Resilience in Oedipus and Hamlet

Resilience in Oedipus and Hamlet

Resilience is the ability of someone to return to a previous good position after a period of problems. Resilient people are robust and work through hardships. Oedipus and Hamlet both face challenging situations throughout their lives. They both show resilient qualities in overcoming the troubles they encounter. However, Hamlet is the more resilient character since he sustains his toughness till the very end.

Oedipus is the protagonist in Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King. The play’s plot is built around the character Oedipus, King of Thebes. Oedipus is fixated on finding and punishing the person responsible for the previous king’s death. This person ends up being Oedipus himself (“Oedipus the King”). It is a story of a person trying to fight fate only to end up fulfilling his destiny.

The play begins with the citizens of Thebes, begging Oedipus to take action in averting the plague that ravages the kingdom. Oedipus has already sent his brother in law Creon to the oracle to find out the reason behind the epidemic. Creon returns with news that the scourge was due to the killing of the previous king, Laius. The affliction will only disappear if the one responsible for Laius’ death is found and punished.

Oedipus, keen on solving the problem, summons the blind prophet Tiresias. After refusing to speak, Tiresias finally blames Laius’ death on Oedipus. An angry Oedipus seeks advice from Queen Jocasta, his wife, who informs Oedipus about the ancient prophecy that Laius’ son would be responsible for Laius’ death. According to Jocasta, this prophecy was not fulfilled since the child was abandoned at birth and left to die. Bandits killed Laius at crossroads..

The details of Laius’ death remind him of a person he had killed at crossroads just before coming to Thebes. On further inquiry, he discovers that the people he thought to be his parents were, in fact, not his parents. In the end, he finally realizes that the prophecy about him killing his father and marrying his mother had come to pass. Agonized, he returns to the palace only to find Jocasta dead. He blinds himself and asks Creon to kill him, but not before he could talk to his daughters. In the end, he submits to Creon and awaits the oracle’s decision on his fate.

Hamlet, on the other hand, is the protagonist in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. The play follows the journey and decisions of a distraught prince, Hamlet. Hamlet is focused on killing the man responsible for the death of his father. The search for justice for his dead father ends with Hamlet’s death and of other people around him (“Hamlet”). It is a story of persistence and resilience on Hamlet’s part

The play begins with Hamlet arriving in Denmark for his father’s burial. He is surprised to find that his mother, the Queen, has wed Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle. Claudius is pronounced king despite Hamlet being the heir to the throne. Hamlet feels something is amiss. His worries are confirmed when his father’s ghost appears and asks Hamlet to avenge his death. The spirit claims that Claudius poisoned him while he slept.

Hamlet feigns madness and rejects Ophelia, daughter to Polonius, a royal attendant. Claudius and Polonius spy on Hamlet to uncover what he was planning. To confirm the ghost’s claims, Hamlet hatches a plan with a group of traveling actors. They rehearse a play that recreates the assassination of Hamlet’s father. During the rehearsal, Hamlet watches Claudius’ reactions, and the words of the ghost are confirmed. Hamlet vows to avenge his father’s death by killing Claudius.

In the end, Ophelia dies from drowning. During her funeral, a duel is arranged between Hamlet and Ophelia’s brother, Laertes. Laertes and Claudius conspire to kill Hamlet by poisoning his drink and Laertes’s weapon. Gertrude drinks from Hamlet’s cup and dies. Hamlet, although wounded by the poisoned weapon, manages to kill both Laertes and Claudius and proclaims that Fortinbras become the new king of Denmark.

From both plays, it is evident that both Oedipus and Hamlet are determined. Determination is vital if one is to bounce back from problems. With the plague ravaging the kingdom of Thebes, Oedipus vows to bring the person responsible for Laius’ death to justice, cursing “Upon the murderer I invoke this curse- / whether he is one man and all unknown/ or one of many-may he wears out his life / in misery to miserable doom.” (Sophocles, and Grene 1.246-249) Although this determination leads to his downfall, he continues in search of the truth. Hamlet, on the other hand, is determined to avenge his father’s death. He goes to the extent of staging a play that replicates his father’s death to determine whether Claudius is guilty. Hamlet’s determination to kill his father’s killer eventually leads to his death. Even after being poisoned, he still finds the strength to stab and force the poisoned drink down Claudius’ throat. Hamlet says, “The point envenomed too? Then, venom, to thy work. Here, thou incestuous, murd’ rous, damned Dane, drink off this potion, Is thy union here? Follow my mother”(Shakespeare, and Barnett 5.2.324-327). The dedication and determination of both Oedipus and Hamlet lead to the realization of their objectives, albeit tagging misfortunes along.

Similarly, both Oedipus and Hamlet are strong and robust. Both characters are willing to overcome the difficult challenges in their lives. When Jocasta narrates to Oedipus how Laius dies, she mentions that her son with Laius was pierced in the ankles and left to die at just three days old. She says, “But his child had not been three days in this world / Before the King had pierced the baby’s ankles / And left him to die on a lonely mountainside. (Sophocles et al. 1.193-195) Oedipus manages to live through this ordeal and return to Thebes. Likewise, he also portrays his aggressive nature by managing to fight and kill Laius when they clash at the crossroads. Hamlet also represents the strength of will and toughness by faking madness and distancing himself from Ophelia. He uses the veil of madness to mask his plan of finding out the truth about his father’s death. His ploy works so well that Ophelia commits suicide, unable to withstand Hamlet’s indifference. The ability to reach any end shows how both Oedipus and Hamlet were resilient in dealing with their problems.

Hamlet sets himself apart from Oedipus since his resilience runs till the very end. After being wounded by a poisoned weapon during the duel with Laertes, Hamlet still has the drive to kill Claudius by forcing a poisoned drink down his throat. On the other hand, Oedipus’ resilience fades once he learns that he was responsible for his father’s death and for the plague that affected Thebes. Distraught after finding Jocasta dead in the palace, he takes out his own eyes and begs Cleon to kill him. He says, “But his command is plain: the parricide / Must be destroyed, I am that evil man (Sophocles et al. 1.211, 212) By giving up after realizing the truth, Oedipus shows that he is not as resilient as Hamlet.

Both Oedipus and Hamlet are characters that portray exceptional resilience. However, Hamlet is the more robust one of the two since he carries his toughness to the very end. Oedipus, on the other hand, breaks down after realizing he caused his father’s death and married his mother.

Works Cited

“Hamlet.” Cliffsnotes.Com, https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/h/hamlet/play-summary. Accessed 22 March 2020.

“Oedipus The King”. Cliffsnotes.Com, https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/o/the-oedipus-trilogy/play-summary/oedipus-the-king. Accessed 22 March 2020.

Shakespeare, William, and Sylvan Barnett. The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark. 4th ed., Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 1998.

Sophocles and David Grene. Oedipus The King. 3rd ed., The University of Chicago Press, 2010.

Sophocles. et al. Oedipus Rex. 2nd ed., Harcourt Inc., 1977.