Question

Oedipus is often seen as a tragic hero due to the various tragic flaws he possesses. What exactly, though, are those tragic flaws and how do they impede his downfall? If he does not have a tragic flaw, then what is the cause for his downfall? This CRA must be written in a persuasive manner and CANNOT contain first person or any real-world examples as they do not pertain to the prompt at all.

Answer 1

Oedipus was thrown away by his parents on his third day of life because it was told that he would kill his father and marry his mother. He didn’t die because instead of throwing the baby, a shepherd pitied him.

He grows up in Corinth but runs away from there thinking that he would prevent his fate from becoming reality.

Oedipus becomes a good king, he is concerned about the welfare of his people and treats them as “my children”, this makes the audience like him, he is a fair man even with the weight of his fate on his shoulders.

The major flaw (harmatia) of Oedipus is pride. Even though he is a good man with morals, his pride blinds him. His pride makes he think that when ran away from Corinth his destiny wouldn’t turn into reality.

He is sure he can control his destiny and all the odds and this is his downfall.

Oedipus is considered a hero because he is weak before the forces of his destiny, he thinks he can control everything and considers himself stronger than the gods that set out his destiny. The irony is that he’s done exactly what the gods needed so the prophecy came to reality.