Tragedy in Oedipus the King and Dolls House Essay example -- essays r

Faults Written in the Stars During the Ancient Grecian time periods, tragedy meant death because one defied against an outer prophecy. Modern day tragedy was simply realism, the unspoken way of life. In Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Ibsen's A Doll's House, the main characters - Nora and Oedipus, are both constructed to illustrate flaws in society and how naive people are. Ibsen and Sophocles both developed tragedy into a central idea that all people surreptitiously understand. Nora and Oedipus make incompetent decisions that assist in discovering their fundamental nature as tragic heroes and provoke sorrow and pity among the audience. Oedipus lived his entire life in a dark shadow of ignorance, just like Nora. Oedipus' archetype of a tragic hero begins as an all-powerful, honorable king that believed he could solve any riddle, and acts rapidly on decisions. Oedipus lacked complete self knowledge, â€Å"I will speak out now as a stranger to the story, a stranger to the crime. If I’d been present then, there would have been no mystery, no long hunt without clue in hand† (Oe...