks of Schelling:

            “Marlow gave the drama passion and poetry; and poetry was his most precious gift. Shakespeare would not have been Shakespeare had Marlowe never written or lived. He might not have been altogether the Shakespeare we know”.

Points to remember:

1.                  Marlowe is considered to be the founder of English tragedy.

2.                  Marlowe introduced a new kind of tragic hero.

3.                  Marlovian heroes have titanic stature.

4.                  Marlovian heroes have strong passions and powerful ambition.

5.                  Marlowe introduced inner conflict.

6.                  Marlowe used a new kind of blank verse in drama.

7.                  Marlowe also has some limitations.

8.                  He is a the pioneer and the path finder of English drama.

******

The Role of Fate In “Oedipus Rex"

Q.        What does Sophocles intend to prove and illustrate in Oedipus Rex? Rationalise with arguments.  (PU-1996)

OR

‘Tis not in mortals to avert their doom! Discuss with reference to Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex. (PU-2000)

OR

            How far can the play Oedipus Rex be described as ‘tragedy of destiny? (PU-2001)

Ans:    Greek theatre was very different from what we call theatre today. It was, first of all, part of a religious festival. To attend a performance of one of these plays was an act of worship, not entertainment or intellectual pastime. But it is difficult for us to understand this aspect of the Greek theatre because the religion in question was very different from modern religions. The god celebrated by the performances of these plays was Dionysus. The worship of Dionysus was associated with an ecstasy that bordered on madness. Dionysus, whose cult was that of drunkenness and sexuality, little resembles modern image of God. A second way in which Greek theatre was different from modern theatre is its cultural centrality: every citizen attended these plays.

According to moral point of view man should remain in his limits fixed by the gods. Over ambition, pride and rashness are responsible for one’s downfall. He must show respect to gods, prophets and social institutions and religious dogmas. Whereas, Aeschylus believes more in the fatalistic and deterministic tendencies of fate, Sophocles gives new dimension to the suffering of man by shifting the responsibility to man’s own character along with the role of fate.

Thus in Sophocles this tragic concept becomes more snared and complicated. In his play, Oedipus Rex, fate is closely related to hamartia. The hamartia of the tragic hero helps the adversity of fate.

In case of Oedipus, his father Laius had the prophecy from the gods that he would be killed by his own son who would marry his mother. Laius was blessed with a son but in order to defy the oracle he planed the death of his child by giving it to a slave to leave him on a mountain, exposed to dangers of all kinds. He also drove a rivet into child’s feet. The slave, however, did not kill the child and handed it over to another shephered who took the child to Corinth and presented it to the childless king of Corinth named Polybus. So Oedipus grew up into a pretty, handsome and well-built young man looking upon Polybus as his father and Merope his mother.

Oedipus grew up without any idea that he was the son of a Theban king. One day he heard the prediction by the Apollo about himself that he will kill his father and marry his mother. He became worried and ran away thinking Polybus his father and Merope his mother. On the road he met Laius’ royal chariot and soon a quarrel arouse about the right of the passage. Oedipus killed the king. Then he proceeded to Thebes and answered the riddle of Sphinx thus became the king of Thebes. According to the custom the new king was to marry the widowed queen. So Oedipus married his own mother Jocasta without knowing that he was marrying his own mother and he had killed his father.

This is very powerful example of relationship between hamartia and circumstances created through the use of free choice. After some years of peace, the city is caught up in the hands of pestilence and famine. There is a prediction by the gods that the city should be cleaned from a pollution caused by the sin of a man. Oedipus most gracefully announces a proclamation wherein asking for the killing or banishment of the said person. It is from here that Sophocle constructs the plot of the play most dramatically and ironically. The hamartia of Oedipus grows very powerful when he accuses Teiresias, the blind prophet for hatching a canspiracy against him in collaboration with Creon. It is quite ironical that Oedipus who is famous for solving the riddles does not understand the clear allusions made by Teiresias. Nor he understands that human knowledge is extremely limited and misleading. It is his hamartia that he bears himself equal in knowledge with gods and prophets. He says proudly:

“But I came by,

Oedipus, the simple man, who knows nothing.

I though it out for myself, no birds helped me!”

Uptill then gods were not willing to reveal the truth but then only to make Oedipus recognise his limitation as a human being, the truth is revealed and thus Oedipus becomes responsible for hastening his tragic end.

