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T E N Oedipus More s o than an y othe r myth , th e Oedipa l legen d ha s successfull y man aged to capture the attentions of psychoanalysts, philosophers, anthropologists , cultura l critics , historians, an d dramatists . Th e fascinatio n wit h th e myth lie s mainl y i n it s ubiquitou s applicability , an d it s metaphorica l us e of discursive language. Ke y to Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannus i s the metho d utilized to reveal the tale. The plot is not about the origins of Oedipus per se bu t mor e wit h Oedipus ' logica l approac h t o solvin g th e riddle o f hi s existence. Throug h processe s o f ironi c textua l an d symboli c reversals , Oedipus i s brough t ful l circl e fro m th e positio n o f th e hero-king-god , a position of both power and ignorance. His pursuit of knowledge and higher truths lead s hi m t o a trut h h e canno t fathom , a trut h tha t h e neve r confronts, an d on e tha t force s hi m t o hid e fro m himself , hi s family , an d his city. I n his loss of the fabrication o f hero-king-god, Oedipus is desolate as tha t i s al l h e ha s eve r learne d t o affirm . Outsid e o f th e privilege d structure of the Hero there is an emptiness that Oedipus has not been able to penetrate. King Laius and Oedipus, father an d son, meet at the "fated " crossroads , both o f the m unawar e o f thei r biologica l connection . Th e myt h suggest s that Laiu s trie s t o ru n Oedipu s of f th e road . I n defense , Oedipu s kill s Laius an d hi s servants , actualizin g th e Apollonia n oracle . Th e encounte r foreshadows th e encounte r wit h th e Sphinx , wh o Oedipu s meet s o n hi s way to the city of Thebes. She holds the key to seduction and has the keen capacity t o lur e he r victim s t o he r abode , thoug h the y kno w i t i s likel y they will perish at her feet. Sh e beckons to Oedipus, and he acquiesces. He thinks h e ha s solve d th e riddl e tha t sh e poses, a riddle s o difficult an d s o simple, a riddl e tha t ha s stumpe d many . A riddle tha t continue s t o con found . ^59 Oedipus 260 Oedipu s clings to the certainty of science. The absence of chance makes him unabl e t o affirm . Instead , Oedipu s i s only abl e to deny , repress , an d ignore. H e begins th e proces s by assertin g th e logo s over th e Sphinx , b y denying her discourse, and by failing to recognize her significance fo r him . Logos i s Oedipus ' truth , an d h e views i t a s absolute, thoug h i t i s merel y his "irrefutable error" (GS , 265). He denies her existence and continues t o search blindly for his origins in utter ignorance, despite the fact that she— half animal , half female—hold s al l the clues. Oedipu s can only sa y "no, " "no." Thi s i s mos t explici t i n hi s fina l denial—hi s bruta l dismember ment —the tearin g out of his eyes. Oedipus the Heroic The identification o f th e min d o f ma n wit h logo s i s implici t i n phalli c science. " I want to know how God created this world," Einstein said, "I am not interested i n this or that phenomenon , i n the spectru m o f this or tha t element. I want t o kno w Hi s thoughts . Th e res t ar e details."1 According to Stephen Hawking , "I f w e find th e answer [t o why i t is that we and th e universe exist ] i t woul d b e th e ultimat e...

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