Oedipus+Essay

__Oedipus Rex__ is an Ancient Greek tragedy about a man who kills a man who turns out to be a king and his father, and married his mother. This play has many throughout including blindness. While only two characters in the in the play, and one isn't blinded literally untill the end, blindness is probably the single most important theme in the play. Teiresias is the first character we meet who is blinded literally. Even though he cannot see the world around him, he can see the past, presant, and future. He can also see the truth, that Oedipus is the murderer of King Laius. He then, ironically, calls Oedipus blind after Oedipus accused Teiresias of plotting with Creon for the throne. The second blind character is the titular one, Oedipus. Though not physically blind at this point, he is figuratively. By this I mean that he cannot see the truth of the matter, that he murdered his father and married his mother, even though he has been "shown" the truth. Oedipus, later in the story, has a complete reversal of fate, even in his sight. He is now blind to the world around him, but sees the truth. He also sees the error of what he has done, and banishes himself from Thebes. This theme is constantly used in the tragedy to bring a sense of irony, along with it driving the story forward. Without blindness, __Oedipus Rex__ would be a much more bland play.