M.A Eng. Part 1 Drama Notes

8/13/2019 M.A Eng. Part 1 Drama Notes

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Importance Of Being Earnest" Major Themes

Manners and Sincerity

The major target of Wilde's scathing social criticism is the hypocrisy thatsocietycreates. Fre!ently in ictorian society# its participants comportedthemsel$es ino$erly sincere# polite %ays %hile they har&ored con$erselymanip!lati$e# cr!elattit!des. Wilde eposes this di$ide in scenes s!ch as%hen (%endolen and)ecily &eha$e themsel$es in front of the ser$ants or

%hen *ady Brac+nell %armsto )ecily !pon disco$ering she is rich.,o%e$er# the play tr!ly pi$ots aro!nd the%ord "earnest." Both %omen %antto marry someone named "Ernest#" as thename inspires "a&sol!teconfidence"- in other %ords# the name implies that its&earer tr!ly isearnest# honest# and responsi&le. ,o%e$er# ac+ and /lgernonha$e lieda&o!t their names# so they are not really "earnest." B!t it also t!rns o!tthat0at least in ac+'s case1 he %as inad$ertently telling the tr!th. The rapid flip2flopping of tr!ths and lies# of earnestness and d!plicity# sho%s ho% tr!lym!ddledthe ictorian $al!es of honesty and responsi&ility %ere.

3!al Identities

/s a s!&set of the sincerity theme 0see a&o$e1# Wilde eplores in depth%hat itmeans to ha$e a d!al identity in ictorian society. This d!ality ismost apparent in /lgernon and ac+'s "B!n&!rying" 0their creation of analter ego to allo% them toe$ade responsi&ility1. Wilde hints that B!n&!ryingmay co$er for homose!alliaisons# or at the $ery least ser$e as an escapefrom oppressi$e marriages.Other characters also create alternate identities.For eample# )ecily %ritescorrespondence &et%een herself and Ernest&efore she has e$er met him. 4nli+ereal men# %ho are free to come and goas they please# she is a&le to control this$ersion of Ernest. Finally# the factthat ac+ has &een !n%ittingly leading a life of d!al identities sho%s thato!r alter egos are not as far from o!r "real" identities as%e %o!ld thin+.

)riti!e of Marriage as a Social Tool

Wilde's most concrete criti!e in the play is of the manip!lati$e desiresre$ol$ingaro!nd marriage. (%endolen and )ecily are interested in theirmates# it appears#only &eca!se they ha$e disrep!ta&le &ac+gro!nds0(%endolen is pleased tolearn that ac+ %as an orphan- )ecily is ecited&y /lgernon's "%ic+ed"rep!tation1. Their shared desire to marry someonenamed Ernest demonstratesthat their romantic dreams hinge !pon titles#not character. The men are notm!ch less shallo%2/lgernon proposes to theyo!ng# pretty )ecily %ithin min!tesof meeting her. Only ac+ seems to ha$eearnest romantic desires# tho!gh %hyhe %o!ld lo$e the self2a&sor&ed(%endolen is !estiona&le. ,o%e$er# the sordidness of the lo$ers' !lteriormoti$es is d%arfed &y the priorities of *adyBrac+nell# %ho epitomi5es theictorian tendency to $ie% marriage as a financialarrangement. She does


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not consent to (%endolen's marriage to ac+ on the&asis of his &eing anorphan# and she sn!&s )ecily !ntil she disco$ers she has alarge personalfort!ne.

Idleness of the *eis!re )lass and the /esthete

Wilde good2nat!redly eposes the empty# tri$ial li$es of the aristocracy2good2nat!redly# for Wilde also ind!lged in this type of lifestyle. /lgernon isa hedonist%ho li+es nothing &etter than to eat# gam&le# and gossip %itho!tconse!ence.Wilde has descri&ed the play as a&o!t characters %hotri$iali5e serio!s mattersand solemni5e tri$ial matters- /lgernon seemsmore %orried &y the a&sence of c!c!m&er sand%iches 0%hich he ate1 than&y the serio!s class conflicts that he!ic+ly smoothes o$er %ith %it. B!tWilde has a more serio!s intent6 hes!&scri&es to the late278th2cent!ryphilosophy of aestheticism# espo!sed &yWalter 9ater# %hich arg!es for thenecessity of art's primary relationship %ith&ea!ty# not %ith reality. /rt

sho!ld not mirror reality- rather# Wilde has said# itsho!ld &e "!seless" 0inthe sense of not ser$ing a social p!rpose- it is !sef!l for o!r appreciationof &ea!ty1. Therefore# /lgernon's idleness is not merelyla5iness# &!t theprod!ct of someone %ho has c!lti$ated an esteemed sense of aesthetic!selessness.

