The Fool: MIA

Although the reader's notes explain that when Lear says, "And my poor fool is hanged", that he must be talking of Cordelia, I am not completely convinced (282). The notes state: “fool (A term of endearment; here, Cordelia. The fool disappears after III.6)”, and while this is true, I think Lear at this point in the play is completely mad, he is confusing emotions and events. He knows Cordelia is dead, but he also had a father-like affection for the fool, and so he could very likely be mixing the two losses together. Lear does not recognize Kent, and he is has suffered from misrecognition (including of himself) throughout the entire tragedy. Later in this speech, he does reference “her lips”, which could indicate that he was speaking of Cordelia earlier, but I believe Shakespeare purposefully employed the term “fool” because it could be read both ways. As a master of puns, Shakespeare, in my opinion, is demonstrating the spectrum of Lear’s tragedy by having him use the word, “fool” in his last speech before his death. I think the fool might have been hanged. The fool might have just disappeared. Either way, the fool is gone from Lear’s life forever, and I believe Lear is coming to terms with all of his losses.

Lear’s fool disappears inexplicably, I believe, to demonstrate another tragic loss for Lear. Lear’s daughters abandon him (actually combat him). Cordelia is hanged. He loses the fool (and like I wrote earlier, I believe he accounts for this loss in his last speech), as well. The fool may have gone mad himself. The fool may have given up after seeing the deterioration of his master. The fool cares for Lear, “Prithee, nuncle, tell me whether a madman be a gentleman or a yeoman” (9-10). This is right before the fool departs. I think the fool can no longer endure Lear’s madness. I also think that Lear does not comprehend the disappearance of the fool until he uses the word in the last speech. This demonstrates a last minute recognition on the part of Lear, which is significant in terms of having a certain sense of coherency right before he dies.

Blog #6

Why does King Lear's Fool disappear after Act 3? What is the significance of his disappearance? Keep in mind that there are MANY possible answers. Use textual evidence to support your claim.

Land and Sea

The entirety of Oedipus the King is pervaded by both nautical and earthly imagery—often producing a direct dichotomy between the two—the purpose of which is to call into question the power of mortal will.

Oedipus is frequently likened to the helmsman of a ship, the crew of which is the Theban populace and the ship over which he reigns is the land of Thebes itself. The first instance in which Thebes is compared to a vessel is in the Priest’s first dialogue: “Our ship pitches wildly, cannot lift her head from the depths, the red waves of death…” (27-30) The chorus perpetuates Oedipus’ role as a helmsman after his fight with Creon: “You set our beloved land—storm-tossed, shattered—straight on course. Now again, good helmsman, set us through the storm!” (762-767)

If Oedipus is referred to the helmsman of Thebes, then who is the captain? One could possibly infer that the implication is that Apollo is the captain, as he is the one that is ultimately in control of the Thebans’ plight. Prior to killing his father, Oedipus “abandoned Corinth, from that day on I gauged its landfall only by the stars, running, always running…” (876-878) Using the stars as his guide, Oedipus acts as a helmsman before ascending to the throne. A helmsman is generally considered to be in control of his craft, but when Oedipus left Corinth in order to escape his fate he was really fulfilling a prophecy. As a helmsman, his will should be exercised, but in this instance it is not.

The word ‘harbor’ has special significance throughout Oedipus the King. The phrase “fatal harbor” is first uttered by Tiresias and later echoed verbatim by Oedipus, the purpose of which is most likely to affirm both the role of fate as an unchanging guide and Tiresias as an all-seeing seer.

Sophocles subtly introduces the dichotomy between land and sea imagery in one line: “Drive the corruption from the land, don’t harbor it any longer, past all cure, don’t nurse it in your soil—root it out!” (109-111) The word “harbor” is meant to preface the nautical imagery used throughout the play, while Oedipus is simultaneously being labeled as “the corruption” in the soil, prefacing the earthly imagery that is equally as prominent. In this instance, Oedipus is being likened to a tree, and this happens in other instances as well.

