The story of Oedipus the King is the epitome of tragedy. A great hero, once revered as the equal of the gods, fell from grace when it was learned that he had killed his father and married his mother. In the time of Sophocles, Oedipus was pitied for committing these sins. Today's public is probably more disgusted by the incestuous relationship he had with his mother than by the murder of his father. After all, it was Laius, former king of Thebes, who cemented Oedipus' fate. Oedipus was the convenient scapegoat for the tragedies of the play. How could he have avoided an ultimately inevitable fate? What more could we expect from another man in the same situation? Oedipus consciously acted morally and altruistically regarding his prophecy, the kingdom of Thebes as well as his ultimate destiny. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Oedipus acted like a hero in his attempt to avoid a prophecy that involved harming his parents. Oedipus' nobility in this matter is particularly evident in comparison with the way Laius attempted to avoid his fate. Laius received the first prophecy that his son would one day kill him. When Jocasta gave birth to a boy, Oedipus, Laius had his feet together and sent him abandoned to a mountain to die. Jocasta accepted this plan to kill her son. Laius and Jocasta now deserve no sympathy for their respective fates. After discovering the truth about baby Oedipus, there was no public outcry for the crime of attempted infanticide on the part of Laius and Jocasta. Oedipus, on the other hand, attempted to circumvent the same prophecy by leaving the city of Corinth. By doing this, he assured that he would not kill Polybius or marry Merope. Unfortunately, these were not his real parents and had no bearing on the prophecy. However, Oedipus did not have this information. Rather than killing Polybius and Merope, which would have been consistent with Laius' method of avoiding fate, Oedipus sought a peaceful solution. Oedipus made the moral choice to separate himself from those he thought were his parents in order to avoid harming them. From the day Oedipus set foot in the city of Thebes, he acted like a hero. Oedipus loved the kingdom of Thebes and the people held him in great esteem. He first arrived in Thebes and defeated a Sphinx who was terrorizing the city. If Oedipus had failed, the Sphinx would have eaten him alive. Therefore, even before being crowned king, he placed the kingdom above his personal safety. When the plague arrived in the city, Oedipus was very disturbed and vowed to find a solution to the problem. He sent for a message from the oracle and learned that the murderer of King Laius had to be found in order to eliminate the plague. Oedipus, unaware of course that he was the real killer, launched a city-wide investigation to learn the identity of the murderer. He proposed banishing the murderer rather than putting him to death in order to speed up the legal process. When it appeared that no one would give any information, Oedipus announced a curse on the murderer. Looking back, we see these things as ironic. Oedipus repeatedly proved himself to be a loyal, if not vigilant, servant to the people of Thebes. Upon learning that his prophecy had come true, Oedipus acted in such a way that he should be considered courageous and selfless. Oedipus eventually learned that he had indeed killed his father and married his mother, despite his best efforts to avoid this situation. There were a few moments where he may have acted irrationally, running through the palace with his sword in hand for example. This can be forgiven provided the horrible moment of recognition that he has just.