The play centers on Oedipus, a man of great compassion and intelligence who was also a man of great pride. Through his intelligence, he managed to solve a riddle no one else had been able to solve. This resulted in freeing Thebes from the sphinx that had been oppressing the land and securing for Oedipus both the kingship of Thebes and Jocasta, the late king Laius's widow, for his wife.

Oedipus demonstrates all the characteristics of a tragic hero. He occupies a high position in society by his noble birth and possesses both superior intellect and strength. However, he has several tragic flaws. He is easily angered, overconfident, and he makes mistakes.

Similarities exist between Sophocles' character Oedipus in ancient literature and J.K. Rowling's character Harry Potter in contemporary literature. Both characters initially lack knowledge of their lineage; both possess some form of humility in the beginning, but eventually develop a sense of hubris that results in a tragic flaw in their lives; and both live lives that are driven by prophecies made by soothsayers before their respective births.

Discusses Oedipus as a tragic hero, sources included.

Sophocles' three plays of The Oedipus Cycle demonstrate the many means of fate the roles that prophecies play in life. A parallel can be drawn between Oedipus' life and those of human beings in general, the most evident correlations of which are the understanding of one's fate, overcoming ego and gaining practicality, and the development of relationships within a lifetime.

An overview of Sophocles' saga of Oedipus, which depicts the king's downfall from the pinnacle of reverence to the depths of despair. Despite Oedipus' possession of personable characteristics typical of a king or hero in a great epic, his immense pride and ignorance fuels his cycle of demise, leading to his own self-mutilation.

Essay dicusses the character of Oedipus as well as his destiny.

Discusses how Oedipus fits the role of a tragic hero and not an epic hero.