According to the world famous English playwright William Shakespeare “What fate impose, that men must needs abide; it boots not to resist both wind and tide.” This quote says that man cannot control their lives and that fate decides everything. In Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, Oedipus and his parents try to prevent the prophecy given out by the gods, but fate still pierces through the opposition and becomes a reality. The story tells how fate cannot be prevented and everything is predetermined, just as Oedipus was fated to fulfill the prophecy. This quote by Shakespeare is very evident in Oedipus the King when Oedipus and his parents try to stop the prophecy.
In the beginning, Jocasta tried to stop the tragedy by sending Oedipus away to be killed when he was a small babe. For example “A son was born to them, and they tried to make sure that the prophecy would not come true.” (Sophocles XL). This shows Jocasta and Laius’ reluctance to let fate happen. Although they try to stop fate it actually in turn came to become the catalyst for it, since they sent their son Oedipus to Corinth where he gains a hubris attitude and learns the prophecy, since initiated by the words of a drunkard. Had Laius and Jocasta chose to raise Oedipus this tragedy may have been swayed by changing his nature or giving him the love which would make him not want to kills his parents as shown while he was in Corinth, and of course they could have just killed him right in front of them, but they did not. In addition, “Laius drove a metal pin through the infant’s ankles and gave it to a shepherd, with instructions to leave it to die of exposure on the nearby mountain, Cithaeron. The shepherd took the child up to the mountain, but pitied it and gave it to a fellow shepherd he met there, who came from Corinth on the other side of the mountain range. “(Sophocles XL). The shepherd could have chosen to follow his orders and killed the baby, but just as fate had predicted he let Oedipus go, allowing him to continue on to kills his father and marry his mother. Without this small step Oedipus’ fate would have ended and the tragedy that was to befall on Thebes would have been vanquished. The parents of Oedipus tried to step in and stop fate, but it only led the shepherd to give the baby to a man who sent him to the childless king and queen of Corinth. Even though the parents of Oedipus tried to side tack the prophecy, it only led to keeping it on track.
Just like his parents Oedipus tries to change fate but instead fulfills it. For instance, “All he was told was that he would kill his father and marry his mother. He resolved never to return to Corinth […]” (Sophocles XLI). After finding out about his fate, Oedipus flees Corinth in