Oedipus The King Research Paper

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If Oedipus hadn't been so prideful would he have been able to stay in Thebes? If Romeo had not been so lonely would he have died? If Juliet had not been so impulsive would she still be alive? If these characters from Oedipus the King written by Sophocles, and The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet written by Shakespeare, had not let their tragic flaw cloud their judgment, they would have been able to live long, happy lives. In Oedipus the King, Oedipus’ extreme sense of pride causes him to do many things leading to his downfall. Although he does not die in the end, his downfall is tragic. The protagonists in The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet are two teenagers in Verona that are impulsive and ‘in love’. Their impulsive decisions lead to them committing suicide. In both works or literature the characters’ traits lead to their downfall. In works of literature called tragedies, there is what is known as a tragic downfall, this is when there is a catastrophic event for the main character(s). The tragic downfall is often caused by the characters tragic flaw, or weakness. Some frequently used tragic flaws are, hubris (excessive pride), lack of judgement and impulsiveness. All of these traits, and more, are shown in Oedipus the King written by Sophocles, and The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet…show more content…
The main character, Oedipus, is extremely prideful. He believes that he will be able to catch the previous king, Laius’ killer. The author, Sophocles, shows Oedipus’ pride in saying, “I pronounce a curse on myself if the murderer should, with my knowledge, share my house” (16). This quote shows that Oedipus had such pride in finding the killer that he gets himself exiled. His pride led him to believe that the killer was not someone living within his house, so he called a curse on himself. Little does he know, he is the killer. Oedipus was very prideful in the fact that he was convinced that he did not know the

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