Farce

The most famo!s aspect of Oscar Wilde's literat!re is his epigrams6compact#%itty maims that often epose the a&s!rdities of society !singparado.Fre!ently# he ta+es an esta&lished clich: and alters it to ma+e itsillogicsomeho% more logical 0"in married life three is company and t%o isnone"1. Whilethese 5ingers ser$e as sophisticated criti!es of society#

Wilde also employsse$eral comic tools of "lo%" comedy# specifically thoseof farce. ,e echoesdialog!e and actions# !ses comic re$ersals# andeplodes a fast2paced# a&s!rdending %hose impla!si&ility %e o$erloo+&eca!se it is so ridic!lo!s. This tone of %it and farce is distincti$elyWildean- only someone so s+illed in &oth genresco!ld com&ine them sos!ccessf!lly.

Oedip!s ;e6 Tragic Irony

Tragic irony %as !sed initially in ancient (ree+ tragedy and later almost inalltragedies. Irony consists essentially in the contrast of the t%o aspects ofthesame remar+ or sit!ation. / remar+ made &y a character in a play may

ha$e onemeaning for him and another meaning for other character and thea!dience or one meaning for the spea+er and the other characters andanother meaning for the a!dience. Similarly# a sit!ation may ha$e a do!&lesignificance in the sense hat a disaster may &e foreseen &y the a!dience%hile the characters may &eignorant of it. Irony heightens the tragic effect.Sophocles has !sed irony %ithstri+ing effect in his plays.


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m!rderer of *ai!s and the c!rse thatOedip!s !tters !pon the +iller and!pon those sheltering the criminal# possess atragic irony in $ie% of thea!dience>s +no%ledge that Oedip!s himself %ill!ltimately pro$e to &e *ai!s>m!rderer. Oedip!s proclaims that no ho!se inThe&es is to pro$ide shelter

to the g!ilty man and that the gods %ill c!rse those%ho diso&ey hiscommand. Th!s# %itho!t +no%ing the real meaning of his %ords#Oedip!sanno!nces the sentences of &anishment against the m!rdererandheightens the tragic effect of the disco$ery %hich comes to%ards theend of theplay. Oedip!s does not +no% that he himself is to &ecome the$ictim of thep!nishment %hich he is proclaiming &!t the a!dience +no%s it.In this contrast&et%een Oedip!s> ignorance and o!r +no%ledge of the tr!efact lies the tragicirony.

The scene &et%een Oedip!s and Teiresias is fra!ght %ith tragic ironythro!gho!t.Teiresias is the prophet %ho +no%s e$erything %hile Oedip!sdoes not +no%himself as s!ch. Teiresias %o!ld not li+e to disclose thesecret &!t Oedip!s!ic+ly loses his temper th!s pro$o+ing the prophet tosay %hat he ne$er %antedto say. Teiresias tells Oedip!s that he himself isthe g!ilty man he is see+ing andthat he is li$ing in a sinf!l !nion %ith theone he lo$es. The impact of these %ordsis totally lost !pon Oedip!s. Thecharges of Teiresias enrage him and he ins!ltsthe prophet &y calling him asightless sot sho%ing his o%n inner &lindness. /nirony lies in the fact thatTeiresias# physically &lind# +no%s the tr!th %hileOedip!s# ha$ing normaleyesight# is totally &lind to that tr!th. There is irony alsoin the contrast&et%een %hat Oedip!s tr!ly is and %hat he thin+s himself to &e.To Teiresiashe &oasts of his intelligence citing his past $ictory o$er the Sphin.Theterri&le predictions that Teiresias ma+es regarding the fate in store forOedip!s also possess irony in the sense that# %hile %e +no% their tragicimports#Oedip!s treats them as the ra$ings of a madman. These

predictions &ecomemore a%f!l %hen %e reali5e that they %ill pro$e to &etr!e and $alid. Teiresias%arns Oedip!s that the +iller of *ai!s %ill !ltimatelyfind himself &lind# an eile# a&eggar# a &rother and a father at a same time tothe children he lo$es# a son anda h!s&and to the %oman %ho &ore him# afather2+iller and father2s!pplenter.E$en the )hor!s# ignorant of the facts#ref!ses to &elie$e %hat Teiresias has saida&o!t Oedip!s. Th!s &othOedip!s and the )hor!s are !na%are of the tr!th%hile Teiresias and thea!dience is f!lly a%are of it.