Tiresias tells Oedipus that no mortal man “will ever be rooted from the earth as brutally as you.” (487-489) Later on, Oedipus is foretold to “tear himself from his native earth, not linger, curse the house with his own curse.” (1427) When Oedipus is talking to his children for the last time, he tells them that “Seeing nothing, children, knowing nothing, I became your father, I fathered you in the soil that gave you life.” (1626)

An Exploration of the Eyes - Meggie’s Free Writing

In “Oedipus the King,” the eyes simultaneously represent blindness and the ability to see, and, more importantly, the power that comes with the ability of true sight. “Functioning” eyes, in the work, are rare but influential.

First of all, the gods are often depicted with mentioned with or near the word “eyes.” The first time the word appears in the play, it is not in reference to the obvious Oedipus, but rather to the god Apollo, who is also the god of prophecy. Oedipus begs for “Lord Apollo” to “come with a lucky word of rescue,/ shining like his eyes” (Lines 92-93). Rather, Oedipus hopes that Apollo, one of the only beings with truly accurate foresight, will predict a rescue for the city of Thebes with his all-knowing eyes. The next mention of the word “eyes” in the play is once again in referencing to a celestial being, a “golden daughter of god” (Line 216). The chorus, or people of Thebes, ask her to “send rescue radiant as the kindness in [her] eyes” (Lines 216-217). Soon after, the same chorus praises Dionysus, begging him to “come with torches blazing, eyes ablaze with glory!” (Line 242-243). Though each god is takes care of a different area of humanity, each one is gifted with “shining,” “radiant,” or “blazing” eyes. These gods are so often depicted with the gift of accurate sight simply because it is so rare and powerful, especially among mortals. Considering they have powers above and beyond any human, it makes sense that the mortals of Thebes revere them because of their sight.

Once applied to normal humans in the play, the word eyes can represent either a rare ability or a fatal flaw. Of course, the title character, Oedipus, has his eyes for the majority of the play, but does not have the ability to truly see, or realize, what is right in front of him. Throughout the play, Oedipus mentions eyes many times (most likely ironically, for the sake of the audience). The first time the king talks about his own eyes, he says “given eyes, I’d say/ you did the killing single-handed!” to Tiresias (Lines 396-397). This purposefully implies that Oedipus simply does not have eyes, or the ability to see. At the very beginning of the play, Oedipus mentions his fatal flaw without even knowing!

Oedipus also insults Tiresias, the seer, about his ability to “see.” He claims that Tiresias has “lost [his] power,/ stone-blind, stone-deaf —senses, eyes blind as stone” (Lines 423-424). Though the prophet is physically blind, at this point in the play, he is the only one who truly sees what Oedipus has done. Because of this, he has more power than anyone, except the gods. Functional seeing is not always done through the eyes, especially in this work, but true power is directly proportional to the ability to see. Tiresias responds to Oedipus’ insults by referring to the “anger in [his] eyes” (Line 509). The anger seems to be clouding Oedipus’ ability to truly see, or realize, his own past. Because of this, the blind seer is far more powerful than the king himself. Though the ability to physically see seems to be important at the beginning of the work, it’s clear that true power comes from the ability to realize.

Blog 5

Word: Dark/darkness

The image of the contrast of light and dark plays a key role in Oedipus the King. Darkness has both literal and symbolic meanings in the play. Oedipus lives in darkness his whole life because he does not know who he really is. He thinks he knows who his parents are, but he does not know his past or the prophecies about his life. He is literally living in dark when he blinds himself at the end of the play. Teriaecius is another example of darkness in the play because while he is physically blind, he is the one that can actually see the truth through prophecies. The dramatic irony is that he is able to bring light to situations through his prophecies even though he lives in darkness. However blind to the truth Oedipus may seem to the audience throughout the play, it can be argued that he is actually casting light. When Oedipus first solves the riddle of the Sphinx and becomes king he saves the town. By killing blinding himself and running away he saves the rest of the city.

Thesis: The darkness of the play symbolizes how Oedipus lives in darkness

Example 1

-“Teiresias: Do you know the family you come from? Without your knowledge you’ve become the enemy of your own kindred,
those in the world below and those up here,
and the dreadful feet of that two-edged curse

from father and mother both will drive you
from this land in exile. Those eyes of yours,
which now can see so clearly, will be dark.”

