Oedipus
Emotions run through every person’s veins, sometimes those feelings are unavoidable. Arrogance has been around since the beginning of time. There are two different meaning for the word pride. One can be confident and successful or one could be arrogant and proud. Pride can often lead someone to feel superior over others. Only caring about one’s self can last so long. In Sophocles Oedipus the King, Oedipus demonstrates his tragic flaw by having too much pride. Oedipus starts his first monologue up with the bold declaration, “Everybody everywhere knows who I am: Oedipus. King” (47). This arrogant phrase sets the tone about how this character evolves throughout the story. It’s pretty ironic that he says that because at the time he didn’t know who he really was. He often exaggerates about how important he really is. Saying “everybody knows who I am” is an amplified statement because it’s impossible for that to be true. Oedipus is trying to elude his own fate which by not returning to his home city. This action actually causes him to kill his own father and marry his mother. Unaware at first, Oedipus continues to find Laios’s killer.
In the beginning, Oedipus is searching for the murder of Laios and is unsighted by the fact he was the one who killed him. Oedipus is in such denial that he says, “You old fool, I’d have thought twice before asking you to come if I had known you’d spew out such idiocy” (53). Teiresias explains to Oedipus that the murderer he is searching for is himself. This shows Oedipus feeling threatened because of Teiresias’s special skills being able to see visions of the future. Oedipus continues to mock Teiresias by calling him blind. Teiresias is older and Oedipus is so egotistical he doesn’t think there’s even a chance he murdered Teiresias. Also, the prophecy said he’d kill his father and marry his mother and he knew that. It’s important because this shows just how much pride he has. He continues to deny it and blame Kreon. Kreon is being true when he speaks to Oedipus, yet Oedipus accuses him of scheming against him. Oedipus rambles on saying, “Did you think I was cowardly or stupid? Is that why you