Time Reveals All Things: Oedipus Confronts His Past
I believe that all of Oedipus' actions from a young age lead to his fortune. When he was a young man, Oedipus said, "There was a dinner and at it a man, a drunken man, accused me of being bastard. I was furious but held my temper under for that day,"(pg. 45). However, the insult continued to distress him so he left Corinth for Delphi. Oedipus travels to Delphi to speak to the oracle of Apollo and have her confirm who his parents are. The oracle then makes a dreadful prediction to Oedipus. The oracle tells him that he will kill his father and marry his mother. In order to avoid this prediction, Oedipus flees Corinth and heads toward Thebes. I think that Oedipus' traveling to Thebes is the point where his fate begins to fall into place.
After leaving Corinth and entering Thebes, Oedipus said that he was "near the branching of the crossroads," (pg.
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I became angry and struck the coachman who was pushing me. When
The old man saw this he watched his moment, and as I passed he struck
Me from his carriage...But he was paid in full and presently my stick
had struck him backwards from the car and he rolled out of it. And then I
killed them all," (pg. 46).
These two actions are prime examples of how Oedipus' early decisions and acts lead him to his later fortune.
As a young man, Oedipus was very arrogant and bad-tempered. We first...