Teireasias says that the Oedipus’ eyes will be “dark” which both foreshadows that he will physically blind himself but his line is also ironic because he says that Oedipus’s eyes “now can see so clearly” which is physically true, but Oedipus is actually blind to the truth. Teiresias asks Oedipus questions that Oedipus thinks he knows the answers to, but is actually shaded from. Teireasias is telling Oedipus that he will blind himself, but says it vaguely enough that Oedipus does not understand. Oedipus lives in darkness to this prophecy because he does not fully understand his destiny.

Antithesis: Darkness in the play symbolizes how Oedipus brought light to the surrounding world

Synthesis: Oedipus brought both light and darkness upon himself and others first by solving the riddle of the Sphynx but then brought darkness upon himself literally by blinding himself. He also lived in the dark because he did not know the truth about his past.

Quotations including darkness:

-Oedipus: You live in endless darkness of the night, so you can never injure me or any man who can glimpse daylight.

-Oedipus later says: “What fate does Apollo bring to light?”

-Oedipus: "You will no longer see

all those atrocious things I suffered,
the dreadful things I did! No. You have seen
those you never should have looked upon,
and those I wished to know you did not see. So now and for all future time be dark!"

With these words he raised his hand and struck,
not once, but many times, right in the sockets.
With every blow blood spurted from his eyes
down on his beard, and not in single drops,
but showers of dark blood spattered like hail.

-Oedipus: O the dark horror wrapped around me, this nameless visitor I can’t resist swept here by fair and fatal winds.

-Oedipus: Then I will start afresh, and once again shed light on darkness.

Eyes in Oedipus

After tracing the word “eyes” through Oedipus, I saw eye imagery primarily employed to build assertions about literal v. figurative sight and their often mutually exclusive relationship. This could lead to a possible thesis or antithesis: The achievement of clear sight of the truth precludes literal sight of the physical world.

-Tiresius is literally blind, but figuratively sees all

-When Oedipus is ignorant, his physical sight remains intact. As soon as he gains sight of the real truth, however, he destroys his own capacity for literal sight because it is too much to bear. By taking her own life, Jocasta also strips herself of worldly sight after her enlightenment.

There was also another interesting connection that I noticed among the early appearances of the word “eyes” that I hope to incorporate. . . here are the passages:

Oedipus: Lord Apollo, let him come with a lucky word of rescue, shining like his eyes! (l. 93)

-talking about Creon and his high hopes for the news Creon will bring, which he equates with Creon’s “shining eyes”

Chorus: O golden daughter of god, send rescue radiant as the kindness in your eyes! (l. 217)

-the people hope for rescue from Athena, which they equate to the radiant kindness in her eyes

Chorus: Come with the lightning / come with torches blazing, eyes ablaze with glory! / Burn that god of death that all gods hate! (ll. 241-243)

- the people hope for rescue from Dionysus, which they equate to the glory that blazes in her eyes

The eyes in each of these cases are attached to a sense of hope, which grows increasingly intense and desperate. The diction moves from “shining” to “radiant” to “ablaze” which parallels the increasing intensity in the punctuation – the frequency of the exclamation points increases as the passages progress.

Painfully obvious? Only on the surface

Greeks are obsessed with pain. Oedipus, Odysseus and Hecuba all endure the most tragic pain imaginable by their respective creators. In the Odyssey we often explored the relationship between pain and oblivion, drawing a parallel to life and meaning; pain is how Odysseus keeps his identity, and remains alive. In The Trojan Women Hecuba must experience her entire world destroyed around her: her husband is murdered, her daughters are sacrificed and enslaved, her nemesis will live in luxury, and the last of her line is taken from her arms to be killed. Yep, painful. In each hallmark Greek text pain plays a central role, both overtly and subtly. This is why I chose “pain” for my word in Oedipus the King. I think that there are many different directions in which I can take my query regarding the significance of suffering, making it an exciting and challenging choice. In particular I want to explore the relationship between pain and knowledge/truth. The surface relationship of the pain which truth can cause is not what I’m looking for, more of an equation between truth and pain. To that end, I think this passage will be very useful, “How terrible- to see the truth/ when the truth is only pain to him who sees!” 358-359. I haven’t reached the point of a thesis + antithesis= synthesis statement as I want to further explore the more subtle ironies of how Sophocles uses pain to simultaneously enlighten, reprimand and reward.