Tragic irony is also fo!nd in the scene %ith )reon. )reon &egs Oedip!s nottothin+ him a traitor and not to pass the sentence of death or eile againsthim. B!tOedip!s &linded &y his a!thority and his anger sho%s himself

relentless. Thissit!ation is ironical of the final scene %here the roles arere$ersed. ThereOedip!s &egs )reon to loo+ after his da!ghters# andentreats him to pass theorder of &anishment against him. )reon# &eing amoderate man# does not sho%himself !nrelenting in that scene. The pathosof the final scene is intensified.

Then there is the scene %ith ocasta. Oedip!s and ocasta are ignorant ofthetr!e facts. The a!dience# a%are of the facts# eperiences a deep sorro%at thefate %hich is going to o$erta+e these characters. ocasta is scepticalof oracles.She thin+s no man possesses the secret of di$ination and as aproof she tells%hat she and her h!s&and did to the child# %ho# according tothe oracle# %as to+ill his father. There is palpa&le irony in ocasta>s !n&eliefin oracles and her citing as proof the $ery case %hich is to pro$e the tr!th


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of one oracle recei$ed &yher and the late *ai!s. This irony deepensocasta's tragedy.

There is irony also in the acco!nt of his life %hich Oedip!s gi$es toocasta.Oedip!s thin+s himself to &e the son of 9oly&!s and Merope6 hefled from)orinth after the oracle had told him of the crimes he %o!ldcommit6 he has allalong &een !nder the impression that he has a$oidedcommitting the crimesforetold &y the oracles. B!t all the time Oedip!s has&een !n+no%inglyperforming certain actions leading to the f!lfillment ofthose $ery prophecies%hich he had &een stri$ing to &elie# j!st as ?ing*ai!s had earlier ta+endesperate &!t f!tile meas!res to pre$ent thef!lfillment of the prophecy %hich has&een comm!nicated to him &y theoracle.

When the )orinthian messenger &rings the ne%s of 9oly&!s> death# ocastagetsanother chance to moc+ at the oracles %itho!t reali5ing that her

moc+ery %ill t!rnagainst herself.


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action.=

The falsehood is# ho%e$er# !alified in the term stranger6 the stranger %hometand +illed ?ing *ai!s# %ho met and married !een ocasta# the stranger%ho%as no tr!e stranger at all. /t the o!tset# he says6

snone of yo! %ho is so sic+ as I.=

,ere he is# indeed# spea+ing the tr!th# &!t more tr!th# than he +no%s#&eca!sehe is !sing sic+ness only in a sym&olic sense %hile act!ally it istr!e of him in aliteral tense.

In addition to this irony of detail# there is a larger irony in the in$ersion ofthe%hole action. The homeless %anderer &y deli$ering the city of The&esfrom thesphin and marrying ocasta &ecame a ?ing in fact# &!t this

re$elation t!rnedhim once more into a homeless %anderer# %ho had oncegone &right eyed %ithhis strong tra$eller>s staff# no% !ses the staff to feelthe %ay &efore him.

The re$ersed pattern is seen again in the fact that the cr!el oracles ha$etheir dar+est moment j!st &efore they come clear. ocasta>s %ords moc+ingtheprophecy of the gods are echoed and amplified in Oedip!s> typicaltyrant2speechof !n&elief. The role of the helpers is another eample.Sophocles pro$ides atleast one helper# or resc!er# for e$ery act. The appealin the prolog!e is toOedip!s# himself a resc!er in the past. Oedip!sappeals to )reon %ho comesfrom and represents /pollo and 3elphi. It is asa resc!er that Teiresias is called.ocasta inter$enes to help. So does the)orinthian messenger# and the lasthelper# the The&an shepherd# is the tr!eand original resc!er. Those %ho do not +no% the reality are eager to help-those %ho +no% are rel!ctant. B!t all helper ali+e p!sh Oedip!s o$er theedge into disaster.