It is through the skillful use of reversal and recognition that Sophocles portrays the tragic end of Oedipus. Man can solve the riddle of Sphinx but cannot solve the riddle of his own life. Oedipus forces Tereisias in his anger to utter the truth against his will, though Teriesias forbades him from knowing the reality. The irony becomes more dramatic when Jocasta and Corinthian messanger in order to console Oedipus add to his mental disturbance. He refuses to pay any head to Jocasta’s request of not continuing his search and attributes it to her snobbery and jears at seeking the truth even though it becomes clear that the result will be extremely unfavourable to him. When he came to know the secret of his birth, Jocasta commits suicide and Oedipus takes out his eyes and blinded himself. The following speech by Oedipus not only throws light on his tragedy but it also shows the close relationship between fate and hamartia, the use of free will which becomes hamartia.

In conclusion, we can say that in spite of the evidence to prove Oedipus a free agent in most of his actions as depicted in the play, we cannot forget that the most tragic events of his life — his murder of his father and his marriage with his mother — had inevitably to happen. Here the responsibility of the fate cannot by denied. But the discovery by Oedipus of his crimes or sins is the result of the compulsion of his own nature. The real tragedy lies in this discovery, which is due to the traits of his own character. If he had not discovered the truth, he would have continued to live in a state of blissful ignorance and there would have been no tragedy. But the patricide and the incest — these were pre-ordained and for these fate is responsible.

Points to Remember:

1.                  In ancient Greek drama was a part of the religious festivals.

2.                  Sophocles was acclaimed as a master dramatist of his age.

3.                  In Oedipus Rex, hamartia is closely related to fate.

4.                  Both father and son are the victims of hubris.

5.                  Oedipus’ insistence on knowing the truth brings about his tragedy.

6.                  In conclusion we can say that what happens off the stage was due to stroke of fate, but for what happens on the stage, Oedipus is responsible.

*****

The Role Of Chorus  In "Oedipus Rex"

Q.        Write a note on the function of the chorus in Oedipus Rex. (PU-1995)

Ans.    Lexically the word Chorus means ‘a company of dancers or singers’. In the tragedies of the ancient Greek, the Chorus is an essential characters. Before its special use in the theatre, the chorus had been participants in Greek religious festivals, dancing and chanting.

The chorus in classical tragedies plays a very significant role. Aristotle in his “Poetics” traces the origin of tragedy in choric songs and hymns sung in prays of various gods particularly Dionysus. It is chorus that in the due course of time developed into tragedy and the choric songs gradually incorporated in them developed into dialogues. Tragedy later on consisted of dialogues and action but the role of chorus was still prominent though this role diminished as time passed. In Sophocles and Euripides the chorus seems to have been exploited differently, but it is still, there all the time for the spectators to see and hear. In Roman tragedies the Chorus only delivered speeches in between the acts. In Shakespeare, in some cases, the Chorus appears as an actor delivering the prologue and the epilogue. Aristotle praises Sophocles more for the proper exploitation of the chorus than he does Euripides. As he says:

            “The chorus should be regarded as one of the actors; it should be an integral part of the whole, and take a share in the action — that which it has in Sophocles rather than in Euripides”.

As a matter of fact, in most Greek tragedies Chorus does not seem to be an undesirable interpolation rather it contributes positively to the over-all structure of the play.

In “Oedipus Rex” as in other Greek plays, the Chorus seems well knit in the very structure. The tragedy begins with the pronouncements of the chorus after the prologue. The chorus like the opening scene of “Hamlet” creates an atmosphere of the play and certain expectations mingled with an element of suspense. The structural significance of the chorus can well be imagined from the fact that various episodes are marked off by choric odes. Each ode commenting on what has happened, also seems to speculate what is likely to follow. Even the conclusion of a Greek tragedy is clearly marked off by exode or the exit song. The chorus thus comments on the various events and stirs the imagination of the spectators.

In Greek tragedies, the chorus playing the role of an actor, on certain occasions, is found talking with the main characters. The chorus even advises the characters and gives them clues regarding the appropriateness of their actions and utterances. Sometimes we feel as if the pronouncements of the chorus comprise nothing but our own view point viz-a-viz event in the tragedy. At others, it would seems as if the Chorus voices the view points of the dramatist, particularly when we take into account its thought provoking comments on events and characters and also its contribution to create an atmosphere.

