Notes

Charlie Paras

Mrs. McKee

Sophomores Honors English II

8 April 2016


Daddy Issues and Bad Plastic Surgery:

An analysis of Oedipus Rex and Michael Jackson


Both Oedipus and Michael Jackson are tragic heroes because through a series of their own wrongdoings they went from the top to rock bottom…

Britney Spears, Bill Cosby, Mel Gibson, Michael Richards, Charlie Sheen, Amanda Bynes, the list goes on and on. We often see celebrities being reduced to a shell of what they formerly were in terms of popularity. These once beloved figures are brought down from their position of high esteem seemingly monthly as scandal after scandal comes out. One of these celebrities is Michael Jackson, pop star extraordinaire who captivated audiences globally for decades. The King of Pop was brought down from his throne by a series of legal troubles and allegations brought about by his personality flaws. King Oedipus from “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles met his demise in a similar way. Because of Oedipus’s arrogance, he leads himself down a path of lies and deceit that ends in his own undoing. Both Oedipus and Michael Jackson are tragic heroes because through a series of their own wrongdoings which stemmed from their own flaws they met their demise.

Oedipus and Michael Jackson both share a fatal flaw, which for Oedipus was his arrogance and Michael Jackson his mental issues. Oedipus says in Oedipus Rex on page 36, “I vent it all on you, you, you planned this thing; and if you had eyes I’d say you played that chief part too”. This quote from Oedipus to Teiresias tells us indirectly what Oedipus is all about. He is shifting blame onto Tiresias with little reasoning other than his own paranoia and insecurity. Nobody can touch Oedipus, so he assumes nothing can bring him down from greatness. Oedipus has lived his entire life priveliged, as he is a king, and faces no repercussions which may keep his ego in check. With these characteristics, the rest of the story is set in motion. H. D. F. Kitto says in his analytical essay titled Oedipus Rex as a Familiar Greek Story, “Oedipus, as we see him time after time, is intelligent, determined, self reliant, but hot-tempered and too sure of himself; and apparently malignant chain of circumstances combines now with the strong, now with the weak side of his character to produce the catastrophe.”. Here the author states that these characteristics are the sole reason why the story happened in the first place, something that isn't very surprising. Had Oedipus not been self absorbed, he would not have killed Laius or even have cared about the insult. But he had to go to the Oracle, find his destiny, and then attempt to evade fate. Much like Michael Jackson, Oedipus’s troubles would not have happened if it was not for his arrogance.






Oedipus and Michael Jackson both share a similar Peripeteia the fact that two people went from the peak of popularity and importance to a shell of their former selves that they once were after their respective battles. Michael Jackson’s downfall was similar to Oedipus’s, his being a series of legal battles, public appearances, and rumors that all lead to his demise. Michael Jackson said in an interview in 2003, “Before I could hurt a child, I would slit my wrists”. Michael Jackson was famously involved in a large legal case in 2005 in which he was accused of molesting a little boy , intoxicating him, and even kidnapping his family. Of the fourteen charges that he was accused of, he was found guilty to none of them, clearing Jackson’s record yet again, after a similar incident in 1993. However, the damage had already been done, and Michael Jackson’s story had been highly publicised in the media for weeks, which sent him over the edge. From this time, 2005, to his death just a few years later in 2009, he faced a series of troubles and legal battles, more famously his drug problem, leading to his demise. In a interview with a series of anonymous maids who had worked with Jackson, one said, “‘Michael was a messed-up and depraved drug addict. He was twisted,’ said Maid No. 3… ‘There’d be socks and underpants in the bed and half-eaten chicken and potato chips, empty bottles of wine and whiskey on the floor.’”. While we cannot know for sure where these drug problems developed in Jackson, we can be sure that they happened. After all, he died after overdosing on surgical grade anaesthesia that he used daily for sleep.

Oedipus faced a more immediate downfall compared to Michael Jackson. Oedipus says immediately after discovery of his fate, “Ah, so it all came true. It’s so clear now. O light, let me look at you one final time, a man who stands revealed as cursed by birth, cursed by my own family, and cursed by murder where I should not kill.” (Roche 61) This is when Oedipus first discovers that he had fulfilled the prophecy, and that he had killed his father. However his peripeteia had started when the reader is shown the dramatic irony that Oedipus was about to stumble upon his own fate. It had been a series of moves on Oedipus’s part, all from the very beginning. His constant arrogance was what accelerated the process towards discovering he fulfilled his own prophecy, his killing blow. In an analytical essay by F.J.H. Letters on Oedipus’s peripeteia, he says that “With a shriek of misery, Oedipus rushes within. While the chorus bewails the fearful downfall of so great a king, a messenger comes rushing from the palace to announce that Jocasta has hanged herself…” Here we can see the exact moment where Oedipus’s world comes crashing down, caused by his own actions. It has taken him a while to do so, but he eventually puts all the pieces together when visiting the shepherd. Oedipus soon rushes to the castle to confront Jocasta, and then he kills himself in grief for all he has done and caused.

