Kim Sass, Colleen McGee
Alexia Hagialas, Kirsten Fitch,
Jade Rest
Beauty in Tragedy
Oedipus epitomizes many of the key elements of beauty. Symmetry, unity, human empathy,
point of view, and language are essential in making the story beautiful. These are all shown in
Oedipus countless times throughout the play. Since Oedipus exemplifies all of these aspects of
beauty, it is an optimal example of beauty in literature.
Symmetry, a device employed by authors to convey the beauty of a novel, is
implemented throughout Oedipus in its entirety. Before the birth of Oedipus, a prophecy defined
his existence as the murderer of his father and the future husband of his own mother.
Coincidentally, Oedipus was not put to death at birth as his parents intended, thus causing the
fulfillment of the prophecy. With the prophecy unbeknownst to him, Oedipus grows up adopted
and becomes king, only to finally discover the information contained in the prophecy and blind
himself from horror. By claiming his feelings about his parents, hoping he never had to “descend
to Hades and endure/to see my father with these eyes,” Sophocles created symmetry in the
poem through the fulfillment of the prophecy and the involvement of his parents in his life
(ll.1381-1382). Early on, his parents wanted to rid themselves of Oedipus, whom they
considered a threat, while the ending presents his parents as the reason Oedipus himself
yearned for death. Even in death he was afraid of seeing the faces of his parents, showing the
parallel of his parents causing him unrest in life and death. Oedipus’ prophecy that defined his
future is symmetrical and also unifying.
Unity is shown when Oedipus learns that the prophecy came true , so he is finally free to
make his actions on behalf of himself and not on behalf of the prophecy.The unity of Oedipus’
actions and his beliefs are shown at the end of the play in lines 1525-1530 when Oedipus is
asked to banished from the kingdom. He doesn’t make this action based on the prophecy; he
makes this decision based on what he believes to be right. Finding out the results of the
prophecy was both his demise and his chance for freedom. He could finally live his life without
fear that his actions would hurt the people he loved. The unity of his actions and his beliefs
make Oedipus’ story beautiful.
As a tragedy, the story of Oedipus the King is written in such a way as to evoke the most
horror, pity, and empathy from the audience. The audience sympathizes with Oedipus and his
reversal of fortune because they can associate and relate to his human flaws. Since the
audience can relate to Oedipus and his misfortune, the story therefore becomes more real and
beautiful. The viewer feels the most for Oedipus when he realizes his true identity and cries,
“Now I’m without a god, child of a polluted parent, fellow progenitor with him who gave me birth
in misery. If there’s an evil that surpasses evils, that has fallen to the lot of Oedipus” (lines 13701375). Beauty and human empathy are also shown in the point of view of the play.
The point of view in Oedipus switches from Oedipus to the chorus, depending on who is
speaking at the time. The transition in these points of view allow for the audience to see and feel
emotion from different perspectives, which makes the play beautifully balanced. When Oedipus
speaks, the audience can empathize with the main character’s feelings. For example, when
Oedipus discovers that he did indeed kill his father, he says to the Herdsman (and the
audience) “Ah! All of it was destined to be true!/ Oh light, now may I look my last upon you,/
shown monstrous in my birth, in marriage monstrous,/ a murderer monstrous in those I killed.”
(1334). The poem’s use of emotion and it’s power to evoke empathy from the audience makes
the tragedy beautiful. When the poem uses the point of view of the chorus, it gives the audience
unbiased insight into the events in the story. One example of this occurs at the very end of the
poem, when the chorus announces “People of Thebes, my country, see: here is that Oedipus--/
he who “knew” the famous riddle, and attained the highest power,/ whom all citizens
admires,/even envying his luck!/ Here is the truth of each man’s life: we must wait, and see his
end,/ scrutinize his dying day, and refuse to call him happy/ till he has crossed the border of his
life without pain.” This last line reveals the beauty of the chorus’s insightful point of view. The
chorus’s purpose is not to show the audience the emotion of certain characters, as Oedipus’s
point of view does; rather, it makes general statements to provoke thought from the audience.
The balance between a perspective that evokes empathy from the audience, and a point of view
that allows the audience to think and relate the main character’s experiences to their own lives
makes Oedipus Rex a beautiful poem.
Sophocles uses both formal and poetic language in Oedipus Rex to give the story
emphasis and illustrate the beauty of his writing style. His style enlisted grammar and carefully
chosen words to express emotion and diction. The beauty of the language in Oedipus the King
is throughout the tragedy but a specific example could be found in lines 208-212. Sophocles
writes with emotion and descriptive language saying, “Lycean Lord! From your looped /
bowstring, twisted gold...and stand forward, our protectors; also fire-bearing / radiance of
Artemis” (ll. 208-212). The use of exclamation marks and language such as “fire-bearing,”
“radiance” show beauty. It is beautiful in its poetic language. His language and emotions
portrayed show the beauty of poetic writing.
Oedipus the King is a play and tragedy that shows beauty throughout. The beauty is shown
through the symmetry, unity, human empathy, point of view, and language of the play. Oedipus
is a clear, wonderful example of a beautiful work.