11. In Ode I, the Chorus justifies its refusal to believe Tiresias and keep their faith in their king, Oedipus, because of his heroic act of saving the kingdom of Thebes from the sphinx that displayed his wisdom. This is proven when the chorus says, “I saw him, when the carrion woman faced him of old, prove his heroic mind. These evil words are lies.” (Line 37-38, 40, Ode 1) The people of Thebes have the image of Oedipus in their minds as a heroic king who is not capable of committing this wile act. Furthermore, when the chorus says, “No man can judge that rough unknown or trust in second sight, for wisdom changes hands among the wise. Shall I believe my great lord criminal at a raging word that a blind old man let fall? (Line 32-36, 40, Ode…show more content… The playwright uses contrast effectively as a means of revealing character in the scene between Creon and Oedipus to show the rising conflict between the two due to their irreconcilable differences. Creon shows his unfaltering loyalty to the king as he tells Oedipus he would never commit such a wile act that would taint his honour but Oedipus refuses to believe him. Oedipus is seen to have a lack of perception in this scene due to the fact that he is stubbornly sticking to his belief that Creon is after his kingship and life. Creon blatantly tells Oedipus, using logic in his defense, the reason Oedipus’ accusations are false when he says, “Would a sane man prefer power, with all of a king’s anxieties, to that same power and the grace of sleep? Certainly not I.”(Lines 67-70, 44, Scene II) This shows Creon is a wise man who does not blindly chase after kingship. Oedipus on the other hand is hotheaded and blind to the truth; he is fixed on punishing Creon, which is evident when he says, “It is your death I want, so that all the world may see what treason means.” (Lines 106- 107, 45, Scene II) A reason why Oedipus is fixated on Creon’s punishment is that otherwise he would have to think about Tiresias’ revelation about the actual murderer of Laius. He is avoiding thinking about the accusations on himself by steering his attention towards Creon…show more content… Jacosta’s attempt to put Oedipus’ fears at rest, by telling him of the prophecy that she believes has not occurred, ironically induced the opposite of the intended outcome. As soon as Jacosta tells Oedipus of Teresias’ initial prophesy many years back and her believed outcome, Oedipus comments “How strange a shadowy memory crossed my mind, just now while you were speaking; it chilled my heart.” The anecdote that was supposed to put his fears at rest instead increased his anxiety; it had reminded Oedipus of his calamitous encounter with a group of men where the three roads met around the same time Laius was murdered. Oedipus informed Jacosta about the prophecy from Delphi given to him that stated, “As, that I should lie with my own mother, breed children from whom all men would turn their eyes; and that I should be my father’s murderer.” (Lines 268-269, 53, Scene II) Due to the uncanny correlations between the two prophecies, Oedipus’ mind was sent into