From the first instance of the title ‘Oedipus Rex’ (King Oedipus) shows the audience that he is of nobility. This is necessary (in the Aristotle sense), because this now presents Oedipus as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is to be a noble individual with the ‘greatness of soul’, although they do not need to be particularly virtuous. The audience can see that Oedipus is already set up for a fall.
This extract is written in the form of a speech, given by Oedipus himself to the people of Thebes. This speech expresses his anger, pride and ignorance. The play is opened with ‘Oh Thebans’, which is the first example, where the audience can see Oedipus confidently expressing his excessive pride or hubris. The trend is then continued throughout the extract, which eventually leads to his end. Oedipus’ hamartia is hubris. Oedipus is a very proud character as he confidently talks about ‘the honour of the King’ and ‘speaking for the God’s’.
The extract is littered with ironic phrases, such as Oedipus wanting the villain ‘to die a villain’s death’. The use of irony coupled with his excessive pride clearly seals his own fate. The audience is welcomed to mock Oedipus at his unknowing use of irony. This is a prime example of hamartia being used. The use of fate and foreshadowing are very intimately linked in such a way that at the end of the extract catharsis is implicit. This is, because the audience already know that it is in fact Oedipus, who has killed the king. All of this helps Oedipus to seal his own fate.
The theme of fate within the tragedy genre is most common in Greek writing and is maintained throughout the works of other authors, Shakespeare in particular. Fate can be found most famously found in Romeo and Juliet, where the audience is told the fate of the main protagonist before the play begins. Using this technique heightens the sense of pity for the characters, which is necessary for a play to be a tragedy.
Hamartia has come under some criticism over the years, for example according to R.D. Dawe, "In particular hamartia appears inaccurate when measured against the events in , a play which is clearly in the forefront of Aristotle's mind throughout the Poetics, and which he mentions by name in the present context"1. It can be agreed that the definition of Hamartia can and does differ from person to person.
To conclude I do not think that this story has as big an impact as it would have done at the time. A present – day audience would enjoy it more if they did not already know the ending of the story. Nowadays we rely on the suspense. Also it would have had a bigger impact on the audience at the time of when this piece was written, because they had a greater belief in fate. Today we are less so inclined to believe in fate, and that our one true path has already been laid out for us. Hamartia has been used quite explicitly and helps to set out the rest of the play.