Free-writing Feet

Okay so here I go free writing about the role of feet in Oedipus the King. I chose to do feet because I found it so interesting that there was a connection between his name Oedipus, and the fact that his feet are misshapen because of the wounds inflicted upon him as a child. It's also really interesting that most of the feet imagery comes in the beginning of the play, and there is hardly any at the end. Maybe because in the beginning of the play he is standing on his feet, that is to say, he's in control and still reigning king, but at the end of the play he is powerless, defeated, and deeply ashamed; thus he is metaphorically kneeling and his feet would be behind him, out of sight.

Regardless, the first instance of feet is when he helps the priest stand up. I interpretted this as Oedipus helping a person who was powerless, in despair, and looking for salvation. This is clearly ironic because at the end of the play Oedipus is in this exact situation. Only I'm not so sure he is looking for salvation, this distinguishes him from the priest. The next instance is a few lines down, when Oedipus says that he would have to be ignorant to ignore the people asking for help at his feet. Once again, feet = state of helplessness. This would probably be a good thesis; that kneeling at ones feet represent being helpless and desperate. It's also interesting that Oedipus' feet have been scarred, and at the end of the play he does NOT beg for salvation. This is a subtle clue that he cannot ask for help, almost as if he was destined to bear the pain.

The next instance is when the priest asks Oedipus to help the city off of its feet and return to its former glory. This speaks to my thesis, where I argued that kneeling at someone's feet represents your helplessness. However, if I were to make an anti-thesis, I would have to say that kneeling at someone's feet represents power and control. How can I argue that? I could say that in reality the people are in control, for even if they are at his feet, in reality they have more power than the king. Indeed, by the end of the play the roles have reversed, and Oedipus has been exiled and the people are metaphorically standing, once again, tall on their feet.

Finally we have the last instance of feet where Creon recounts the Sphinx saying to forget the murderer and "look at what lies at your feet." I love this line because it's so clever and ironic. On the surface, it looks like the Sphinx is saying to simply forget about what happened and move on. However, the clever Sphinx is saying just the opposite, and in fact is giving a clue to how to catch the murderer! At this time Oedipus, his father's killer, would have reached Thebes. Thus, if the people did "look at their feet" they would have found Oedipus, the killer! However, then the prophecy wouldn't have been fulfilled, and as we can see from this play, prophecies are always destined to come true. For a synthesis I could say that regardless of what the feet represent it is inconsequential, for what happens to our feet and how we stand on them is out of our control.

Is the crown a reward or a curse?

Thesis:

In Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, crowns are used to represent power and, in some cases, knowledge. By equating crowns with positive attributes, Sophocles depicts Oedipus’ crowning as a worthy reward for defeating the Sphinx and his undoing as the mere work of fate.

Points:

• Crowns are endowed (it is a privilege to rule) and represent power and knowledge.
• “Welcome news, I think - he’s crowned, look, and the laurel wreath is bright with berries” (line 94). Priest to Oedipus about Creon’s arrival
• “Bright with berries” has a positive connotation; growth, life, fruitful
• Laurel wreath is a symbol of high status and esteem
• Symbol of Apollo, god of knowledge
• “From that day on we called you king we crowned you with honors, Oedipus, towering over all - mighty king of the seven gates of Thebes” (line 1229).
• Crowned with honors, it is an honor to be ruler
• Word choice shows the majesty and benefits of being crowned

