Sophocles wrote both ” Oedipus the King, ” also known as “Oedipus Rex,” and “Oedipus at Colonus. ” Although ” Oedipusat Colonus ” is looked at to be a continuation of ” Oedipus the King,” the two do differ when dealing with the character himself, Oedipus. Thequestion though being is, did Oedipus acheive redemption by the end of the play?In ” Oedipus the King, ” Oedipus had fallen by the end of the play. His life had made a complete 360 after the truth was revealed about the murderof the King and his true father.
However, in the continuation of the play, in” Oedipus at Colonus, ” Oedipus begins to make a turn for the better. It was quoted that in the second play ” the central theme is thetransformation of Oedipus into a hero. In ” Oedipus at Colonus, “Oedipus ” struggled to acheive death and transformation in accordance withhis oracle. ” This was seen for the most part in the middle of the play. Sophocles made his second edition of this play very dramatic. The play begins inmisery.
This misery helped teach Oedipus resignation. . . . . ” asking little,receiving less than little, and content with that.
“Oedpus, a suppliant, isin need of a savior, of which that being Theseus, to help save him from thepursued by his enemy ( Creon ). However, the ” central paradox of this playis that the suppliant is destined to be the savior. ” This was seen mostclearly when dealing with the conflicts that took place within this play. Therewas a plea scene in which Oedipus ( suppliant ) commends himself to Theseus (his savior ); an agon between Oedipus and Creon ( enemy ) ending in violence andan agon between Creon and Theseus, ending in Creon’s expulsion and a battlesequence, ending in the salvation of Oedipus. All the misery and helplessnessthat typify a suppliant’s condition are present in the character Oedipus, but asthe drama begins to unfold slowly, it quickly becomes apparent that he will notbe confined to just that role. Oedipus’ true redemption is seen however whendealing with his stronger faith in his religion seen in the second play.
Oedipushad heard that the land on which he trespassed upon was sacred to the “all-seeing Eumenides. ” So, in hearing this to be true, Oedipus standsthere calmly with the wishes that the goddesses receive him as their suppliantand he states ” for never would I go away from this refuge. ” Oedipusproves to others that he is no longer the helpless beggar that was seen in thebeginning of ” Oedipus at Colonus. ” When stranger asked him “and what help can there be from a blind man?, ” Oedipus replied, “what I say will be full of sight. ” With this response, the stranger, alongwith many others, were quite impressed.
After the stranger left, Oedipus onceagain began to pray to the Eumenides. He made a promise to them that his lifewould end at the seat of the Dread Goddesses, bringing benefits to those whoreceived him and ruin to those from whom drove him to exile. By the end of theplay, Oedipus disappears mysteriously, without pain and suffering. Most agreethat this was the best way for life to end. It was quite obvious that Oedipusdid reach redemption in ” Oedipus at Colonus.
” However, it was statedthat ” Sophocles does not bring Oedipus to Colonus to die and be veneratedas a hero, but to become a hero before our eyes. “
