Oedipus brandishes an attitude of stubbornness throughout the play. Oedipus' stubbornness is revealed early in the play when Tiresias, a prophet of Apollo, advises Oedipus to terminate the investigation of Laius' killer. Oedipus quickly disagrees, he wants to find the man who murdered Lauis and brought the plague upon Thebes. Oedipus states, "By all the gods, do not deny us what you know. We ask you, all of us, on bended knees." Tiresias' persistence to withold the truth is demolished by Oedipus' stubbornness and madness. Tiresias surrenders to Oedipus' stubbornness and states the truth which outrages Oedipus; "...The murder of the man whose murder you pursue is you." Oedipus stubbornness is so overwhelming that he disregards Tiresias' candor without a slight thought. Oedipus' statement, "To your heart's content. Mouth away!" clearly shows his stubborness when he neglects Tiresias' prophecy and r

Oedipus' madness also contributes greatly to his ultimate demise. Long before Oedipus embarks on his journey to Thebes, he was warned by an oracle that one day he would kill his father. Fearing this, Oedipus starts out on his journey to separate himself from his family in Corinth, not knowing that the King and Queen of Corinth are not his blood parents. During the journey Oedipus encounters his real father, Laius and his entourage. Anger and madness arise between Oedipus and Laius as they dispute the right of way. Oedipus, fully aware that his fate is to murder his father, becomes outraged and doesn't take any precautions toward nonviolence. Sophocles shows that Oedipus' madness is a major flaw, and one that fulfills his destiny by remarking, "he brawls with an old man in a carriage over right of way and in a fit of temper kills him." Oedipus once again causes his own tragic destiny by allowing his madnness to take over instead of thinking before he acts upon a situation.

Indeed, hamartia is not the only factor that leads to Oedipus' utimate demise, but it is the root causing the problem of his downfall. Oedipus displays many flaws throughout the play, like many tragic heroes Oedipus eventually faces his downfall. It isn't Oedipus' fate or destiny to become doomed from his wretched sins, it is his error of judgement and the flaws in his character that impede him from reigning!

Oedipus' excessive pride which he displays throughout the play is a major factor towards his downfall. While Oedipus may be the current King of Thebes, he ranks himself beyond the position of a king due to his pride; Oedipus' first di

Some common words found in the essay are:
Sphinx Oedipus, Thebes Oedipus, Tiresias Creon, King Oedipus, Sophocles Oedipus', Sadly Oedipus', Pursuing Oedipus, Laius Oedipus, Jocasta Laius, Jocasta Oedipus', throughout play, downfall oedipus, oedipus' stubbornness, oedipus quickly, demise oedipus, tiresias creon, oedipus' madness, excessive pride, oedipus' excessive pride, play oedipus, stubbornness oedipus, tiresias creon conspiring,
Approximate Word count = 1102
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)