• Similarly, later in the tragedy, the messenger addresses Jocasta, “Blessings on you, noble queen, queen of Oedipus crowned with all your family - blessings on you always!” (line 1018).
• The messenger respects Jocasta as a subject; being royalty, having the crown gives Jocasta esteem and high status, positive attributes
• Jocasta is “blessed” to be the queen and is “crowned” or privileged with a large family
• It was a good thing for a woman to be fertile so the messenger automatically equates her large family as a blessing and a crowning glory
• Jocasta, like Oedipus, is praised for being royalty

• Even if Oedipus’ reign ends in his demise, the crown itself stand for goodness.
• Crowns/royalty do not necessarily cause suffering, since the same situation (of Oedipus unknowingly killing his father and sleeping with his mother) could happen to a family of subjects and, except for a few different aspects, the logistics of the tragedy would remain.

Antithesis:

And, yet, possession of the crown directly leads to Laius’ and Oedipus’ hubris and greatly influences their respective undoings. The crown is therefore a curse, one that breeds arrogance and the exploitation of knowledge and power.

Points:

• Hubris
• “. . . what envy lurks inside you! Just for this, the crown the city gave me - I never sought it, they laid it in my hands” (line 436). Oedipus to Tiresias
• The power has gone to Oedipus’ head
• Disparages Tiresias because he can
• Sense of entitlement that gives him the idea that he can boss everyone around and disrespect others (even someone as gifted as Tiresias) - same with Laius
• Arrogance leads to irony when Oedipus finds out the truth
• “Never sought it, laid it in my hands” makes the crown sound like an unwanted reward
• More responsible for the city
• Has to come up with solutions for the bad things that happen
• “You have the gall to show your face before the palace gates? You, plotting to kill me, kill the king - I see it all, the marauding thief himself scheming to steal my crown and power!” (line 596). Oedipus to Creon
• Again, Oedipus arrogance grows
• He becomes more and more paranoid of people who defy him (Tiresias) and those who are “trying to steal his crown” (Creon)
• Irony of Creon ending up with the crown in Antigone
• Is it better to give up the crown since it is a curse? Or is it too late for Oedipus, who has already let the power get to him? Or, even further, would it be pointless to do so since Oedipus was fated to suffer through all the things the oracle predicted?
• Every time Oedipus mentions the crown it’s with arrogance and the assertion of power

• Having the crown is a burden and an unwanted reward
• “Who in his right mind would rather rule and live in anxiety than sleep in peace? Particularly if he enjoys the same authority . . . I’m not the man to yearn for kingship, not with a king’s power in my hands . . . but if I wore the crown . . . there’d be many painful duties to perform, hardly to my taste” (lines 653-663). Creon to Oedipus
• Creon tries to reassure Oedipus with reasoning
• Creon has the same benefits of being king without having any of the responsibilities; therefore, actually having the crown is more of a burden
• Is it a tactic?

• False goodness of knowledge and other supposedly positive attributes
• “Bright with berries” (same passage as in the thesis argument)
• Symbolizes Apollo, who is the god of oracles and knowledge
• Not necessarily true that news will be good, therefore the look of the berries on the wreath is deceiving since they give off a positive connotation

- “Crowned with all your family”

- The family is dysfunctional in reality (Oedipus’ children are also his brothers and sisters (incest))

- Hidden under the positive term crowned

- Now the crown is the means of punishment

Synthesis:

Both?

Neither?

Some Close Readings About Ignorance and Feet

Oedipus lives a tragic life bound by prophecy. The notion of fate is symbolized through Oedipus’ scared feet – scars from having a stake driven through his feet as a baby. Oedipus is no longer literally bound, but he is still subject to confinement of fate. While the symbolic discussion of feet reveals that murder and incest are foregone conclusions, Sophocles ironically highlights Oedipus’ ignorance to make the play more tragic.

“Helping a priest to his feet” – stage direction halfway through line 9

· Sophocles depicts Oedipus as a man of power in order to persuade the audience to view Oedipus as a man removed from the problems of the time. This is not a completely false portrayal of Oedipus, for he certainly has power in the sense that he is a king, but there is overwhelming irony in the realization that Oedipus has no control over the outcome of his life.

