What role does catharsis play in the play Oedipus Rex?

In terms
of Ancient Greek drama,refers to the
purging, or purifying, of the audience's emotions by the
provoking of fear
and pity. In the Poetics, the Greek philosopher
Aristotle
argued, in contrast to his mentor Plato, that there was nothing
wrong per
se with the expression of emotion by an
audience. Excess emotions, however, were a
different matter. They put the
various elements of the soul out of balance, and thus needed to
be purged and
purified by pity and fear, which Aristotle regarded as wholly rational

emotions.

For Aristotle, provided the classic
example
of how catharsis should work.excites pity because he is basically a
good man who comes to grief
through actions whose consequences he could not
reasonably have foreseen. Yes, Oedipus can be
criticized for certain of his
actions, such as willfully ignoring the prophecies of . But
ultimately
Oedipus is a victim of fate, and this excites pity among the
audience.

As well as pity, we also experience fear as the
action unfolds. We immediately grasp
that what's happened to Oedipusnot to
mention is an appalling , which cannot but incite feelings
of terror. The
gruesome nature of Oedipus's final actions in the playgouging out his own
eyesis
designed to inspire fear among the audience, providing them with an
emotional release which
curbs excess emotion.