A common struggle that man faces is the question of who or what has power and control over his life. Is he in total control of his future or is there a higher being at work taking human lives into his own hands? Sophocles, in his work Oedipus Rex, establishes a vision that attributes to destiny, created by the gods, an apparently inevitable characteristic of man. The role of destiny is clearly defined, through the fulfillment of divine prophecy, and Oedipus' inability to recognize prophecy as a realistic source of knowledge, as a destiny that finds a delicate balance with man's free will. The balance between fate and free will, in Sophocles' mind, is represented through Oedipus's fatal flaw, which forces him to his destiny, while also defining his free will. His hamartia is visible from the beginning of the play when Oedipus says to his people: "Tell me and never doubt that I will help you" (Sophocles' Prologue. 13). Clearly, he sees himself as having the supreme ability to take matters into his own hands and help the people he governs. This extreme desire to help his people, which is undoubtedly an admirable quality, is accompanied by an extreme desire to find answers. This thirst for knowledge is also shown early in the play through Oedipus' interactions with Creon, where Oedipus torments Creon with questions regarding the prophecy, asking “Murder of whom? Surely the god gave him a name? (Prologue. 106). These two seemingly noble characteristics, the desire to help his people and the desire to know the truth, end up working against Oedipus and result in the tragedy of the play. The role of fate in this opening scene is clearly seen through prophecy, but at this point in the plot it is unclear... halfway through the document... the gods in conjunction with the actions of the man of will can result in a life that is once again aligned on a desirable path of truth and respect both for and from the divine. Works Cited Kallich, Martin. “Oedipus: from man to archetype”. Studies in Comparative Literature 3.1(1966): 33-35. Rpt. in student theatre. Ed. David M. Galens and Lynn M. Spampinato. Vol 1. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literary resources from Gale. Network. January 23, 2012.Shamir, Moshe. “Oedipus and Abraham”. Journal of Jewish Studies 47 (2006): 275+. Literary Resource Center. Network. 8 March 2012Sophocles. "Oedipus Rex." Literature: reading fiction, poetry and theatre. Robert DiYanni. Print.Sutton, Brian. "Sophocles' Oedipus Rex and Spielberg's Minority Report." The Explicator63.4 (2005): 194+. Literary Resource Center. Network. March 8. 2012