STORY TIME TABLOIDS

Oedipus, Friend or
Foe

her. Never did he think about the people

he killed that day at the crossroads, until
a Shepard, the lone survivor of Oedipuss
attack told him that he murdered
his
BY: KAITLIN
SULLIVAN
B Band
father, King Laius. Oedipus went
on

This past week, the mystery behind

the true murderer of King Laius has been
uncovered. Surprisingly, the murderer
was Oedipus, king of Thebes who took
the thrown after Kings Laius' death. The
people of Thebes thought Oedipus was a
savior after he was the only one that was
able to solve the Sphinx's riddle, and
from there they thought Oedipus would
be the one who can get Thebes to escape
the plague, but that was not the case.
Before the murderer was uncovered, the
people of Thebes praised Oedipus; he
was renowned for his intelligence. But
after finding out he was the murder of
their previous King, thoughts changed.

Story Time Tabloids, sat down for

exclusive interview with Oedipus after
the truth that he was the murderer came
out, he explained his situation. Oedipus
said that he originally left Corinth so he
could escape the prophecy of killing his
parents and marrying his mother, but he
had no clue that he was adopted and
that
his
biological
parents
were
elsewhere. To avoid the prophecy he left
home and went towards Thebes were he
came in contact with a man and his
servants. Oedipus claimed that they were
attacking him and one of the men were
poking him with a stick, so he took it
upon himself to stop the attacks and he
killed the men at the crossroads. He
then described after years passed that
he took the throne of Thebes, married his
wife Jocasta and had four children with

to explain the main reason why he left

his parents in Corinth was so he could
steer away from fulfilling the prophecy,
he said that he had no intention to hurt
or kill anyone and that he was just trying
to protect he loved ones at home. He
then explained how honored he was to
become King of Thebes, to help protect
the people and rid the plague, but now
puts all the blame on himself.

Picture taken by lone survivor of the mass

murder by Oedipus

We then asked why he blinded

himself after he found out his life was a
lie and he was the one who murdered

King Laius. From the beginning of

Oedipus life, he lived with parents that
were not his biological parents and was
never told the truth that he was adopted.
Growing up in a life of lies was Oedipuss
downfall. If he had known that who he
called his parents werent his real
parents he would have never left Corinth
and his fate would have never come into
play. As soon as he escaped Corinth so
his parents would be safe, fate controlled
Oedipus actions. His only to desire

seemed to be to flee his fate, but his fate

repeatedly catches
up with him. After
finding out what
he tried to escape
for so long came
true,
Oedipus
blinded
himself.
His blindness all
his life led him to
where
he
was
today and he does
not want to see
the
horror
and
problems caused
for his loved ones
and the people of
Thebes. He didnt want to see the beauty
of the world knowing all the horrible
things he did, killing his father, marrying
his mother and having children with her.
With not being able to look at or see
anything,
left
Oedipus
constantly
thinking about his wrongs in life, and he
will be faced with it for the remainder of
his life.
After our interview is Oedipus, we
were left to decide if he was the enemy
after all or was he a good guy after all, a

friend or foe. We went around to the

people of Thebes to get their opinion on
the idea. Some were still angry because
he killed their previous king and then
tried to rule them as if he did nothing
wrong while others claimed that he had
good intentions. Oedipus seemed to have
anger issues and made quite a few
mistakes in his life but after our interview
he seemed to truly be a good man. He
inadvertently fulfills the prophecy, and
was controlled by his fate, he was
destined to do what he did, and he had
no control of it.
Oedipus solved the sphinxs riddle
and had high concerns for the citizens of
this foreign city, which is how he gained
their respect. He didnt just rule for
power, he wanted to save and help the

citizens in a time of need, he was a good

leader. He left his parents in Corinth to
protect them, even though he was
saddened to do so. Not knowing he was
the killer of Laius, he went out in search
for the murderer, showing that he cares
for his people. After finding out he was
the murderer, Oedipus accepts total
responsibility for the tragedy that occurs
in his life, he blinded himself as
punishment and left his kids and family
so that they can have a better life
without him.
Like every person, Oedipus has his
flaws, but that does not make him the
enemy. Nobody is perfect and everyone
makes mistakes, some worse than
others, but in Oedipuss case all he did
besides killing King Laius unknowingly
was in good intentions. From what we
learned during our interview and our
discussions with loved ones, Oedipus was

a man scared of his fate, and by trying

not to fulfill the prophecy, he did ruining
the rest of his life.