Oedipus（俄狄浦斯）

郭庆

The story

Oedipus was the son of Laius and Jocasta. Before his birth, it was prophesied that he would murder his father and marry his mother. To avoid this calamity, the child's feet were tied together, and pierced with a stake (which caused him to have permanently swollen feet – hence one meaning of Oedipus which translates to "swollen foot"; it also comes from the Greek root meaning knowledge). He was then given to a herdsman who was told to kill him. The herdsman, out of pity and yet fearing to disobey, instead gave him to another herdsman. The second herdsman took the infant Oedipus to his master, the king of Corinth, Polybus, who adopted him as his own son. Oedipus then lived as the crowned prince of Corinth. Many years later, Oedipus is told that he is not the real son of Polybus and, to confirm this, he seeks help from an Oracle and is told that he is destined to kill his father and mate with his mother. In his attempt to evade the dictates of the Oracle, he decides to flee from home to Thebes, on the other side of the mountains.

As Oedipus was travelling by horse to Thebes, he came to a crossroads where he met a chariot, which, unbeknown to him, was driven by a man called Laius. A dispute arose over right of way and the outcome was that Oedipus killed Laius. Continuing his journey to Thebes, Oedipus encountered a Sphinx, who stopped any traveller and asked him a riddle that none had yet been able to solve. If the traveller failed, he was eaten by the Sphinx, if he succeeded, he would be able to continue with his journey. The riddle was: "What walks on four feet in the morning, two in the afternoon and three at night?". The answer was: "Man; as an infant, he crawls on all fours, as an adult, he walks on two legs and, in old age, he relies on a walking stick". Oedipus solved the riddle and the Sphinx threw herself to her death, letting him go. The gratitude of the Thebans led them to appoint Oedipus as their true king. Oedipus was also given the recent widow Jocasta as his wife. Over the years, Oedipus and Jocasta had four children: two sons, Polynices and Eteocles (see Seven Against Thebes), and two daughters, Antigone and Ismene.

Many years after the marriage of Oedipus and Jocasta, a plague struck the city of Thebes. Oedipus, with his typical hubris, asserted that he could, and would, end the plague. He sent Creon, Jocasta's brother, to the Oracle at Delphi, seeking guidance, and found that the murderer of the former king Laius must be found and either killed or exiled. In a search for the identity of the killer, Oedipus sends for the blind prophet, Tiresias, who warns him not to try to find the killer. In an angry exchange, Tiresias tells Oedipus that he is the killer and suggests that he is living in shame and doesn't know who his true parents are. Undaunted, Oedipus continues his search. When a messenger arrives from Corinth with the news that king Polybus is dead, Oedipus still regarding Polibus as his true father, worries about the part of the prophecy that dictates he will mate with his own mother. The messenger reassures him with the news that he is adopted. Jocasta then realizes who Oedipus is and goes into the palace to kill herself. Oedipus seeks verification of the messenger's story from the very same herdsman who was to have left Oedipus to die as a baby. From that herdsman, Oedipus learns that the infant raised as the adopted son of Polybus and Merope was the son of Laius and Jocasta. Thus, Oedipus finally realizes that earlier at the crossroads, he had killed his own father, king Laius, and as consequence, had married his own mother, Jocasta.

Oedipus goes in search of Jocasta and finds she has killed herself. Taking brooches from her gown, Oedipus blinds himself. Oedipus leaves the city and his daughter Antigone acts as his guide as he wanders blindly through the country, ultimately dying at Colonus, after being placed under the protection of Athens by Theseus, its king.

His two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, arranged to share the kingdom, each to take an alternating one-year reign. But Eteocles refused to give up his kingship after his year was up. Polynices then brought in an army, a battle ensued and, at the end of the battle, the brothers killed each other. Jocasta's brother, Creon, then took the throne. He made the decision that Polynices was the "traitor," and should not be buried. Defying this edict, Antigone did attempt to bury her brother and Creon ultimately had her killed, leading to tragedy for all of Creon's family.
There are, because of its oral tradition, different the endings to the story. Significant variations on the Oedipus legend are mentioned in fragments by several ancient Greek poets including Homer, Hesiod and Pindar. Most of what is known of Oedipus comes from a set of plays by Sophocles: Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone.

The Oedipus complex

Sigmund Freud used the name The Oedipus complex to explain the origin of certain neuroses in childhood. It is defined as a male child's unconscious desire for the exclusive love of his mother. This desire includes jealousy towards the father and the unconscious wish for that parent's death. Oedipus himself, as portrayed in the myth, did not suffer from this neurosis – at least, not towards Jocasta, whom he only met as an adult. (If anything, such feelings would have been directed at Merope – but there is no hint of that.) However, Freud reasoned that the ancient Greek audience, which heard the story told or saw the plays based on it, did know that Oedipus was actually killing his father and marrying his mother; the story being continually told and played therefore reflected a preoccupation with the theme.