The tragedy of Oedipus is a complex tale of fate and free will. In the story, Oedipus did not kill his father, King Lauis, out of malice or intent. Rather, he was unaware of Lauis’s identity when they fought on the road to Thebes.
According to the prophecy foretold by the oracles, Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. In an attempt to escape this fate, he left Corinth, believing that he was avoiding his biological parents, who he thought were King Polybus and Queen Merope. However, he ultimately encountered Lauis, his real father, unknowingly sparking a deadly confrontation.
During a dispute on the road, Oedipus, provoked by Lauis’s charioteer and unawareness of who Lauis was, killed him in self-defense. This act was driven by a mix of fate and circumstance, rather than a conscious decision to kill his father. Thus, Oedipus’s actions reflect the tragic theme of the inevitability of destiny, illustrating how one cannot escape their fate, no matter the efforts made to change it.