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CHOOSE YOUR PATH. Fate vs. Free Will. What is worth fighting for?. By Priya Kikani. THEMES. Throughout the novel, Oedipus’s struggles to avoid his fate eventually lead to him fulfilling the prophecy. Oedipus was condemned to this path of destruction.
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CHOOSE YOUR PATH Fate vs. Free Will What is worth fighting for? By Priya Kikani
THEMES • Throughout the novel, Oedipus’s struggles to avoid his fate eventually lead to him fulfilling the prophecy. • Oedipus was condemned to this path of destruction. • Are our lives governed by fate? Can we truly make our own decisions? Or are our futures set in stone?
How To Play Each half of the room is a “player” • Player 1: Fate • Player 2: Free Will Each side makes choices that determines the outcome
How To WIN • Player 1 (fate): Oedipus fulfills the prophecy by murdering his father and marrying his mother • Player 2 (free will): Oedipus lives happily with full knowledge of who his family is, so he does not fulfill the prophecy. • NOTE: Both sides will lose if Oedipus dies
Fate Free Will VS. Free will goes first…
Free Will: You are Jocasta: Tiresias has told you that your newborn son will murder your husband and marry you. What do you do? Give Oedipus to the shepherd to kill him before he becomes a threat Keep Oedipus. After all, he’s just a baby boy!
Fate: You are Tiresias: Jocasta has kept Oedipus, and you were appointed his teacher. Do you tell him of the prophecy to warn him? Tell Oedipus to put him on his guard so he doesn’t do anything rash. Don’t tell him. You don’t want to scare Oedipus.
Fate: You are The Shepherd Your Queen has told you to murder this baby boy. You are unsure of what to do: You decide to… Follow orders and leave him on a mountaintop to die. The gods hate people who kill children. You take him and raise Oedipus as your own.
GAME OVER! FATE WINS! Oedipus, left on a mountaintop to die, was rescued. He was raised the man he thought to be his father, Polybus, and flees his “family” to escape the prophecy. On the road to Thebes, the prideful man meets a caravan. Both refuse to yield. We all know how the story goes…
Free Will: You are Oedipus Though you were born a lowly shepherd, you want more from life. How do you satisfy your ambition? Form a plot to assassinate Laius, the current monarch. Challenge the Gods! Try to beat up Apollo
Fate: You are Creon You unearth a plot to assassinate your King. You know Oedipus, the shepherd’s boy, is behind this blasphemy. What do you do? Don’t tell Laius. He smells bad anyways. Be a loyal citizen of Thebes and tell Laius.
Prophecy FATE WINS!! Laius is unsuccessful in preventing his assassination. He dies. Oedipus marries Jocasta. The prophecy is fulfilled.
Free Will: You are Laius You fear the prophecy. Though your son is thriving, he is destined to kill you. All you want is a Father’s Day Card. What do you do? Tough love. Kill Oedipus to protect yourself. Send Oedipus to Cornith to rule because Polybus is dead.
GAME OVER!! Oedipus had an “accident.” He jumped, fell, or was pushed off a cliff. He will haunt Thebes forevermore. Neither side wins.
Gods know how to fight. Oedipus dies. It didn’t work.Neither Side WINS!!
Free Will: You are Oedipus Your teacher has told you that you will be a murderer and a mother-marryer. What action do you take? Curse the Gods! Damn Apollo to Hades for the prophecy he created Don’t give Tiresias a Happy-Teacher Day Card
GAME OVER! FREE WILL WINS! Upon realizing the true nature of the prophecy, Oedipus has fled Thebes and now works at McGreeks in Athens. He is happy and away from the confinement of fate. <<Oedipus in Athens
Fate: You are Apollo You hear of Laius’s vain attempt to defy fate by sending Oedipus to Cornith. You must uphold your prophecy. You: Make Oedipus a God with you. After all, he has defeated you. Unleash a rain of fire on Cornith. Oedipus can’t go there if it doesn’t exist.
Neither side wins. GAME OVER! The burning precipitation killed oedipus.
FREE WILL WINS! Oedipus becomes the Greek God of fate and names that start with a vowel. As a God and Apollo’s new archery buddy, the once star-crossed king realizes the prophecy but doesn’t fulfill it. He lives happily ever after, often partying with Dionysius.