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suggest that Oedipus is both inside and outside himself at the same time? He is outside
his own grief while grieving.
The Unwinding of Oedipus Tyrannus
& of Oedipus
Our study of the opening exchange between Oedipus and the priest of Zeus has
enabled us to see the core issues of the play in their clearest form. Soon the plot will be
set in motion, and things will get complicated. Had we not paid careful attention to the
beginning of the play, we may have been mislead into believing that the conflicts which
will emerge are due to forces outside Oedipus’ control, i.e. the gods or fate. Nothing
could be further from the truth. The circumstances merely provide the conditions for the
conflicts that are already in Oedipus to emerge. The plot jars them loose.
As we have seen, Oedipus is driven by two desires which seem to be unalloyed
goods. One might call them patriotism and philosophy, the love of country and the love
of truth.
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Both desires are apparent throughout the play. However, his patriotism seems
more visible in the first half of the play, while in the second half, his curiosity is more
visible, and as the play progresses the former takes a backseat to the latter.
Examples of Oedipus’ patriotism are emphatic in the first half. In his first speech,
Oedipus boasts, “how willing I would be to assist in every way (11-12).” At the close of
his second speech, Oedipus makes a similar boast, “But when (Creon) comes, at that
time, I would be evil lest I do everything whatsoever the god should indicate (76-77).”
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Oedipus’ love of truth is suggested throughout the play by the emphasis Oedipus gives to sight. Oedipus
gives great weight to the visible, and is vexed when things remain outside his field of vision.
Convention