Like any other tragic hero, Michael Jackson and Oedipus both share a moment of anagnorisis, or a critical discovery after his downfall. Michael Jackson said during his 2005 trial, “...please be patient and be with me and believe in me because I am completely, completely, innocent.” Michael knows that his reputation is undoubtedly ruined, so he tries to recover it and deny the allegations. The entire world was against him at this point, the King of Pop reduced to just a shadow of his former self. The child molestation charges were dropped in both the 1993 case and the 2005 case, though his public image was never the same afterwards. It was too late for him, and by this time Michael Jackson had been seeing the beginning of the end. Legal cases were building against him and his public reputation was crumbling away. So, as pressure grew and the case finally resolved, Jackson ran away into hiding into his other home in Bahrain, even more so than the rest of his life. A few years later, jackson died, taking his side of the story to the grave.

Oedipus on the other hand, had a similar downfall, but saw the error of his ways. Oedipus met his tragic end by resorting to stabbing his eyes out after seeing his wife and mother dead: "You will no longer see all those atrocious things I suffered, the dreadful things I did! No. You have seen those you never should have looked upon, and those I wished to know you did not see. So now and for all future time be dark!". Promptly after this, Oedipus stabs his eyes out for the atrocities he has committed and witnessed, which shows how truly Oedipus regrets his choices. Oedipus goes through a shift in character towards the end of the book, making a complete change in terms of responsibility. Oedipus also upholds his word, and banishes himself away to a far away place. This is ironic, as both Michael Jackson and Oedipus banished themselves away when faced with these problems.



[REVERSE FUNNEL]








Works Cited


"Maids Reveal Michael Jackson's Filth and Perversion." Fox News. FOX News Network, 11 Aug. 2014. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.


"Michael Jackson Dies of Drug Overdose, June 25, 2009." Historic U.S. Events. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Student Resources in Context. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.


"Michael Jackson's House - Michael Jackson Fan Page - Www.mjshouse.com." Michael Jackson's House - Michael Jackson Fan Page - Www.mjshouse.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. <http://www.mjshouse.com/stories/oprah.html>.


"Michael Jackson." Newsmakers. Detroit: Gale, 1996. Student Resources in Context. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.


"Michael Joseph Jackson." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Student Resources in Context. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.


"My Surreal 1980 Interview with Michael Jackson: 'Direct Your Questions to Janet; She'll Put Them to Michael'" The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 04 Feb. 2016. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. <http://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/feb/04/my-surreal-1980-interview-with-michael-jackson-direct-your-questions-to-janet-shell-put-them-to-michael>.


Kitto, H. D. F. Greek Tragedy: A Literary Study. London: Methuen & Co, Ltd, 3d ed. (1961): pp. 138–39. Quoted as "Oedipus Rex as a Familiar Greek Story" in Harold Bloom, ed. Sophocles, Bloom's Major Dramatists. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishing, 2002. (Updated 2007.) Bloom's Literature. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 21 Mar. 2016 <http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&WID=105736&SID=5&iPin=BMDSO14&SingleRecord=True>.


Letters, F. J. H. "The Oedipus Tyrannus." The Life and Work of Sophocles. London: Sheed and Ward, 1953. 201-230. Rpt. in Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism. Ed. Jelena O. Krstovic. Vol. 86. Detroit: Gale, 2006. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.

Monroe, Bryan. "Q&A: Michael Jackson in his own words." Ebony Dec. 2007: 94+. General OneFile. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.


News, ABC. "Surgeon: Michael Jackson A 'Nasal Cripple'" ABC News. ABC News Network, 08 Feb. 2003. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. <http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Cosmetic/story?id=131910&page=1>.


Reilly, Phoebe. “How thrilling: Michael Jackson ruled in the ‘80s. We chart some of the biggest numbers from the King of Pop’s career.” Los Angeles Magazine July 2014: 93. Student Resources in Context. Web. 3 Mar. 2016.