Asked by violet

what fear drove jocasta to give her child to the sheperd? oedipus the king

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Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
Jocasta gave the baby away because she was terrified of the oracle that said the child would kill his father and sleep with his mother. To prevent that awful fate — and the resulting shame, curse on their house and political instability — she and Laius had the infant’s feet bound and ordered a shepherd to abandon him. They hoped exposure would stop the prophecy, but their attempt to escape fate ultimately helps bring it about.