Oedip!s ;e6 ;ole of )hor!s

(ree+ tragedy is said to de$elop itself from the gro!p of dancers andsingers %ho!sed to parta+e in the %orship of $ario!s gods. /ccording to/ristotle the )hor!ssho!ld &e li+e one of the characters. (rad!ally the roleof the )hor!s &ecameless and less important in classical tragedy# !ntil in;oman tragedy the speechesof the )hor!s %ere s!pposed to &e made in&et%een the acts.

)hor!s discharges some &road f!nctions in all classical tragedies. Thestr!ct!reof a (ree+ tragedy is determined &y the )hor!s. /fter theprolog!e# it is %ith theentry of the )hor!s that a (ree+ tragedy &egins.ario!s episodes are alsomar+ed off &y choric odes. The concl!sion of a(ree+ tragedy occ!rs %ith theeode or the eit song of the )hor!s. It is thef!nction of the )hor!s to commenton actions and e$ents. It also sometimes!estions the characters. Its standardrole is that of the moderator. /t timesit represents the $ie%2point of the commonspectator and in some cases itrepresents the $ie%2point of the dramatist himself.

The f!nctions of the )hor!s are $ery %ell performed in Oedip!s ;e. In the


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$eryfirst ode the )hor!s depicts the horror of the plag!e and epressesanapprehension a&o!t the message from the oracle of 3elphi. Other odescommenton the action that has ta+en place after the last ode and &!ild anatmosphereappropriate to that stage of the play. It plays the role of a peace2

ma+er &et%eenthe +ing and )reon and s!cceeds in getting the +ing>spardon for the latter. /fter the eit of Teiresias it comments on the terri&lepredictions %hich Teiresias hasmade &!t sho%s determination to s!pportthe +ing. Its most significant responseis %hen Oedip!s and ocasta ha$eepressed irre$erent tho!ghts against theoracles. /t many other times alsothey reflect the dominant mood and help todeepen it. When Oedip!simagines that he is the son of the goodness of l!c+# the)hor!s#immediately sing that their master# Oedip!s# might &e the son of /pollo.

In the fifth or last choric ode in Oedip!s ;e# the )hor!s reflects thedejection of Oedip!s and says that all the generations of moral man add !pto nothing. Thisode m!st not &e regarded as reflecting the final mood andimpression of the play#for the impression is as m!ch of the greatness of theh!man spirit as of theinsignificance of man and the transitoriness of hishappiness. This ode m!st#therefore# &e loo+ed !pon only as reflecting afinal j!dgment of it. Oedip!sremains forcef!l e$en in his do%nfall- in asense he is still heroic.

The )hor!s ta+es part in the dialog!es also. When Oedip!s cons!lts thema&o!tending the plag!e in the city# they epress disappointment that theoracle had notg!ided them a&o!t the identity of *ai!s> m!rderer. They alsotell him %hat they+no% a&o!t the m!rder of their pre$io!s +ing and itscirc!mstances. When)reon# learning that the +ing has acc!sed him oftreason# comes on the stage hetal+s to the )hor!s# %ho tell him that the+ing>s acc!sation %as pro&a&ly made inthe heat of anger. )reon as+ed if

the +ing loo+ed a&sol!tely serio!s %hile ma+ingthe charge and they rightlysay that it is not for them to loo+ into the eyes of hismaster %hen hespea+s. When Oedip!s has almost passed a sentence !pon)reon# ocastaarri$es on the scene and first tal+s to the )hor!s. They re!esther to settlethe difference &et%een the t%o men. They are %orried %hen theyseeocasta going into the palace in a $ery dejected mood# and theygi$eepression to their apprehension. Oedip!s as+s them a&o!t theshepherd %hoga$e the infant to the )orinthian# they ans%er that his !een%o!ld &e a&le toans%er the !estion &etter. They sympathi5e %ith Oedip!s%hen they see himafter he has &linded himself. It is clear# th!s# that the)hor!s ne$er ta+es a directhand in the action. It does not consist only ofspectators &!t infl!ences the actionin $ario!s s!&tle %ays.

