Teiresias
In the chapter of Middlesex titled
The Obscure Object Callie portrays Teiresias in her schools' production
of Antigone. Teiresias
has appeared before in Oedipus the King
as a blind prophet. This can relate to how Callie behaves as a teenager hiding
behind her hair unable to physically see what is going on in the world. Also,
metaphorically Callie is unable to see and accept that her body is biologically
different from her peers. Additionally, the character Teiresias brings up the
theme of fate which happens to be a big theme in Middlesex. For
instance, in the begging of the book there was a series of events fueled by
their destiny that allowed Lefty and Desdemona to travel to America. Along
with Callie who has not discovered her own fate that she is both a male and a
female. Also, in Oedipus
the King there is a strong theme of denial seen in Oedipus himself. Oedipus
is in denial of the prophecy that Teiresias tells him, however, Oedipus cannot
prevent his prophecy. Similarly, Callie is in denial that she is not a normal
teenage girl even though her body has shown very limited signs of puberty.
An obvious connection between the texts is that Teiresias was a woman for
several years thus making Teiresias a hermaphrodite. This connects to the fact
that Callie is a hermaphrodite as well. Furthermore, in both Callie's and
Oedipus's family history there are acts of incest. Once Oedipus has discovered
that he in fact married and had a child with his own mother he blinds himself.
This makes me question how Callie will react when she discovers her own family
history and her own identity. Will she metaphorically turn a blind eye to
the world and hide herself like Oedipus did or will she accept and love herself
living life to the fullest embracing her biological identity?
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