The role played by Chorus in “Oedipus Rex” is no less prominent. The Parodos or the entrance song delivered by the chorus certainly creates an atmosphere of horror resulting from the plague that has striken the people of Thebes. The misery of the people of Thebes has been very graphically and poignantly depicted. The Chorus seems to lend a helping voice to the entreaties of the suffering Thebans. In fact all the odes say things that ought to have been said at various stages of the play. The role of the chorus in pacifying Oedipus and Creon is particularly remarkable; it is the role of a moderator. But prior to playing this role, the chorus sides with Oedipus when he has an argument with Teiresias.

Aristotle acknowledged the importance of the chorus and maintains that it should be given the status of an actor. But this statement should not be taken too literally. The chorus does at times talk to the characters in tragedy and is found to be advising some of them but it never takes a hand in the action of the play directly rather it influences the action indirectly.

In Oedipus Rex, the chorus seems to have a lot to do with the main action. It is chorus whom Oedipus questions as to who the killer of Laius was. It also advises the king to sent for Teiresias though the king replies that he has done so already. Creon needs the testimony of the chorus having hear that he has been accused of treason. The reaction of the chorus on this occasion is balanced and moderating. The role of the chorus, though an indirect one, when it persuades Jocasta to reconcile, Oedipus and Creon is particularly remarkable. It is the chorus again that expresses its veiled apprehension, when Jocasta rushes into the palace having known the truth. The chorus comments on the prevailing mood and prepares the spectators for the imminent disaster. Oedipus questions the chorus if it knows the identity of the Theaben shepherd who handed over a child to Corinthian messenger. The chorus wise enough, once again says:

“Jocaste perhaps could tell you something”.

It expresses sympathy with Oedipus when the blinded king enters the stage. Earlier, it has lamented the terrible fall that has occurred in the position of Oedipus. In the final song, it seems to under-line the moral of the play by emphasizing that human happiness is extremely transitory and precarious.

All these instances throw ample light on the influence of the chorus on the action. This influence takes place in many ways. The contribution of the chorus to the impact of tragedy on the audience is also great. The chouse, therefore, is certainly not an undesirable encumbrance. Its presence on the stage keeps the attention of the spectators rivetted to the action even when there are no actors saying or doing anything on the stage.

Chorus lends continuity to the main plot. Just as in modern plays, we have melody, the chorus (with its songs and dances) satisfied this psychological need of the viewers. In Shakespeare, in the Elizabethan age, the role of the chorus seems to have almost diminished though its remanants can easily be traced in Shakespeare, Marlowe and Johnson. The comic relief that relieves hightend tention in Shakespeare can also be equated with choral odes in Greek tragedies.

To sum up we can say that the chorus has its significance not only viz-a-viz structural necessity but also the psychological state of mind of the spectators. The odes create an emotional background to the action. They point to the significance of certain facts and also reflect the outlook of the society. Its function, therefore, is not only to mark off scenes and events, but also to control the emotional reaction of the spectators to events taking place on the stage. With the passage of time as the interest of the people in psychology, anthropology and other social sciences increased, more personal and complex stories began to be adopted for the stage and it diminished the significance and role of the chorus.

Points to Remember:

1.                  Definition and history of Chorus.

2.                  Chorus creates the atmosphere of the play and comments on certain situations.

3.                  Chorus takes part in the action of the play.

4.                  In Oedipus Rex chorus acts as a mediator, commentator, and lends structure to the play.

*****

Oedipus Rex As A Tragic Hero

Q.        Do you think that hubris plays a significant part in the fall of Oedipus? (PU-2006)

OR

            Discuss Oedipus’ final choice and evaluate his character. (PU-1994)

Ans.:      Sophocles touches the Olympian heights of excellence in presenting vivid varieties of characters, occasions, scenes, moods, joys, sorrows frustrations, agonies and physical as well as psychological crisis.

Oedipus is a master creation of Sophocles' genius who comes upto the canons fixed by Aristotle for a tragic hero. According to Aristotle, a tragic hero is a distinguished person, who occupies a high position or has a high status in life and falls from prosperous circumstances into misfortune on account of a "hamartia" or some error of judgement. In Aristotle's view tragic hero should be a good man though not prefect. The fall of a bad character will not arouse any feeling of pity or fear whereas, the fall of a person who represents near perfection will be repugnant and horrible. In this way ideal tragic hero should neither be a paragon of excellence nor a deprayed villain. Aristotle also believed that the tragic hero should be true to type and consistent or true to himself and his catastrophe must be caused by an error rather than a deliberate crime.