The contri&!tion of the )hor!s in Oedip!s ;e is considera&le. They lin+the play%ith common h!manity. In some sense they are often in theposition of the idealspectator. They fill in the gaps in the action %hen noother character is there onthe stage. They add to it the element of melody%hich m!st ha$e &een one of theattractions of (ree+ tragedy. They pro$idean appropriate shift &et%een thetitanic# heroic fig!re of Oedip!s and themass of common h!manity represented&y the t%o shepherds in Oedip!s;es. The tragedy of Oedip!s and its rele$anceto common life is $ery %ellstressed &y the )hor!s in its eit ode or eode.

Oedip!s ;e6 ,amartia


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/ccording to /ristotle# a tragic hero is a disting!ished person occ!pying ahighposition or ha$ing a high stat!s in life and in $ery prospero!scirc!mstancesfalling into misfort!ne on acco!nt of a s s!ffering#Oedip!s declares his resol$e totrac+ do%n the criminal and he !tters aterri&le c!rse !pon him. We can say thatOedip!s is almost an ideal ?ing.,e also sho%s himself as a de$oted h!s&andand a lo$ing father. ,e sho%sd!e consideration for the opinions and feelings of ocasta and he la$ishesall his affection on his da!ghters. ,is relations %ith the)hor!s are also $erycordial and he sho%s all d!e co!rtesy to them. In short &othas a man andas a +ing Oedip!s is %orthy of high respect.

,o%e$er# Oedip!s has his fa!lts. ,e is hot2tempered# hasty in hisj!dgment#pro!d of his intelligence# and random in his decisions. ,e !ic+lyloses histemper %hen he finds the prophet rel!ctant to re$eal the things

that he +no%s.,e j!mps to the concl!sion that Teiresias and )reon ha$ehatched a conspiracyagainst him. This attit!de of distr!st to%ards theprophet is in sharp contrast toOedip!s>s gen!ine piety. Oedip!s &elongs tothe %orld of politics and h!manstandards rather than to the di$ine order ofthe %orld. ,is piety fails also later on%hen# !nder the infl!ence of ocasta#he &ecomes some%hat s+eptical regardingthe oracle.

/n o!tstanding feat!re of Oedip!s>s character is an inherent feeling ofpride inhis o%n %isdom. Beca!se of this arrogance# Oedip!s certainlyalienates some of o!r sympathy. When self2confidence ta+es the form ofpride# ha!ghtiness#arrogance or insolence# it &ecomes disg!sting ando&noio!s. ,is attit!de of intolerance to%ards &oth Teiresias and )reonand his highly offensi$e andins!lting %ords to &oth of them create in !s the


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impression that he is pa$ing the%ay for his o%n do%nfall. Of co!rse#Oedip!s has already committed the crimes%hich ma+e him a sinner in theeyes of the god# in his o%n eyes# and in the eyesof other people. B!t thetragedy lay in disco$ery that he is g!ilty of them. If thecrimes had remained

!n+no%n there %o!ld hardly ha$e &een any tragedy.Tragedy comes %iththe fact for disco$ery &oth for ocasta and himself

It %o!ld &e a fla% in the logic to say that Oedip!s s!ffers &eca!se of his sinof pride# &!t his pride is not the direct ca!se of his tragedy. ,e tried toa$oid thef!lfillment of the prophecies made &y oracle. ,e +illed his fatherand married hismother. ,is tragedy is a tragedy of error. If he had &een alittle more caref!l#things %o!ld ha$e ta+en a different shape. ,e might ha$ea$oided the !arrel onthe road if he had not &een so pro!d or hot2tempered- and he might ha$e ref!sedto marry a %oman old eno!gh if hehad not &een &linded &y the pride of hisintelligence in sol$ing the riddle ofthe Sphin. B!t# then# the prophecies of theoracle %o!ld ha$e &een f!lfilledin some other %ay# &eca!se nothing co!ld ha$e&een pre$ented theirf!lfillment. 9ride has little to do %ith Oedip!s>s +illing hisfather andmarrying his mother.

