Oedipus was ... honestly a bit of a disappointment.
I loved the messed-up, tragic story, but something about the prose was jagged and inconsistent. Modern slang was randomly inserted, and dialogue between characters was odd and unrealistic. I think that I would perhaps prefer to read the original translation, or maybe would enjoy the story more if I was a Grecian.
The character's story line that I was frustrated most with was Jocasta's. Not only was her character underdeveloped and introduced as an seemed afterthought, but she was dead with very little explanation except her distrust of Terisias's prophesies.
Often, in people with chronic depression, one finds a histrionic sort of self-obsession in the sufferer. I really hope that tragedy doesn't reflect that characteristic in all of its stories. I'm beginning to see a pattern, with Miller's essay and the story of Oedipus, that the tragedy and conflict circumspects ONLY the main character, and leaves the other characters unimportant and undeveloped. If so, I'm going to have to have a serious chat with the writers of ancient civilizations.
But! But! But!
I really found Oedipus a great tragic character, because he was very relatable.
He was a little egotistical as shown in his beginning rejection of Tiresias' prophecy and his self-promoting monologue, and had made the horrible mistake of marrying his own mother, but he never had a wrong intention. He was faced with this seemingly improbable, tragic situation and struggled like any human would. In fact, he acted nobly, casting himself away from society, instead of continuing his sad dance of disbelief and egotism.
I loved the messed-up, tragic story, but something about the prose was jagged and inconsistent. Modern slang was randomly inserted, and dialogue between characters was odd and unrealistic. I think that I would perhaps prefer to read the original translation, or maybe would enjoy the story more if I was a Grecian.
The character's story line that I was frustrated most with was Jocasta's. Not only was her character underdeveloped and introduced as an seemed afterthought, but she was dead with very little explanation except her distrust of Terisias's prophesies.
Often, in people with chronic depression, one finds a histrionic sort of self-obsession in the sufferer. I really hope that tragedy doesn't reflect that characteristic in all of its stories. I'm beginning to see a pattern, with Miller's essay and the story of Oedipus, that the tragedy and conflict circumspects ONLY the main character, and leaves the other characters unimportant and undeveloped. If so, I'm going to have to have a serious chat with the writers of ancient civilizations.
But! But! But!
I really found Oedipus a great tragic character, because he was very relatable.
He was a little egotistical as shown in his beginning rejection of Tiresias' prophecy and his self-promoting monologue, and had made the horrible mistake of marrying his own mother, but he never had a wrong intention. He was faced with this seemingly improbable, tragic situation and struggled like any human would. In fact, he acted nobly, casting himself away from society, instead of continuing his sad dance of disbelief and egotism.