Blinde Oedipus geleid door Antigone 1879

François de Meersman etched “Blind Oedipus Led by Antigone,” illustrating a moment of profound dependence. The most striking motif here is blindness itself. Oedipus, once a king, now relies entirely on his daughter's guidance. Blindness appears across time and cultures, often symbolizing a loss of worldly perception and a turn toward inner truth or spiritual insight. Consider, for instance, the blind seers of ancient Greece, figures like Tiresias, who, though physically blind, possessed extraordinary vision into the future. In this context, Oedipus's blindness can be seen as a cruel twist of fate and as a symbol of tragic understanding. The image evokes a sense of pathos, engaging viewers with the raw, human reality of suffering. This resonates with our collective memory, a reminder of the cyclical nature of fortune and the universal experience of vulnerability. The image suggests that true understanding comes at the cost of sight, a recurring theme that echoes through the ages.