Oedipus

The Blind Oedipus Commending his Children to the Gods, Bénigne Gagneraux, signed 1784

Ernie Liu

In Bénigne Gagneraux’s The Blind Oedipus Commending his Children to the God, king Oedipus of Thebes is depicted as blinded and in despair. He prayed to the gods to decide the fate of his Children. The artwork shows the ending of the play Oedipus the king, by Sophocles. From both the artwork and Sophocles’ masterpiece, we can learn about how ancient Greeks beliefs in fate and their perception of free will.

Oedipus, son of King Laius and Jocasta, was raised by the king and queen of Corinth and ignorant of his true parents. Learning that he is destined to murder his father and marry his mother, Oedipus tried to escape his fate by leaving Corinth. On his way to the city of Thebes, Oedipus became the king of the city after murdering his true father, king Laius, and defeating the terrifying Sphinx. He accepted the throne and his mother Jocasta as a reward for saving the city, unknowing the crimes that he has committed. At this point, we can see the hero motifs in the character of Oedipus, including foreign fosterage, conquest of the monster, kingship.

As a king of Thebes, Oedipus has learned that the ongoing plague in the city is due to the curse caused from the murder of Laius. Unlike solving the riddle of the Sphinx, Oedipus is unable to see through the illusion and understand that he is the riddle itself. The myth brings out the conflict between blindness and sight. As the most powerful man in the city, Oedipus was blinded to the truth about his crimes and origin. Therefore, he suffered after learning the truth. When he discovered that he had unknowingly murdered his father and married his mother, he was flooded by shame and guilt. He has violated two of the most horrifying crimes: the taboos against incest and murdering family. Exposed to the terrible deeds, Oedipus finally decided to blind himself and ask for an exile from the city.

The artwork provides a vivid illustration of how Oedipus reacts to the truth. Being blinded physically, King Oedipus finally sees through the illusions and accepts that he has fallen into his fate even with all the effort trying to avoid it. The theme of free will vs fate has been presented through the myth. Learning that it is impossible to escape one’s fate, Oedipus decided to take his punishment. In Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, Oedipus grieved over the fate of his children in the end of the play. In the artwork, Oedipus was blinded and surrounded by his children. Oedipus’s reluctance to leave his children, especially his daughters, has been illustrated in the artwork.

                From the artwork, we see the motifs and themes from the myth. The downfall of a hero brings out the concept of fate. Under the power of Greek gods, does a mortal being have the power to choose his own life freely or is everything determined. As mortals, we are easily blinded by our beliefs, which could be far from the truth. In Greek mythologies, fate is personified into powerful deities and could be seen in a variety of myths. The ancient Greeks perceive fate as uncontrollable forces, where human beings often try to avoid a negative fate while those actions lead the path to fate’s fulfillment. As a tragic hero, Oedipus has practiced his free will which brought him to his final destiny.

Zhaochen Li

Oedipus is one of the most representative characters in Greek mythology. His story has great significance to the literature and art works of later generations. This painting by Bénigne Gagneraux, The Blind Oedipus Commending his Children to the Gods, tells the tragic story of Oedipus in a vivid way. It is my pleasure to tell you the story of Oedipus and the meaning behind this painting.

When it comes to Oedipus, the story we know best is the fact that he killed his father and married his mother and how he defeated the monster Sphinx. In his story, fate is the main theme. Oedipus' father, Laius, learns through prophecy that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother, and therefore abandons Oedipus. As fate would have it, years later, the grown-up Oedipus coincidentally killed Laius, became king of Thebes, and married his biological mother, Jocasta. After the truth was revealed, Jocasta committed suicide, and Oedipus, in pain, blinded himself and lived in agony.

In the story of Oedipus, there are many twists and turns that cause its story to stand out among a host of Greek myths. Among the many twists and turns, many themes make the story very exciting and appealing, such as the birth of the hero, the unchangeable destiny, patricide and incest reflect some of the values of ancient Greece as well as the real situation. What is easy to see is that cultures around the world have a way of explaining fate. What is certain is that fate is illusory, and even after such a long period of inquiry, mankind is still unable to definitively affirm or deny it.

In addition to fate, another theme worth exploring is cause and effect. In traditional Buddhist thought, doing good deeds often leads to good results. When we are exploring the irreversibility of fate, we are likely to overlook the existence of cause and effect. In the story of Oedipus, Laius and Jocasta abandon Oedipus after receiving a prophecy. Is it possible that Laius and Jocasta's tragic end was due to the fact that this act of ruthlessly abandoning their child was wrong or ominous? There are very many philosophical theories involved, which are difficult for us to explain and get results. However, it is worth thinking about.

Sophocles' Theban plays are very well known among a host of literary works about Oedipus. This painting, perhaps depicting the ultimate end of Oedipus in Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, in which he blinds himself and entrusts his children to Creon, highlights the painful emotions of the protagonist Oedipus and the richness of his children's feelings for their father through its rich colors and clever layout. The clear relationship between light and dark allows the viewer to quickly find the subject and the center of the painting. At the same time, the details are also very well placed, such as Oedipus' bleeding eyes, the secondary characters' criticism and opinion of Oedipus and the facial expressions of different characters, making the picture rich and vivid.

Overall, Oedipus, as a classic tragic character in Greek mythology, his story instantly provokes us to think and study with ancient Greece and its fate even today. At the same time, his stories and legends have made great contributions and references to later works of art and literature. I hope you will be interested in Greek mythology through his stories and this painting, and that you will gain some life lessons from it.

Work Cited

Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. [Place of publication not identified], Folkways Records, 1960.

The Blind Oedipus Commending his Children to the Gods, Bénigne Gagneraux, signed 1784

“Oedipus Rex by Sophocles.” Greek Mythology,

https://www.greekmythology.com/Plays/Sophocles/Oedipus_Rex/oedipus_rex.html.

https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1619626/pages/lesson-7-video-lectures?module_item_id=1717586

0 Accessed 17 February 2023.