If Oedip!s had not relentlessly p!rs!ed his in$estigations# he might ha$e&eenspared the shoc+ of disco$ery. Something in him dri$es him for%ardon the roadto disco$ery. /fter Teiresias has first ref!sed to tell himanything and then !tteredsome frightening prophecies. Oedip!s isdisco!raged &y ocasta to contin!e hisin$estigations. B!t he pays no heedto her philosophy of li$ing at random. Shema+es another effort to stop hisin$estigations %hen she has herself reali5ed thetr!th# &!t again she failed.The The&an shepherd too tries# &!t in $ain. It is thisinsistence on the tr!ththat leads to the disco$ery in %hich lies the tragedy. Wemay interr!pt this

insistence on the tr!th as a form of pride# the pride of intellect#or the prideof +no%ing e$erything. The lin+ of ca!se and effect is !nmista+a&le&et%eenOedip!s>s pride of intellect and Oedip!s>s disco$ery for his sins. B!tthereis no strong lin+ &et%een his pride and the act!al committing of hissins&eca!se the sins %o!ld ha$e &een committed in any case# if the oracle%as to &ef!lfilled. The oracle did say that Oedip!s %o!ld &e g!ilty of thosecrimes &!t nooracle said that Oedip!s m!st disco$er the tr!th.

Oedip!s is th!s an a!thentic tragic hero in the /ristotelian sense &eca!sehistragedy is as m!ch d!e to his o%n initiati$es in disco$ering the tr!th astoeternal circ!mstances. To the modern mind# a high social position isnotnecessary for the tragic hero nor do they recogni5e the $alidity oforacles too.

In Oedip!s %e see the helplessness of man in the face of the circ!mstancesandhis essential greatness. The manner in %hich Oedip!s &linds himselfafter reali5ing his g!ilt and in %hich he end!res his p!nishment raise himhigh in o!r esteem. The spirit of Oedip!s remains !ncon!ered e$en in hisdefeat and thatis the essential fact a&o!t a tragic hero.

Oedip!s ;e6 )haracter is 3estiny


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son &y ocasta %o!ld+ill him. *ai!s did e$erything possi&le to pre$ents!ch a disaster. Once ocastaga$e &irth to a son# *ai!s had him chainedand handed him o$er to a tr!st%orthyser$ant %ith strict orders that thechild &e eposed on. Mt. )ithaeron and allo%edto perish. B!t the ser$ant#

o!t of compassion# handed o$er the child to a)orinthian shepherd %hopassed him on to the )orinthian ?ing. The child gre%!p as the son of the?ing and !een of )orinth and later +illed his tr!e father#*ai!s# in completeignorance. /pollo>s oracle %as f!lfilled e$en tho!gh *ai!s andocasta too+the etreme step to escape the fate foretold &y the oracle.

Oedip!s had also to s!&mit to the destiny %hich /pollo's oracleprono!nced for him. ,e learnt from the oracle that he %o!ld +ill his o%nfather and marry his o%nmother. ,e# too# tried his !tmost to a$ert a terri&lefate and fled from )orinth. ,is%anderings too+ him to The&es# %herepeople %ere facing a great misfort!ne.?ing *ai!s had &een +illed and thecity %as in the grip of the Sphin# %ho %asca!sing a lot of destr!ction&eca!se no&ody %as a&le to sol$e her riddle.Oedip!s sol$ed the riddle andp!t an end to the monster. Oedip!s %as joyf!llyrecei$ed &y The&an peopleas their ?ing and %as gi$en *ai!s>s %ido% as his%ife. Th!s# in completeignorance of the identity of his parents# he +illed hisfather and married hismother. ,e performed these disastro!s acts not only!n+no%ingly# &!t as ares!lt of his efforts to escape the cr!el fate %hich theoracle at hadcomm!nicated to him.

It is e$ident that the occ!rrences %hich &ring a&o!t the tragedy in the life of*ai!s# Oedip!s# and ocasta are the %or+ of that mysterio!s s!pernat!ralpo%er called fate or destiny or &e gi$en the name of /pollo. Thiss!pernat!ral po%er had pre2determined certain tragic e$ents and e$eninformed the h!man &eings inad$ance. These h!man &eings ta+e %hate$er

meas!res# to a$ert those e$ents-and yet things t!rn o!t eactly as they had&een foretold &y the oracles. Oedip!shas done nothing at all to deser$e thefate %hich o$erta+es him. Aor do *ai!sand ocasta deser$e the fate theymeet.

/ccording to /ristotle the tragic hero is a prospero!s man %ho fallsintomisfort!ne d!e to some serio!s defect or hamartia. Ao do!&t thatOedip!s is ana&le r!ler# a father of his people# a great administrator and ano!tstandingintellect. ,is chief care is not for himself &!t for the people ofthe State. Thepeople loo+ !pon him as their sa$ior and %orshipped him. ,eis also a religio!sman in the orthodo sense. That s!ch a man sho!ld meetthe sad fate is!n&eara&ly painf!l to !s.

