When I finished reading Oedipus the King, I was consumed with sadness. The terrible misfortunes of Oedipus and Jocasta left me with a real sense of pity for both. To realize that one’s entire reign and marriage has been born out of wretchedness would inevitably drive even the most joyous of individual’s to horror.
That being said…
I found it quite interesting that Oedipus was such a narcissist. Literally, he believed that he could do no wrong, that he was the gods’ gift to mankind or something. He even calls himself the son of Chance, which produces only good things. This sheer egocentricity, though, was vitally important, as it becomes utterly destroyed once Oedipus learns the truth about his life. This complete devastation and switch from excessive pride to utter self-loathing depicted not only the effect of grief, but also how quickly the joy in life vanishes. It was mentioned in the play by Oedipus that joy is merely a vision, and I found this best exemplified through his complete change in self-perception.
Another aspect that I remarked on was that the work makes it seem like humans have a hand in their own destiny. In many other Greek works, it appears that our power in changing our fates is minuscule. In this work, however, I got more of a sense of the humans influencing destiny. One section in particular describes those who act cruelly as providing themselves with a crueler fate.
Blindness was a recurring theme as well. Initially, Oedipus mocks the blind seer, Tiresias, for his inability to see, but gouges out his own eyes demonstrates an ironic realization. Tiresias may see the divine, the prophesized, but is saved from having to experience and see the horrors of the world. Oedipus does not realize this initially, but only at the end of the work does he clearly understand that oblivion results in happiness sometimes.
Finally, I noticed near the very end the focus on Oedipus’ love for his daughters, Antigone and Ismene. When talking to Creon, Oedipus states that his sons will be fine, able to go out into the world and fend for themselves. However, with his daughters, Oedipus showed genuine paternal emotion, crying out for his daughters to remain with him, demonstrating a high amount of fatherly love. This veers away from the traditional Greek view where the sons hold more value than the daughters.