Oedipus The King And Crito Analysis

1049 Words5 Pages
Loyalty, respect, obligation and conformity to kin and friends are core values that make up the bases of ancient Greek society. Family blood ties and friendships were incredibly important, as the familiar mantra makes known to look after ones philoi till the death, blood ties were also significant to the balance of an individuals own identity and morality. Commitment and responsibility to philoi is a notion which was not taken light heartedly by the Ancient Greeks, as it was believed that conforming to these core fundamentals would also impact upon ones own individuality. The texts ‘Oedipus the King’ by Sophocles and the Socratic dialogue ‘Crito’ by Plato, will be used to further explored these central themes through studying key scenes of both texts. Socrates and Oedipus both take their responsibility and obligation to their community, kin and friends seriously,…show more content…
To the Ancient Greeks the level of commitment involved with relationships to philoi reflected upon ones own moral compass and good name amongst the community. This notion of obligation reflecting upon an individuals reputation is portrayed in Plato’s Crito, this text is a dialogue between Socrates and his friend Crito concerning the theme of injustice, this text takes place after Socrates has been put on trial and is now in jail awaiting his death sentence. In part 44c-45c Crito explains to Socrates that he must help him escape with the assistance of their other friends and that if he returns to town empty handed (without socrates) no one would believe that Crito’s responsibility and obligation towards Socrates was valid, that Crito valued his money more than his friends life.1 Socrates reassures Crito that he should only be concerned with the opinion of the realistic who will see things for the exact reason they turned out. Crito replies with the concern that that the opinion of many can create
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  • Oedipus The King And Crito Analysis

    1001 Words  | 5 Pages

    providing similar framework and subject matter, Sophocles - Oedipus the King and Plato’s Crito explore the influence of the enchanted and disenchanted Greek world differently. This allows for a deep exploration of both Internal and External factors that influence and vary the presentation and role of reasoning and rationality between the two texts. The disenchanted world has a large influence on human reasoning. As portrayed in Oedipus the King, the ancient Greek social political structure and laws

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