Political leaders, Taboos, and Public Opinion

Oedipus is told by a blind prophet that the plague in Thebes is being caused by a cursed man who has committed terrible acts involving his parents. When he finds out that he is this man, Oedipus decides to skip town realizing that his reputation and political career are heading south. But lets say that a time traveller went back to Thebes from the 21st century and explained to the citizens that plagues are caused not by leaders breaking societal taboos, but rather by bacteria and viruses. If this happened, the outcome of the play would stay the same, because similar superstitions regard the effects of leaders' moral shortcomings persist to this day.

Take for example Bill Clinton: Perhaps the best remembered point during his presidency was the situation surrounding his extra-marital affair. In reality, his affair had no effect on the economy, our foreign policy, or any other area of government that the president plays an important role in, but still, he faced impeachment in part because of a fear that his unfaithfulness would lead to some sort of "plague" of moral decay in america. Currently, president Obama faces a different sort of cursed fate: he is black. Rather than voicing legitimate criticisms of his governing abilities, Republicans commonly attack him as secretly being muslim, and as a result spreading the plague of islamic fundamentalism. In reality, his religion is irrelevant.

I think that Oedipus Rex becomes particularly relevent when viewed through this lens: People form an unrealistic mould that they expect leaders to fit: Larger than life greek heroes rather than ordinary, flawed mortals. When leaders don't live up to this standard, it leads to their downfall, regardless of their ability to do their job.