Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles, (as translated by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald), is replete with dramatic devices – one of which is known as Sophoclean Irony. Sophoclean Irony can be divided into two terms: unconscious and conscious irony. Unconscious irony occurs when a character speaks what he believes is the truth, but the audience (fore-armed with knowledge of the truth) knows that it is not. Conscious irony is evident when a character knows the truth but is reluctant to reveal it: thus, he speaks cryptic lines deliberately intended to be ironic.

Both types of irony will be examined in this paper and passages from the text will be cited in support of this thesis. At the moment of his birth, Oedipus received a reading from the Delphic Oracle which stated that the baby was destined to grow up to murder his father and marry his mother. Shocked, his parents (King Laios and Queen Locaste of Thebes) try to circumvent Hera’s curse by turning the infant over to a loyal servant (The Theban Shepherd) to take to the top Mt. Cithaeron to be killed.

After nailing his ankles together and leaving him to die of the elements, the old shepherd relents and hands the child over to a traveling shepherd from Corinth to take back to the childless King and Queen to raise as their own son. For the next twenty years, Laios and Locaste rule in Thebes believing their son to be dead. Unfortunately, Hera sends a drought associated with a sphinx to bedevil Thebes. A desperate Laios travels back to the Delphic Oracle for a reading. Meanwhile, back in Corinth, Oedipus grows to manhood believing Polybos and Merope (the King and Queen of Corinth) are his real parents.

Soon, he too learns of his horrible fate and seeking to avoid it, he flees hi supposed homeland. As fate would have it, along the road, Oedipus meets Laios and kills him in a fit of rage. Thus, he has unwittingly fulfilled the first half of the prophecy. Traveling on to Thebes, Oedipus saves the city from the drought by solving the riddle of the sphinx. Declared the new King, he marries the widowed Queen (Locaste) – his mother. Thus, he has unknowingly fulfilled the second half of the prophecy. For the next two decades, Oedipus rules successfully in Thebes until Hera sends a second drought to plague the city.

After sending his brother-in-law, Creon, back to the Delphic oracle for a reading, Oedipus learns that the second drought will not be lifted until Laios’ killer is found and punished. An over-confident King takes charge of the investigation. At this point, Sophocles begins his play. Our first example of unconscious irony can be seen in a discussion about Laios by Oedipus and Creon. Oedipus says about Laios: “I know: I learned of him from others: I never saw him. ” (pg. 862, lines 108-109). This passage constitutes unconscious irony as Oedipus believes that he is speaking the truth – that he never met Laios.

Of course, the audience, armed with fore-knowledge, know that it is not. Oedipus not only has met Laios (his real father), he killed him at the crossroads “where three highways meet. ” Our second example of unconscious irony occurs a little in the same scene. Oedipus states that: Then once more I must bring what is dark to light. It is most fitting that Apollo shows, as you do, this compunction for the dead. You shall see how I stand by you as I should, to avenge the city and the city’s god, and not as though it were some distant friend, but for my own sake, to be rid of evil.

Whoever killed King Laios might who knows? Decide at any moment to kill me as well. By avenging the murdered King I protect myself. (pg. 863, lines 133-142) Here, Oedipus refers to the fact the whoever killed Laios might someday attempt to kill Oedipus. Thus, ironically, he feels that by finding the killer of Laios, he will be protecting himself. Of course, this is nonsense. He is unaware that his finding of Laios’ killer will not protect him – but destroy him. Our third example of unconscious irony is evident later in scene I, when the King ironically condemns himself with his own proclamation:

I make this proclamation to all Thebans: if any man knows by whose hand Laios , son of Labdakos, met his death, I direct that man to tell me everything, no matter what he fears for having so long withheld it. Let it stand as promised that no further trouble will come to him, but he may leave the land in safety. (pg. 865, lines 10-15) This passage constitutes unconscious irony as he condemns himself later in the play. He thinks that he is condemning the kill he is looking for. Our first example of conscious irony occurs later in scene I.

