Essay on The Psychology of King Oedipus - 1012 Words

Oedipus Rex, an ancient Greek tragedy authored by the playwright Sophocles, includes many types of psychological phenomena. Most prominently, the myth is the source of the well-known term Oedipal complex, coined by psychologist Sigmund Freud in the late 1800s. In psychology, â€Å"complex† refers to a developmental stage. In this case the stage involves the desire of males, usually ages three to five, to sexually or romantically posses their mother, and the consequential resentment of their fathers. In the play, a prince named Oedipus tries to escape a prophecy that says he will kill his father and marry his mother, and coincidentally saves the Thebes from a monster known as the Sphinx. Having unknowingly killed his true father Laius during his†¦show more content†¦Thankful after the gods helped him survive and defeat the Sphinx, he forgets their ultimately capricious and vindictive nature, eventually leading to his attempt to avoid the prophecy that causes him to ful fill it. To any Ancient Greek man, woman, or child, this attitude toward the gods would expose extreme naivete. Oedipus’s blindness to the realities of life reflects the type of development seen in boys undergoing Oedipal complexes, who still see their mother as attainable objects of affection. The next stage on his of the journey to self-awareness is doubt. Oedipus demonstrates the puerile arrogance by refusing to accept the truth even as more and more proof of his inadvertent sins. He uses many common coping strategies to avoid the cruel truth of his fate. For instance, when he invites the distinguished prophet Teiresias to help him cure Thebes, he begins respectfully but quickly turns impatient and insolent when the prophet refuses to answer his questions, threatening to use his power as king to punish this disobedience, though by doing this Oedipus himself displays the same defiance toward the will of the gods being channeled through Teiresias. Eventually, Teiresias angrily reveals: â€Å"I say you are the murderer of the king/whose murderer you seek.† (Oed. 362-363) Oedipus, of course, orders him away and quickly returns to his state of denial, albeit somewhat disturbed. To dismiss the idea completely, he uses another coping strategy, blame, scapegoatingShow Mor eRelatedThe Mythology Of The Greek Mythology1438 Words   |  6 Pagespeople often forget is that the Ancient Greeks were and still are such a great influence towards our Western culture. Of course, they are not the only ones who have contributed to our knowledgeable society. Though, when it comes to the category of psychology I believe that the Ancient Greeks contributed the most, specifically with their mythology. A myth is defined as a traditional or legendary story, collection, or study. It is derived from the Greek word mythos, which simply means story. 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