et of divination”, and then proceeds to speak of the prophecy she was given regarding Oedipus as a child – unbeknownst to her, a prophecy already become true.When Jocasta learns of the death of Oedipus’ “father”, Polybus, she laughs at the prophecies, saying:-“Where are you now, divine prognostications!The man whom Oedipus has avoided all these years,Lest he should kill him – dead! By a natural death,And by no act of his!”Jocasta will not admit to herself that Polybus isn't Oedipus’ father, and instead speaks cryptic lines, to try and convince herself that she hasn’t been mothering ill-begotten children with her son.When Jocasta finally admits to herself that she has married her son, she begs him to not continue his investigation, lest he find out himself:-“(white with terror) what does it matterWhat man he means? It makes no difference now…Forget what he has told you… It makes no difference.”Oedipus then states that he will continue until he has unraveled the mystery of his birth, to which Jocasta replies:-“No! In God’s name – if you want to live, this questMust not go on. Have I not suffered enough?”Jocasta pleads with Oedipus to not continue his investigation, lest he ironically find out about his past. Unfortunately, Oedipus’ Hubris leads him to do so, and he eventually discovers the truth……giving to the audience the moral of the play: that no man can defeat the Gods’ will. At the start of the play, Oedipus the King is revered as “Oedipus, O greatest of men”. By the end of the play, the pity of all for Oedipus the Beggar – “the man the deathless gods hate most of all” - is summed up by the chorus: “I wish you had never known”. The basic theme of Oedipus Rex is the irony of fate: no mortal man, no matter how powerful and wealthy, can be pronounced happy until he ...