“I would be blind to misery not to pity my people kneeling at my feet” – Oedipus, lines 14-15

· The audience should have been familiar enough with the story of Oedipus to catch ironic hints, and this specific line combines the motifs of feet and eyesight to create a complex display of tragic ignorance. Oedipus indirectly says he is not blind to misery, allowing the audience to wonder if perhaps he does not pity his people. More likely, this line could suggest he is not blind to misery despite his conscious assertions otherwise. Sophocles carefully crafts the language to allow for this interpretation and to allow for later development of Oedipus’ character. Oedipus is ignorant for believing he is blind to misery (his name is swollen foot and every step he takes brings pain, yet he seems to forget this until later) and this ignorance becomes Sophocles’ main tool in advancing the tragic nature of the play, for we are pained not only in learning of Oedipus’ misfortunes, but also in watching him ignorantly struggle to realize his fate.

Thesis: In Oedipus, Sophocles deconstructs the conventional meaning of the word “heart” to communicate negative traits.

Antithesis: In Oedipus, Sophocles represents “the heart” as the only uncorrupted part of the body.

Syntehsis: Though “the heart” usually conjures affectionate and good-willed connotations, Sophocles dismantles the word to convey dishonesty, and fear.

Negative traits

· The chorus says that “terror shakes my heart” for some envisioned sacrifice. This shows that the heart is filled with not love but fear and dread.

· Oedipus tries to find the “heart of our corruption”, unknowing that he, himself, is the “heart”. Through this phrase, the reader visualizes the heart as a corrupting source that infects the body.

· Oedipus tells Teresias he could enrage a “heart of stone”, characterizing the heart as a cold, depersonalized object.

· The chorus says that “never in my heart” will they denounce the king, while in actuality, they end up ousting him from society. This shows the deceit ingrained in the heart.

· Oedipus communicates his unwillingness to live in a world branded by his crimes, or with people “stained to the heart” with his corruption; this shows how the heart can sometimes be lacking in compassion and understanding.

· The leader announces the prophecy about Oedipus “fills our hearts with fear.”

· The messenger describes Oedipus’ reaction to Jocala’s death with a “wrenching sob that broke our hearts,” communicating the heartbreak associated with the soul.

positive traits

· Oedipus extends the “gratitude in my heart” to whoever finds information about the killer.

o However, when Teresias offers his information, this gratitude quickly crumbles.

· The chorus mentions that “you lift our monarch’s heart,” showing the positive nature of the heart.

o However, the monarch’s heart is never lifted, as the prophecy is, in fact, true.

· Oedipus asks to see his daughters “with all your noble heart,” showing the compassion that usually resides in the heart.

Oh Oedipus

After going through all the times when the word, “house”, is used in “Oedipus the King”, I came to a couple of conclusions. “House” primarily represents the family that inhabits the house. That is not particularly interesting. Normally. But what makes it so twisted is that Oedipus thinks all along that he has lived in legitimate “houses” with his true families. Au contraire. He grew up in a house with parents that were not his legitimate mother and father. Then, he saves over Thebes, becomes king, moves into the palace, hunkers down and starts a family. He is living a lie. His mother is his wife, his children are his brothers/sisters, and the only reason he is able to be the father of the house is because he murdered his father. “House” to most means shelter and safety. It means legitimacy, where one can be the most like oneself. Oedipus turns this soothing idea on its head. His houses have been one of the main causes of his demise. Houses (homes) have perpetuated the lies that make up the life and conflicts of Oedipus. Another ironic use of the world “house” is when resolute Oedipus talks about finding the murderer of Laius (which the reader soon learns is Oedipus himself). Oedipus says “Now my curse on the murderer. Whoever he is, /a lone man unknown in his crime/or one among many, let that man drag out/ his life is agony, step by painful step--/I curse myself as well… if by any chance/ he proves to be an intimate of our house, / here at my hearth, with my full knowledge,/may the curse I just called down on him strike me!” (172). This foreshadowing is incredibly painful. An intimate of Oedipus’s house? What is more intimate than Oedipus himself? He is unknowingly cursing himself and remarking on the falsity of his house, and therefore he is pointing out the falsity of his life.