Now, when one examines Oedipus on the criterion set by Aristotle one find that that he fulfills the requirements mentioned above. Oedipus is the son of a king and a queen, he is brought up by a king and a queen and he himself becomes a king. In this way he is a man of social eminence as well as he possesses excellent qualities of character, though he is by no means perfect. Yet we cannot say that his misfortune is due to any defect in his character rather it is an error of judgment (hamartia) which brings about his fall.

When the reader carefully and critically examine the character of Oedipus, it becomes quite vivid and clear that he is an ideal king as he treats his subjects as his own children. Once he saved the lives of the citizens from the clutches of a sphinx and now in the wave of pestilence they look towards him for guidance and help. He is a man who is highly esteemed by all because of his qualities. He is an able ruler, a father of his people, an honest and great administrator and a man of outstanding intellect. There is no doubt about the essential goodness of his character. He has full faith in the bond of family and hates impurity. Thus a man who is essentially a noble man should meet such ghastly fate is unthinkable and very painful.

But this is not a complete picture of Oedipus' character. Like an ideal tragic hero Oedipus is also not perfect because in spite of all these good qualities there are some irritants and the traits which cannot be approved. For example, he is hot-tempered and can be easily provoked. He quickly loses his temper with Teiresias when the prophet is reluctant to reveal the things he knows. He flares up and accuses Teiresias of hatching a conspiracy against him. Though, first he addresses him reverently but later on, he behaves like a ruthless tyrant who is out to pick up a quarrel without any consideration of its consequences. He is guilty of rash judgment in the case of Creon. It is really not proper to treat one’s trusted and tried kinsman like that. It all shows his arbitrariness, and rash vindictiveness.

An other flaw of Oedipus' character is that he is excessively proud of his intelligence. This feeling of pride may be the result of his success in solving the riddles of Sphinx. Self-confidence is a good quality but when it takes the form of over confidence and pride, it becomes disgusting and obnoxious.

But despite these faults and shortcomings it would be wrong to suppose that Oedipus suffers only because of this pride. He has committed heinous crimes but his pride is not the only direct cause of these crimes. He tried his level best to avoid the fulfillment of prophecies. It was in complete ignorance that he killed his father and married mother. His tragedy is a tragedy of errors, not of any willful action yet it is possible to argue that if he had been a little more careful, things would have taken a different shape. He might have avoided the quarrel on the road, if he had not been so short sighted he might have refused to marry a woman old enough to be his mother, if he had not been blinded by the pride of his intelligence in solving the riddle of the sphinx.

Actually Oedipus failed to realize that a man can solve the riddle of the Sphinx but he cannot solve the riddle of his own life. He wanted to know the whole truth but could not see that man cannot bear much truth. Thus if he had not pursued the investigations, he might have avoided the shock of discovery. Teiresias tried to conceal the truth and Jocasta also discouraged Oedipus to continue his investigations but Oedipus paid no heed to them. It was his insistence on the truth that led him to his tragedy. The oracle said that: Oedipus would be guilty of those sins but no oracle said that he must discover the truth. If there had not been any discovery surely there would have been no tragedy. No doubt, Oedipus has already committed the sins which make him guilty in the eyes of gods but the tragedy lies not so much in committing of these crimes as in his discovery of these crimes.

In conclusion, we can say that Oedipus is an authentic tragic hero in Aristotelian sense because his tragedy is caused by his own initiatives in discovering the truth. However, the manner in which Oedipus blinded himself after realizing his guilt and the manner in which he endured his punishment, raises him in our estimation. The final impression which we get of him is of massive integrity, powerful will, and magnanimous acceptance of a horrible fate. The spirit of Oedipus remains unconquered even in his defeat and that is the essential requisite for an ideal tragic hero as propounded by Aristotle in his poetics.

Points To Remember:

1.                  The greatness of Sophocles as a playwright.

2.                  Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero.

3.                  Oedipus is a king and thus comes upto the standard fixed by Aristotle for a tragic hero.

4.                  Meutal and Moral excellences of Oedipus.

5.                  But Oedipus is not a perfect man — he is short tempered and arrogant and this brings about his tragedy.

6.                  Though his flaw is not directly responsible for the crimes committed by him yet we can say that had he been a little bit careful he could have evaded his fate.

*****