Role of Women in Oedipus the King Essay

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role of women in Oedipus the King with the role of women in any other ancient Greek writings we have read this term. Be sure to do more than just observe the differences or similarities. I want to see a point argued here.

The role of women in "Oedipus the King" compared to the role of women in "The Odyssey"

Women have had a series of roles in Greek legends, with some of them focusing on their inferiority in regard to men and on their hopelessness in trying to handle difficult situations by themselves whereas others picture women as individuals who are not willing to give up without putting up a serious fight. The character of Jocasta in Sophocles' "Oedipus the King" appears to be strong and dominant at first but gradually loses control as the play's action advances. In contrast, most of the female characters in Homer's "Odyssey" put across great strength of mind and appear to be able to deal with any difficulty that they come across, regardless of its gravity. While Queen Jocasta is one of the most unfortunate characters in Greek mythology, the women in "The Odyssey" demonstrate that determination is the key to success.

One is likely to consider that the role of women is downgraded through the character of Jocasta.

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This is because she yields in to temptations and refrains from employing a distrustful character, especially considering that the oracle alarmed her regarding her fate. Jocasta's decision to send a servant to kill her son instead of doing it herself shows that she is weak and that she is principally responsible for the fact that the prophecy becomes reality. The Queen's emotional instability is apparently caused by the fact that she is a woman, thus meaning that many people in the Greek society considered women to be inferior when compared to men. People most probably considered that women were guided by their emotions instead of being influenced by logics and their behavior led to terrible acts.

Given that Jocasta is the only female character in the play, it is only safe to assume that Sophocles discriminated women and was hesitant about providing them with important roles in his plays. Even with the fact that Jocasta's character appears several times throughout the play, her overall purpose and her position in regard to the play's action is irresponsible and immature. Her husband's death does not strike her as being something unusual and she immediately forgets him as she marries Oedipus. Homer's Penelope is actually the opposite of Jocasta when considering the fact that….....

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