Oedipus, the legendary Greek hero, found himself in a tragic story shaped by fate and prophecy. When he was born to Queen Jocasta and King Laius of Thebes, they received a horrifying prophecy from Apollo’s oracle. It foretold that their son would grow up to kill his father and marry his mother. Disturbed by this, Laius pierced the baby’s ankles and instructed a shepherd to abandon him on Mount Cithaeron. However, fate had other plans. The shepherd took pity and gave the baby to another shepherd from Corinth, who in turn gave the child to the childless King Polybus and Queen Merope. They named him Oedipus, meaning “swollen-foot,” and raised him without knowledge of his origins.
Years later, during a drunken celebration, someone hinted to Oedipus that he was not the biological son of Polybus and Merope. This seed of doubt led Oedipus to seek answers from Apollo’s oracle. Instead of clearing things up, the oracle revealed a chilling prophecy: Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Desperate to avoid this fate, Oedipus left Corinth and headed toward Thebes, unknown to him that he was walking towards his destiny.
On his way, Oedipus encountered a royal carriage on a narrow road. A dispute over the right of way resulted in Oedipus killing the man in the carriage, who, unbeknownst to him, was his real father, King Laius. By doing so, he had unknowingly fulfilled part of the prophecy. When Oedipus arrived in Thebes, he found the city plagued by the Sphinx, a creature who posed a deadly riddle to all who tried to enter the city. Oedipus solved the riddle, defeating the Sphinx and saving Thebes. Grateful, the city’s inhabitants made him their king, and he married the widowed Queen Jocasta, ignorant of their blood ties.
The couple had four children, unknowingly fulfilling the second part of the prophecy. Their happiness was short-lived, however, as a deadly plague descended upon Thebes. Desperate to save his people, Oedipus sought guidance from Apollo’s oracle. The oracle decreed that the plague would only end when Laius’s murderer was found and punished. Determined to find the culprit, Oedipus launched an investigation.
Oedipus questioned Tiresias, a blind prophet, who hinted that Oedipus himself was the murderer. Oedipus initially dismissed this, considering it outrageous. Jocasta tried to reassure him by recollecting that Laius was killed by robbers at a crossroads. However, as Oedipus pieced together information from a Corinthian messenger and the shepherd who saved him as a baby, the horrible truth dawned on him. The prophecy had come true. In his quest for Laius’s murderer, Oedipus had discovered his own guilt.
Devastated by the truth, Jocasta took her own life. In his grief, Oedipus used brooches from her dress to blind himself, unable to bear the sight of his tragic reality. Overwhelmed by his actions, Oedipus sought exile but was instead led back into the palace to await further guidance from Apollo’s oracle.
Sophocles’ tale didn’t end there. In a sequel written years later, Oedipus, now old and blind, was exiled and confronted with his past crimes of incest and patricide. However, Oedipus had come to terms with his fate, maintaining his innocence as the unwitting participant in the prophecy. Ultimately, he found peace. Guided by a divine voice, Oedipus lovingly said his farewells and peacefully transcended into death, ending his tragic saga.
