Before discussing Minority Report, review the story of Oedipus: The Oedipus Plays Synopsis Copied from http://shakespearedc.org/pastprod/oedbefore.html Oedipus Rex Oedipus, King of Thebes, has sent his brother­in­law Creon to the Oracle at Delphi to determine why a plague ravages his kingdom. Returning, Creon reports that Laius, the previous king, was murdered by someone still within the city and that the murderer must be expelled for the plague to end. Cursing Laius' murderer, Oedipus demands the killer be found and sends for the blind prophet Teiresias, who confirms what Creon has already reported. Oedipus refuses to believe him, accusing Teiresias and Creon of consipiring to overthrow him. Jocasta, Laius' widow, now Oedipus' wife, attempts to make peace between her brother and husband by denigrating the Oracle and Teiresias. She cites how Laius was predicted to be killed by his son; instead he was killed by thieves on a crossroad outside of Thebes . The tale resonates with Oedipus, who tells of a similar experience when he first came to Thebes . Searching for the truth, Oedipus sends for the only witness of Laius' murder. Jocasta pleads with her husband to let the past be forgotten, but Oedipus ignores her. All is revealed as Oedipus demanded and, as the Oracle predicted, Oedipus killed his father and married his mother. Jocasta, unable to endure the situation, kills herself. In despair, Oedipus blinds himself and goes into exile. Before Oedipus Rex The legend actually begins before Oedipus' birth, with a prophecy warning King Laius that he will die at the hands of his son. Frightened by what the Oracle has told him­and determined to subvert his fate­Laius and his wife Jocasta determine to not have any children. The gods, however, have other plans for the Royal House of Thebes. Jocasta does, indeed, become pregnant and give birth, infuriating her husband, who orders their son's death. The parents pierce the baby's feet (deformed or cripples infants were traditionally killed at that time, just as we today just might abort a fetus if we knew it would be seriously deformed)and give him to a shepherd, charging him to take the babe out to the mountainside and leave him to die. Relenting, the shepherd spares the baby's life and takes him to the neighboring kingdom of Corinth , where he is adopted by that city's childless rulers, King Polybus and Queen Merope. Because of his wounded feet, the king and queen name their son Oedipus, which­in Greek­means "swollen foot." Unaware of his true parentage, the child Oedipus grows older, becomes stronger, and­one fateful night­hears a rumor that Polybus and Merope are not his true parents. Obsessed with uncovering the truth, Oedipus­a proud and willful youth­journeys to Delphi , to consult the Oracle, who obscures the truth further with a disturbing prophecy: that Oedipus will murder his father and marry his mother. Terrified of fulfilling this prediction­and, like his true father before him, determined to thwart the gods­Oedipus decides to flee Corinth for Thebes . On the way, at a crossways where three roads meet, Oedipus meets his destiny head­on: Laius, who is traveling with three of his men. A misunderstanding ensues and Oedipus, believing Laius is a thief, strikes the King of Thebes dead with a staff. His father's blood now on his hands, Oedipus continues onwards towards Thebes and the second half of the Oracle's prophecy.