Oedip!s is not# ho%e$er# a perfect man or a perfect ?ing. ,e does s!fferfrom ahamartia or a defect of character. ,e is hot2tempered# rash# hasty inj!dgments#easily pro$o+ed and some%hat ar&itrary. Tho!gh in the&eginning his attit!deto%ards Teiresias is one of re$erence# he !ic+lyloses his temper and spea+s tothe prophet in an ins!lting manner acc!sing&oth him and )reon of treason andsho%ing a &lind s!spicion to%ards friends. ,is position and a!thority seemto &eleading him to &ecome a tyrant. )reon has to remind him that the citydoes not&elong to him alone. E$en %hen &linded he dra%s the reproach6


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/ll this sho%s that Oedip!s is not a man of a fla%less character# notcompletelyfree from fa!lts# not an em&odiment of all the $irt!es. ,is pridein his o%n %isdomis one of his glaring fa!lts. ,is s!ccess in sol$ing theriddle of the Sphin f!rther de$eloped his inherent feeling of pride. There is

in him a fail!re of piety e$en.4nder the infl!ence of ocasta# he gro%ssceptical of the oracles. Th!s there is inhim a lac+ of tr!e %isdom %hichtoo+ him on the $erge of &ecoming an impio!styrant.

If Oedip!s had not &een hot2tempered# he might not ha$e got entangled in afighton the road and might ha$e not &een g!ilty of m!rdering his father.Similarly# if hehad &een a little more ca!tio!s# he might ha$e hesitated tomarry a %oman oldeno!gh to &e his mother. /fter all there %as nocomp!lsion either in the fight or inhis marriage. Both his acts may th!s &eattri&!ted to his o%n defects of character. /ll at once it has to &e acceptedthat the decree of the oracles %ereinescapa&le. E$en if Oedip!s had ta+enthe preca!tions# the prophecy %as to &ef!lfilled. The oracle>s prediction%as !nconditional- it did not say that if Oedip!sdid s!ch and s!ch a thinghe %o!ld +ill his father and marry his mother. Theoracle simply said thatOedip!s %o!ld +ill his father and marry his mother. Whatthe oracle said#%as &o!nd to happen.

If Oedip!s is the innocent $ictim of inescapa&le doom# he %o!ld &e amerep!ppet and the play &ecomes a tragedy of destiny %hich deniesh!man freedom.Sophocles does not %ant to regard Oedip!s as a p!ppet-there is reason to&elie$e that Oedip!s has &een portrayed largely as a freeagent. The attendant inthe play insistently descri&es Oedip!s> self2&lindingas $ol!ntary anddisting!ishes it from his in$ol!ntary m!rder of his fatherand marriage %ith hismother. Oedip!s> actions %ere fate2&o!nd# &!te$erything that he does# he doesas a free agent his condemnation of

Teiresias and )reon# his con$ersation %ithocasta to re$eal the facts# hisp!rs!ing his in$estigation despite the efforts of ocasta and the The&anshepherd to stop him# and so on. Oedip!s# freelychoosing a series ofactions# led to his o%n r!in. Oedip!s co!ld ha$e left theplag!e to ta+e itsco!rse &!t his pity o$er the s!fferings of his people forced himto cons!ltthe oracle. ,e co!ld ha$e left the m!rder of *ai!s !nin$estigated# &!thislo$e of j!stice o&liged him to in!ire. ,e need not ha$e forced the tr!thfromthe rel!ctant The&an shepherd &!t he co!ld not rest content %ith a lie.Teiresias#ocasta# the The&an shepherd each tried to stop Oedip!s# &!t he%asdetermined to sol$e the pro&lem of his o%n parentage. The direct ca!seof hisr!in is not fate- no oracle said that he m!st disco$er the tr!th. Stillless does theca!se of his r!in lie in his o%n %ea+ness. ,is o%n strengthand co!rage# hisloyalty to The&es and his lo$e of tr!th ca!ses his r!in. /ll

this sho%s him a freeagent.

