In Sophocles' Oedipus the King, readers are treated to the tragic tale of Oedipus, the King of Thebes. Oedipus' father, the former king, is murdered and Thebes is a city in chaos and beset by plague. Oedipus takes it upon himself to resolve the woes of his people by discovering the murderer of his father, "I shall rid us of this pollution...for my own sake...acting on behalf of Laius, I benefit myself, too" (Sophocles 12). What Oedipus discovers in his search is that he inadvertently murdered his father and then married and had children with his own mother. Despite Oedipus' fate being ordained by the gods, it is Oedipus' own actions that result in this discovery responsible for his tragic end.
We see that Oedipus believes it is his duty to rid Thebes of its woes because he is king. He is cautioned many times by others that he should not keep pursuing his course of vengeance. Oedipus stubbornly insists he will risk his life rather than keep from knowing the truth. As he tells Creon, "Speak out, before all of us. The sorrows of my people here mean more to me than any fear I may have for my own life" (Sophocles 9). Oedipus continues to pursue the truth despite being warned against such a path.
Oedipus is also warned by Tiresias, a seer, that he should not pursue his quest for the truth. Showing how Oedipus' stubborn determination is what actually brings about his downfall, Oedipus becomes angry at the seer and accuses him of being in cahoots with Creon. In response, Tiresias tells Oedipus, "It is not Creon who harms you - you harm yourself" (Sophocles 23). Despite Tiresias' dire warnings that Oedipus should not continue his quest to discover the truth, Oedipus moves forward and discovers a truth that is so shocking it causes him to blind himself. He doubts the advice of both men and pays a heavy cost for doing so.
While it may be that Oedipus' single-minded determination and stubbor...