¶ … Role of Free Will and Fate in Oedipus Rex and Othello, the Moor of Venice
Free will and fate play a major role in determining the outcome the hero experiences in Sophocles' Oedipus Rex and William Shakespeare's Othello, the Moor of Venice. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus's destiny has been predetermined and despite his many efforts, he cannot escape the future the gods have planned for him. Oedipus Rex's form relies on a chorus to serve as an emissary between the gods and the audience and ultimately aims at allowing the audience to achieve catharsis. On the contrary, in Othello, the Moor of Venice, Othello's future is determined through a series of actions that were not influenced by the gods, but rather through free will. Othello, the Moor of Venice's form breaks up the action into separate "vignettes" that ultimately highlight the depravity of man and aims to serve as a moral tale for others. The downfall of these tragic heroes can be analyzed through the roles that gods play and the roles that other individuals play.
Aristotle defined a tragic hero as "a person who is neither perfect in virtue and justice, nor one who falls into misfortune through...
As their saga unfolds, we realize that Turnus does not experience the same protection as Aeneas and we can even say that while fate is working for Aeneas, it is working against Turnus. Aeneas never looses sight of the prize and Turnus' death provides even more confirmation that his life is indeed in the hand of protective fate. It is important to realize the significance of how the gods intervene
Humbert is awaiting trial for murder, and act of his own free will. No one will argue that Humbert could have made other choices in this case. However, it can be argued whether his sudden coronary in the end was a twist of bad fate, or of good fate. On one hand, it ended his life, on the other; it saved him from life in prison. Lolita's death in
Laius is responsible for his condition and there is no way for him to escape his fate, even with the fact that he does everything in his power with the purpose of fighting divinity's will. It is difficult and almost impossible to determine whether Oedipus should be accountable or not for killing Laius at the moment when he does so. One must consider that similar to how some religions promote
In any case, fate has sadly a very negative air about it in Madame Bovary. The most important use of Fate is acknowledged by the narrator in the novel. It is when Charles says that Fate is to blame for it had willed it this way. "[Charles] even made a phrase, the only one he'd ever made: 'Fate willed it this way'" (Flaubert 255). Flaubert's emphasis on the use of
Fate in Literature Stories whether they are presented in film, printed or orally spoken all share important commonalities. One of the important shared elements amongst stories that have been around for hundreds maybe even thousands of years in literature is the role of fate within the stories. Fate in literature can be broadly defined as the power, influence or will of a superior or supernatural force that stages and predetermines events
When Edith Wharton tells us that "it was the background that she [Lily] required," we understand that both Emma Bovary and Lily have a very important thing in common. They are first of all women in the nineteenth century society, fettered by social conventions to fulfill any kind of aspirations or ideals. A woman, as it is clearly stated in both novels, had no other means of being having
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