In spite of the facts that Oedip!s is a free agent in most of his actions# stillthemost tragic e$ents of his life his m!rder of his father and his marriage%ith hismother had ine$ita&ly to happen. ,ere the responsi&ility of fatecannot &edenied. The real tragedy lies in the disco$ery of tr!th# %hich isd!e to his o%ntraits. If he had not disco$ered the tr!th# he %o!ld ha$econtin!ed to li$e in astate of &lissf!l ignorance and there %o!ld ha$e &eenno tragedy and nos!ffering. B!t the parricide and the incest %ere pre2ordained and for these fate isresponsi&le.


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Oedip!s ;e6 )atharsis

/ccording to /ristotle tragedy sho!ld aro!se the feeling of pity and terror

pityfor the hero>s tragic fate and terror at the sight of the dreadf!l s!ffering&efallingpartic!larly the hero. By aro!sing pity and terror# a tragedy aims atthe catharsisof these and similar other emotions and c!res these feelings%hich al%ays eistin o!r hearts. / tragedy# hence# affords emotional reliefand the spectators rise atits end %ith a feeling of pleas!re. This# accordingto /ristotle# is the aestheticf!nction of tragedy. Thro!gh catharsis theemotions are red!ced to a healthy and&alanced proportion. Besides pityand fear an a!dience also eperiencescontempt# hatred# delight#indignation# and admiration. Still# these emotions areless important or lessintense. 9ity and fear are the dominant emotions and theyare intenselyprod!ced.

Tragedy# &y means of pity# fear and other emotions also pro$ides eercise

andno!rishment for the emotional side of h!man nat!re. It also satisfieso!r lo$e of &ea!ty and of tr!th# of tr!th to life and tr!th a&o!t life.Eperience# and moreeperience# is a nat!ral h!man cra$ing. Tragedy leadsto an enrichment of o!r eperience of h!man life. It may teach !s to li$emore %isely and %iden the&o!ndaries of o!r eperience of life. Tragedysho%s the eternal contradiction&et%een h!man %ea+ness and h!manco!rage# h!man st!pidity and h!mangreatness# h!man frailty and h!manstrength. Tragedy gi$es !s pleas!re &yehi&iting h!man end!rance andperse$erance in the face of calamities anddisasters.

9ity and fear are the dominating feelings prod!ced &y the play s!spicion on hearing from


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scene# the &lindOedip!s rises tr!ly to heroic heights# displaying anindomita&le spirit. Blind andhelpless tho!gh he no% is# and etremelyashamed of his parricide andincest!o!s eperience as he is# he yet sho%san in$!lnera&le mind and it is this%hich has a s!staining# cheering#

!plifting and ehilarating effect !pon !s.

ocasta>s fate !nderlines that of Oedip!s. So does the great song of the)hor!son the la%s %hich are andocasta's do!&ts a&o!t the oracles. It ends %ith ane$en more emphaticepression of fear of %hat %ill happen if the tr!th of thedi$ine oracles is denied.Bet%een the first and the last stan5as the )hor!sdescri&es the man %ho is &ornof hy&ris# s!ch hy&ris as is displayed &y the?ing and the !een. The descriptionfollo%s to a large etent thecon$entional pict!re of the tyrant# mentioning hispride# greed andirre$erence. Aot e$ery feat!re fits the character of Oedip!s# nor sho!ld %eepect that. The )hor!s fears that he %ho &eha$es %ith pres!mption#prideand self2confidence %ill t!rn tyrannical and impio!s# and they foreseethatGe!s# the tr!e ?ing of the %orld %ill p!nish the sins of the mortal ?ing.If he doesnot do so# all religion %ill &ecome meaningless# and all %ill &elost.

Othello 2 Battle of (ood $s. E$il


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order to stir the jealo!sy %ithin Othello. It is this jealo!sy and theignoranceof Othello that lead to the do%nfall of 3esdemona- the one tr!lygoodnat!red character in the play.

/s the play opens %e are immediately introd!ced to the hostility of IagoagainstOthello. Iago has &een appointed the position of ser$ant to Othelloinstead of themore prestigio!s position of lie!tenant. Michael )assio has&een appointed thisposition. Iago feels &etrayed &eca!se he considers himself more !alified than)assio to ser$e as lie!tenant. Iago thenforeshado%s his plans for Othello to;oderigo#


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&!t healmost certainly %asn't !sing the %ord

Documents

M.A Eng. Part 1 Drama Notes