OedipusBeowulfFinalDraft Essay - 1667 Words

Edin Schneider AP English Literature Mr. Weeg 21 October 2014 Oedipus and Beowulf Compare and Contrast Essay Oedipus Rex and Beowulf are two entirely different works in terms of the cultures that they were written for. Oedipus Rex was written by the Greek playwright Sophocles in about 430 B.C., and Beowulf was written a few hundred years before 1000 C.E., when it was transcribed from the Anglo-Saxon language. Despite these obvious differences, the two works share identical archetypes. Not only do Oedipus Rex and Beowulf include evil monsters and tragic heroes in their contents, but very similar themes about mankind. An example of one of these themes is that mans efforts to meet the expectation set by their past victories prevents them†¦show more content†¦But truly, the prophecy that he is following is only one created by himself. This belief that Beowulf clings to will eventually present big problems for him and his kingdom. When the events of Oedipus begin to unfold, and when Oedipus is slowly realizing that he has fulfilled the pr ophecy, he still maintains his pride. When Tiresias is trying to explain to Oedipus that he was, in fact, the killer of Laius, Oedipus disregards him, stating that he is merely spouting riddles(25). Tiresias rebuts, stating that Oedipus of all people, the one who bested the sphinx, would have no problem solving riddles. Oedipus cannot ignore this taunt, and allows Tiresias to continue, since he challenge[d] there [his] strongest point(25). Oedipus pride prevented him from listening to Tiresias, but it allowed him to continue listening to him at the same time. By acknowledging Oedipus feat of besting the sphinx, Tiresias was allowed to continue talking to Oedipus, which begs the question of whether or not Oedipus truly desired to hear the rest of Tiresias words. One thing is for certain, yet again. Oedipus; pride is preventing him from solving his problems. Closer to the end of the story, when Oedipus finds out that he was abandoned by his true mother and father and left in the wilde rness to die as an infant, his pride seemingly increases. His