Is there an old cliché? who notes that the eyes are the windows to the soul. Eyes convey meaning and emotion. They reflect happiness, love, fear and pain. They hold secrets, reveal lies, and blurt out emotions. They allow us to see the world around us. Eye contact is the most important element of human interaction because it establishes a connection. This is why in literature eyes are so frequently used as symbols and motifs. Dating back to 429 BC with Sophocles' play Oedipus Rex, eyes and the concept of sight have proven to be important themes in many novels and plays, past and present. One such novel is Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which relies on ocular imagery to demonstrate the character's humanity and blindness to consequences. In both texts, the symbolic imagery of the eyes is essential to their development through both figurative and literal, intentional and accidental blindness of the characters within and the resulting consequences. Sophocles' play Oedipus Rex serves as a foundational text for the use of different themes in many works, particularly Frankenstein: A Modern Prometheus which reflects his use of eyes and ocular imagery to better illustrate humanity and the actions of the characters. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The employment of this eye motif is clearly visible throughout the entirety of Oedipus Rex. The two most notable uses are that of Tiresias the blind prophet and of Oedipus himself at the end of the play, when he gouges out his own eyes after learning the truth about his situation. At the beginning of the play, when we first learn that the plague is striking the city of Thebes, amid the cries of the suffering citizens, Oedipus asks for help from Tiresias who "sees with the eyes of the Lord Apollo" (Sophocles l 324). . The irony of the situation is that Tiresias is blind, but he sees the truth more clearly than anyone else, especially the proud Oedipus who denies his involvement in the chaos. Teiresias knows that Oedipus killed his father and married his mother, but refuses to tell him because of the pain it would cause. After Oedipus continually insults Tiresias, Tiresias finally tells him, “You, with your precious eyes, are blind to the corruption of your life” (ll. 470-471). Here Sophocles uses the motif of vision and blindness ironically to show that just because physically sight is lost, figuratively speaking, no one recognizes the truth more clearly than Tiresias. Likewise, at the end of the play, when Oedipus discovers what he has done, he claws out his eyes and finally sees the truth. Additionally, the eye motif functions as a symbol of human connection, as Oedipus exclaims, "How could I look into [my children's] eyes?" No, not with my eyes, never” (ll. 1506-1507). His profession, marked by guilt, demonstrated his repentance for his sin, that is, he tried to avoid the prophecy and was unconscious (blind) to his situation. Furthermore, by giving up his sight, he sacrificed what he thought was most important: seeing his children. The eyes and the concept of blindness are important in Oedipus Rex and serve to emphasize the irony of Oedipus' situation and his sacrifice at the end of the play. Like in Oedipus Rex, Mary Shelley uses eye motifs and imagery throughout her novel Frankenstein. demonstrate humanity and judgment. From the moment the monster opens its eyes, ocular imagery and symbolism litter the pages of this novel. Victor Frankenstein was like an artist,crafting his monster from the best parts he could acquire, spending countless days perfecting each piece of what was destined to be his greatest work of art. However, after completing his masterpiece, Victor explains: “I saw the wretch – the wretched wretch whom I had created… his eyes, if they can be called eyes, were fixed on me” ( Shelley 35). Victor, in his greed for notoriety, unwittingly creates a soulless being, apparent the second the creature opens its watery eyes. Shelley uses the idea that eyes are connected to humanity throughout the novel, and this is one of the best examples. The creature was made of dead pieces sewn together in an attempt to deceive the natural order of life and death. For this, Victor suffers greatly as he quickly learns that what he created was not human, but a beast devoid of a soul and many human characteristics, as evidenced by his eyes. Using the eyes, Shelley also incorporates the theme of judgment into his work, primarily through the old man the monster lived next to for years. The creature faces only abuse and fear from the few people he meets in the novel, and he observes: "a fatal prejudice darkens their eyes, and where they should see a sensitive and sensitive friend nice, they only see a detestable monster” (95). With the old man, however, the creature sees the opportunity to make a friend, a human connection and to heal his loneliness, because the old man is blind and therefore cannot see his horrible appearance. Once the creature gets up the courage to approach the old man, everything goes well at first and the old man is refreshingly kind to him, saying, "I am blind and I cannot judge your face, but there is something in your words that persuades me that you are sincere” (96). This small act of trust demonstrates that even though he is blind, the old man can see the humanity and true character of the creature more clearly than anyone with eyes. Shelley uses his blindness to show the monster's unfair judgment from all the villagers and even his creator, his father, Victor, which led to unbearable loneliness pushing him to go on a rampage. Frankenstein is riddled with eye images symbolizing humanity and the theme of blindness to emphasize Shelley's theme of judgment and the creature's motivation to commit his horrible sins. When it comes to eye patterns, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Sophocles' Oedipus Rex are both very similar. In both texts, there is a central character who is blind but sees the most clearly of each. In Oedipus the King, this character is Teiresias who knows from the beginning that Oedipus was the catalyst for all the suffering of Thebes, and in Frankenstein, the old man is the only one to give the creature a chance and treat him with kindness . This is a play about Tiresias. because in both cases, the blind people are not influenced by others and are wiser than the rest of the characters. According to Aristotle's essay "On Tragic Character", a tragic character "falls into misfortune not because of vice or depravity, but because of error" (Aristotle). Oedipus is the quintessential tragic character because he falls from grace due to his avoidance of the inevitable prophecy, not some horrible sin he deliberately committed. Likewise, Victor Frankenstein fits this image of a tragic character, as his downfall was due to his mistake in attempting to cheat death, instead creating a monster that caused him so much suffering. In both cases, the main character, the tragic character, is blind to his mistakes until he is forced to make them., 2009. 1092-1093.