Journal #4: Tracking Eyes

The image of eyes have been repeated several times throughout the play. Teiresias makes comments about eyes several times when he tells Oedipus of his fate. "He that came seeing, blind shall he go... When you can prove me wrong, then call me blind." This is paradoxical, because Teiresias himself is blind. Sophocles uses eyes to portray knowlege. Teiresias is blind, but he can see much about life. Oedipus has his vision, but he is arrogant and prideful, and discovers his fate too late. When he learns his fate, he blinds himself, reflecting Teiresias. Oedipus's path to blindness reflects his descent to a pitiful situation and a loss of dignity that tragedies specialize in. "What should I do with eyes where all is ugliness?" Oedipus says these words after he blinds himself. He discovered that he impregnated his mother four times and murdered his father. Everything he would see would remind him of the disgusting things he did, and he did not want to face his troubles. Sophocles lowers Oedipus to the most base of characters.