The Downfall of Oedipus Rex and Jay Gatsby

          Hamartia has taken form in our favorite, or not so favorite, characters from as early as 430 b.c and has kept its popularity through the centuries. The tragic hero introduced in early b.c still lives in our modern-day characters today. Reading Oedipus had made me reflect over all the past characters I’ve read about who had also fell victim to a tragic flaw. However, one character constantly stood out to me, Jay Gatsby. Reflecting over his downfall made me realize how similar Gatsby and Oedipus truly were. Both Jay Gatsby and Oedipus Rex, two men blinded by the past and powered by intense confidence

            Oedipus’s tragic flaw had been his Hubris, he held a God complex, “I Oedipus whom all men call the Great” (Line 6) (https://study.com/academy/lesson/oedipus-rex-character-analysis.html). This extreme confidence had been highly rooted in the moment Oedipus was able to save the city from the Sphinx. Oedipus then took this single moment and ran with it, using it as an excuse/ distractor when he couldn’t fess up to his own insecurities. It was impossible for Oedipus to admit he wasn’t perfect, therefore he spent most of his time trying to makeup for his flaws, disguising it as pride. In turn, Oedipus brought everyone down with him, whether that be the villagers who he brought the blight upon, or Teiresias who never even planned on returning to the village. Oedipus had chosen to force Tiresias back, for Tiresias stated, “you have made me speak against my will”, and in his pride driven journey to find Laius’ killer exposed himself for who he was.

 Much like Oedipus, Gatsby’s flaw had also been the failure to let go of his past along with his over confidence, “The truth was that Jay Gatsby…sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God”. Oedipus was stuck up on the moment he saved the city while Gatsby was stuck up on the moment he had met Daisy. Gatsby had centered his whole life around winning back Daisy, he didn’t live have a life outside of her. Just like Oedipus centered his whole life around the prophecy. Both characters full heartedly believed they would conquer what they set out to accomplish, however, both were blinded (figuratively and literally) from the harsh reality.

 There was no reality for Gatsby where Daisy wasn’t in his life, she was the green light he looked upon every night (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1-XFXX8rU4). Gatsby threw these extravagant parties in hope Daisy would show up one day and he would be able to swipe her off her feet. He “beat on, [like] boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past”. However, Gatsby’s unrealistic confidence in Daisy’s return didn’t allow him to see that Daisy was already married and with a child, it was highly unlikely she would truly leave her life to run off with a summer fling. When questioned about his intentions he had stated “Can’t repeat the past?....Why of course you can!”. Gatsby in trying to win her over had also brought everyone down with him, causing a near divorce and the murder of Myrtle Wilson.

Both Oedipus and Gatsby had set themselves up for disappointment. For Gatsby it was the version of Daisy he made up in his head, “There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams- not through her own fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion. It had gone beyond her, beyond everything”. Gatsby had worked his whole life to this moment only for it to fall short of perfection. He had gambled his entire future on the actions of Daisy, she carried his entire existence in the palm of her hand. Oedipus, similarly, had placed his fate in the hands of Apollo, redirecting his life in the direction he hoped would allow him to avoid the prophecy. Had spent his whole life avoiding his fate, fleeing from his village and avoiding his supposed parents. Therefore, when It was revealed to Oedipus that he had fell victim to fate anyways, he had blinded himself exclaiming, “Horror of darkness….madness and stabbing pain and memory of evils deeds I have done!’ (Line 1159). 

Oedipus and Gatsby’s failure to let go of the past had restricted their ability to grow as people. If Oedipus and Gatsby had moved on when they were supposed to, they could have easily avoided the actions they took and avoided their ultimate demise. However, they were both too overly confident to admit to defeat and developed toxic characteristics that blinded them from the harsh truth. In the end,
they were both by themselves in death