if I had to rate my ability to understand the play Oedipus the King I would rate myself a 5 or 6 out of 10. I think I was good at understanding what was going on to a certain extent however the way that the story is told and the vocabulary that is used makes it difficult to notice what is happening. the overall vocabulary and the way the story was written in really long paragraphs made it difficult for me to keep up with the story. if I had to be honest I didn’t like reading this play because it was confusing however taking the time to dissect each paragraph somehow still made the experience memorable. If I could play someone in a production of this play I think I would want to portray Creon because I found it interesting how he was content with not wanting to be king and found the life of being a king to be burdensome.
Daily Archives: March 24, 2024
My ability to examine and understand the play “Oedipus the king” is a 8/10. Some of the symbolism and just wording in general I can say were a little challenging for me because I couldn’t understand everything all to well, however from beginning to end I really enjoyed this story. One of the main ideas that were in Oedipus the king was this idea of free will. I liked how much of a leader and how strong willed at the beginning to the story, always one step ahead ready to go, especially during the plague. Oedipus the king ultimately ends with him fulfilling a prophecy to where he ends up killing his father and marrying his mother, a disturbing twist of fulfilling a prophecy to where even as a king he was nothing more than a pawn in a destiny that was forced upon him with no escape (I’ve always enjoyed reading literature that question things like free will), which also gives readers questions as to whether or not one can escape their destiny regardless of what choices they make. If I had to choose to be a character, it would probably be Creon, due to the fact that in the end, the sideline character gets all the benefits the main character should’ve had, without nearly as much loss.
I would rate my ability to read Oedipus the King a 7 due to me reading plays in previous classes. I did struggle with the use of Greek language in the play because I am not accustomed to reading Greek language. Besides the minor struggles I faced while reading the play I like the play because of the drama that it displayed in the play. Once I learned that the play was about a son killing his father and marrying his mother, my attention was focused on the play because to me it gave scandal of something that could happen in today day and age. I myself like drama movies and don’t mind to read about public scandals from time to time so to be able to read about a Greek scandal was exciting. If I had to portray a character from the play I would want to be Oedipus because of his persona of being a strong person and taking responsibility for his actions.
I feel my ability to examine and understand Oedipus the King as quite solid. It is a classic Greek tragedy it really is stood the test of time. Some components have been a bit confusing with all of the symbolism and dramatic irony happening, however after class discussions, I felt like I had a good draw close on the overall subject matters and messages of the play. The way Oedipus unknowingly fulfills the prophecy of killing his father and marrying his mom is just so messed up, yet captivating. Overall, analyzing Oedipus the King become simply challenging at instances, but completely well worth it. I would love to play Creon inside the play because he simply looks as if I should relate to him inside the way he doesn’t need to be a king but receives all of the advantages. Creon just seems like he is just kind of hiding in the background in the play so I would probably play him
Reading Oedipus the King was fascinating to me, especially knowing how old the story/play is. It had me thinking about what inspired Sophocles to write this, and if he pulled elements from things he had seen in his life. I had read Oedipus the King in high school, so I knew what to expect. However, my memory had faded a bit, so certain elements of this story were brought back to my attention. This included Jocasta hanging herself, and Oedipus gouging out his own eyes. The dialog was challenging for me, seeing as it was written and translated an extremely long time ago. Having it explained in class was helpful but was difficult to understand while doing some of the reading on my own. If I were to be in a production of this play, I would probably want to play the role of Jocasta because she seems like an interesting character. While she seems strong willed and put together, she folds under the weight of her tragic findings. Upon finding out that her entire marriage is a sham and that she has married her own child, she decides to end her life. It would be interesting to get into the mindset of someone who goes into full reaction mode after having the rug pulled out from under them.