Before passing through the city's gates, Oedipus is stopped by Thebes ' warden, the mythical Sphinx­part bird, part lion, part woman­who asks all travelers crossing her path to solve a riddle: "What has four feet in the morning, two at noon, and three at night?" The penalty for a wrong answer is instant death. Littered around the Sphinx are the bones of hapless travelers she has devoured. The reward for a correct answer is great, the imprisoned city's freedom. Perhaps guided by unseen forces, Oedipus successfully solves the riddle, answering, "Man, who crawls on all fours as a baby, walks upright as an adult, and leans on a stick in his old age." Thus thwarted, the Sphinx kills herself, liberating Thebes , whose people reward Oedipus by crowning him their new king. With his kingship comes a wife, the recently widowed Jocasta, whom Oedipus marries, fulfilling the Oracle's prophecy and setting in motion a new cycle of doom­this time centering on Oedipus' sons and daughters. Compare Minority Report to Oedipus Rex and some interesting parallels emerge: Minority Report : an intellectual puzzle about guilt, fate, and free will Parallel Oedipus Rex : an intellectual puzzle about guilt, fa
will Everything begins with an oracle in a temple: You who seeks to know the future, You will be a killer. parallel Everything begins with an oracle in a temple: You to know the past, You will be a killer. Mystery: Who murdered Anderton's son ? parallel Mystery: Who murdered Oedipus' father ? Anderton is the "chief" who protects the entire society from chaos. parallel Oedipus is the "king" who protects the entire socie
chaos. Anderton is very proud of his intellect and authority and is sure he can find the killer of Ann Lively . This leads to his downfall. parallel Oedipus is very proud of his intellect and authority
he can find the killer of Laius . This leads to his do
There is a creepy blind guy ( drug pusher ) who offers "clarity" to Anderton, but seems to know a lot about him. parallel There is a creepy blind guy ( Tiresias ) who offers Oedipus, and seems to know a lot about him. Older people who were aware of the past (Dr.Iris Hineman, Gideon) parallel Older people who were aware of the past (old shep
fill in part of the mystery for Anderton. messenger from Corinth) fill in part of the mystery
Oedipus. Anderton searches the future to solve his mystery and finds himself Parallel Oedipus searches the past to solve his mystery and
revealed there as the killer. himself revealed there as the killer. Moral: Don't be so cock­sure you can control or escape your Fate parallel Moral: Don't be so cock­sure you can control or esc
Fate Moral: You might be guilty of terrible crimes without understanding how or why. parallel Moral: You might be guilty of terrible crimes witho
understanding how or why. Main Character puts out his eyes parallel Main Character puts out his eyes Alter­ego who hounds him ( Danny Witwer ) is legally correct and parallel Alter­ego who hounds him ( Creon ) is legally corr
impossible to condemn. impossible to condemn.
The original source of corruption and guilt is the father ( Lamar Burgess ) whom the son (Anderton) failed to truly see. parallel The original source of corruption and guilt is the fa
( Laius ) whom the son (Oedipus) failed to truly se
The twins (Dashiell and Arthur) and girl (Agatha) survive (typical reverse The twins (Polyneices and Eteocles) and girl (Antig
Spielberg ending). horribly (typical Sophocles ending). It'a all about predestination. parallel It'a all about predestination. Here's some other things to think about in connection with this film: When we Americans arrest and imprison people who we think may attack us sometime in the future if we leave them alone, are we denying them any Free Will? Are we treating them as if they were humans or robots? Should you be punished for being capable of committing a crime? Should you be punished for having a motive for committing a crime? Here is a real news report that forces these questions into our lives. Newsday 9­16, 2002 news story Immigration system being used to detain some suspects By Tom Brune WASHINGTON BUREAU September 16, 2002 SHAKIR ALI BALOCH, a 40­year­old man with soft features and thinning black hair, insists he does not know the real reason federal agents picked him up at a Long Island City driving school nine days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. A Pakistani­born Canadian citizen, Baloch said he thought it was simply an immigration matter, and after he admitted to officials that he was living illegally in a Queens Boulevard apartment, he expected he'd be deported within days. But the FBI labeled him a "special interest" case in its terror probe, and he spent the next seven months in jail ­ beaten by guards, he said, and placed in harsh conditions so secret that U.S. officials denied it when a Canadian consul asked if he'd been detained.
In high­security solitary confinement in a Brooklyn jail, with once­a­month phone access and no lawyer, Baloch said the FBI searched his apartment, examined his bank accounts and questioned him several times. But like nearly every other one of the hundreds of special interest cases ­ people detained on suspicion that they had connections to terrorists or information about terrorism ­ Baloch has not been publicly charged with any terrorism­related offenses. Now, finally released and deported, Baloch said in an interview in a Toronto coffee shop that his ordeal has left him unemployed and unable to work. He said he is depressed and cannot concentrate long enough to read. Sometimes, he said, he just shakes uncontrollably. "I was living an ordinary life, with the problems you face in a normal everyday life," he said. "But now I've lost my privacy. Now I'm in the world as a suspect."