Again, following Creon’s advice, Oedipus decides to consult Tiresias, a famed blind prophet. Armed with mystical ability, Tiresias knows the truth about Oedipus’ horrible fate. He knows that the King is doomed so he is reluctant to reveal what he knows. As he enters the stage, the old man says: How dreadful knowledge of the truth can be when there is no help in truth. I know this well, but did not act on it. Else I should not have come. (pg. 868, lines 101-104) Since he knows how horrible the truth is about Oedipus’ fate, he is reluctant to reveal it. Thus, he speaks lines deliberately intended to be ironic.

Of course, Oedipus misinterprets Tiresias’ reluctance and begins to badger the old man. Our second example of conscious irony occurs moments later in the conversation when Tiresias know that Oedipus has no free will: “What does it matter? / Whether I speak or not, it is bound to come! ” (pg. 868, lines 120-121). These lines are spoken in a cryptic fashion deliberately intended to obscure the truth. Our third example of conscious irony takes place in scene III. After a visit by the Corinthian shepherd, Locaste has figured out the truth about Oedipus. She has crossed over from ignorance to knowledge.

Now she tries desperately to stop Oedipus from further investigation into his past: “For god’s love, let us have no more questioning;/ is your life nothing to you? / My own is pain enough for me to bear. ” (pg. 885, lines 140-142). She speaks cryptic lines here deliberately intended to obscure the truth. In the play, Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles (as translated by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald), the playwright uses a dramatic device known as Sophoclean Irony. Both types of irony have been defined and passages were cited from the text in support of the thesis.

In many plays a character has a misconception of his her self and/or his or her world. When this misconception is destroyed it can be a major turning point in the story. “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles is one such story. In the story Oedipus has such a misconception where he thinks he has a good life, but really his life is morally wrong. This contributes to the theme or themes of the play when they serve as the defining climax of the story. When the misconception is stopped Oedipus sees that you cannot escape or change your past, but you can till do great things even if you have been evil or immoral in your life.

When Oedipus was born it was prophesied that he would kill his father and marry his mother. His father naturally feared this and told a shepard to take the boy out and kill him when he was still a child. The kind old shepard could not bring himself to kill a innocent little boy so he gave him to a passing messenger to take as his own. When Oedipus was older he learned of this prophecy and left home because he loved his foster father who he believed to be his real father. A while after he ran away he traveling down a road when he saw a coach coming.

It contained his true father, King Laios of Thebes and his bodyguards. When they almost ran him over Oedipus attacked them killing the bodyguards and his father, thinking that they were highway bandits, and by doing so he unwittingly fulfilled the prophecy. When he realizes this he is devastated. This really contributes to the theme, that you cannot escape your past. The fact that he killed a king and his father no less, is a major factor in his exile later in the story. When he discovers that King Laios was his real father he sees that by not running away that he could have prevented this whole catastrophe.

This just goes to show that hindsight is always 20/20, Oedipus saw this and realized his mistake. Him realizing that he cannot go back and change his past is also a big theme of the story. This fact too. plays a big part in his mental breakdown later in the story. After he kills his father he is walks further down the road when he is accosted by the Sphinx who tells him that if he cannot answer her riddle correctly that she will kill him. He however does succeed in solving her riddle and she kills herself out of fury.

When word gets out the he was the one who caused the death of the Sphinx the people of Thebes ( whose king he just recently killed ) adopt him as their new king, thanking that their real king was killed by bandits, and give him the queen, Queen Jocasta ( his mother ) for his bride. They lived happily for many years and had four children. When Oedipus learns of the heinous crime he has committed he nearly dies. Jocasta upon learning that she had been married to her son hangs herself and when Oedipus ees her body dangling he cuts her down and stabs out his eyes with her brooch.

Having disgraced his country he is banished and he and his daughter Antigone leave Thebes. He later dies in exile at a shrine of Apollo in Colonus. Before he leaves Thebes however he states that he will do great things before he dies the horrible death he believes is reserved for him. He speaks with great hubris in the end of the play when he tells Creon to care for his daughters and tells of the things he will do before he dies. This, being able to still accomplish great things even after doing such horrendous crimes such as incest nd regicide.

Realization that you cannot change or escape your past and that you can still achieve great things even after committing awful crimes in your life are all the things that Oedipus sees after his misconception of his entire life is destroyed and he sees the things he could have prevented. When you look back on your life and see something that brought about bad consequences you most often see how you could have easily avoided the usually small detail that caused the whole ordeal. that is usually a great learning experience for you.