Bill Huang, Period 7, 3/2/2023

Bill Huang

3/2/23

Period 7

Modern Mythology 2023

Literacy and Learning

Write about your thoughts regarding any of the fiction or nonfiction covered in class.

I chose to revisit Oedipus Rex, which was a Greek tragedy. In the story, it is prophesied that Oedipus will kill his father (Laius) and mate with his mother (Jocasta). His parents chain him as a baby on the side of a mountain in response, an attempt to defy fate without angering the gods by murdering Oedipus. A shepherd rescues Oedipus, after which he is raised by Polybus and Merope in Corinth. Oedipus learns about his prophecy, so he leaves Corinth to Thebes. On the journey, he kills a man who turns out to be Laius, his father. After that, he solves the Sphinx's riddle and Thebes accepts him as their new king and gives Jocasta’s hand in marriage. Oedipus asks Tiresias who killed his father, to which Tiresias says Oedipus killed Laius. Oedipus refuses to accept this truth until Jocasta sees it herself and commits suicide in response to it. Oedipus blinds himself and lives with his two daughters, Antigone and Ismene. 

The Greek idea of fate reminds me of the dragon from Gardner’s version of Grendel because there is nothing you can do to change the future. The dragon is a nihilist because it believes that life is meaningless, so he tells Grendel to just focus on hoarding gold, which is shallow and materialistic. Meanwhile, in Greek mythology and culture, traits like bravery were celebrated and rewarded even though they still believed fate would keep the future the same. The dragon and Greek mythology have the same idea, but two different tones towards it. I believe this is because encouraging Greeks to be brave was a benefit in their society, given the wars between city states and therefore a need for soldiers. An extreme example of this is the Spartans only giving gravestones to men who died in battle or women who died in childbirth. Being a soldier was an important and necessary position, so their culture reflected that. Meanwhile, the dragon is an all-seeing creature that after seeing the past, present, and future, comes to the conclusion that life is short and meaningless in the grand scheme of the universe. 

Running from your problems instead of facing them is my takeaway from Oedipus Rex. Laius and Jocasta try to run from their problems by abandoning Oedipus on the mountain, only for him to come back to Thebes and fulfill the prophecy. Meanwhile, Oedipus is ignorant to the clues that he did fulfill the prophecy, like the prophet Tiresias accusing him of being Laius’s killer. Of course, with the Greek idea of fate, facing their problems would still have achieved the same exact results. However, the idea of facing your problems can be applied to real life. For example, I procrastinate a lot, which is mainly because part of my mind wants to run from my problems instead of facing them. Then I find temporary relief in distracting myself, even though it only makes the situation worse in the long run when work piles up. Managing to overcome this irrational habit would unlock most of my potential.