Oedipus the King Theban Trilogy Oedipus at Colonus

Oedipus the King Theban Trilogy: Oedipus at Colonus Oedipus Rex Antigone

Sophocles • Strategies for reading Greek drama: • Visualize the characters and events • List the sequence of events for the plot • What are the character’s motivations? • Noble qualities? • Flaws? • Use characterization to help understand • Question what happens frequently to clarify understanding

Sophocles • Oedipus Rex is based on a legend familiar to ancient Greeks. • A plague has fallen on the city of Thebes. King Oedipus vows he will find the cause and lift the curse no matter what the cost may be. • This is a Greek tragedy so the ending will include terrifying discovery.

Prologue • The plague on Thebes has plants, animals, and people dying in great numbers. • The priests of the city seek help from Oedipus, their king. • The chorus cries out to the gods to lift this terrible curse.

Scene 1 • Oedipus says “You pray to the gods? Let me grant your prayers. ” • Oedipus reminds them of how great he is and that he is determined to rid the city of the curse. • Oedipus decrees a curse upon the murdered of King Laius. • He does so far as to curse anyone who hides this person from receiving justice for his crime.

Scene 1 • On advice from the Leader, Oedipus sends for Tiresias, a blind prophet. • Tiresias is reluctant to tell what he knows which angers Oedipus. • He accuses Tiresias of conspiring with his brother-in-law, Creon, to commit an act of treason. He wants to kill him like King Laius was killed. • Tiresias tells him the truth, but he is too enraged and blind to see it.

Scene 1 Questions • Why does Oedipus send for Tiresias? • How does the chorus feel about Oedipus at this point in the play? • Why do you think Oedipus is so determined to discover the murderer of Laius? • How does he feel about the people of Thebes? • How did he save the city from the Sphinx? • Why might he feel especially close to the murdered king?

Scene 2 • Oedipus send for Creon to accuse him of conspiring with Tiresias. • Creon is stunned and denies wanting to be king. • Oedipus declares he will banish Creon from Thebes. • Jocasta tries to sooth him but instead reminds him of his greatest fear.

Scene 2 Questions • What did Oedipus do at “a place where three roads meet”? • Why did Oedipus run away from his home in Corinth? • How would you describe Jocasta’s view of prophets and prophecies? • What is the chorus’s attitude toward the old prophecies? Using strategies to understand ancient text

Scene 3 Page 301, l. 1010 -1011 • In the prologue, Sophocles used the simile of Thebes being like a ship “pitching wildly, cannot lift her head from the depths…” Now he refers to Oedipus as “the pilot of the vessel [going] to pieces. ” How do these two similes link the fate of Thebes and Oedipus?

Scene 3: Messenger Arrives from Corinth • We see that Oedipus is the adopted son of Polybus. How did it come about the Oedipus was raised as Polybus’ son? • When the messenger revealed Oedipus is adopted, Jocasta leaves. Why? • What does the chorus think of Oedipus now? (l. 1311 – 1330) • How does it change? (l. 1331 – 1350)

Scene 3 Questions • What did the shepherd do with the baby he was ordered to Kill? • At this point in the play, how does the chorus regard Oedipus, the man who once saved Thebes? • How did Oedipus unknowingly bring about the thing he most tried to avoid? • What do you predict Oedipus will do now that he knows the truth about his birth?

Exodus • • What happens to Jocasta? What happens to Oedipus? What happens to Creon? What happens to Oedipus’ daughters?

The Moral Lesson • All Greek plays had a moral lesson. What is the lesson to be learned from Oedipus the King?

Some say… • The play is nothing more than a detective story, in which the detective himself turns out to be the hated culprit. • Oedipus’s pride and downfall mirror the figure of the Athenian statesman Pericles or perhaps the fortunes of Athens itself.

Degree of Guilt Some feel: • Oedipus must be held fully responsible for his actions. Even if his monumental crimes were committed unintentionally, he might have avoided them through greater vigilance. • The process of discovery shows the great kings’ tragic flaw: his own selfconfidence and pride as revealed in his arrogant treatment of Tiresias and Creon. But, through characterization we also see Oedipus is basically a sincere ruler, a good man, and a loving father. Evaluate: Are human beings creatures of free will, or are their actions, for good or ill, determined by forces beyond their control? Sophocles removes any direct divine intervention from the action of the play.

Dramatic Irony • Irony is a contrast between what is expected and what actually exists or happens. • In line 119, Oedipus, speaking of King Laius, says that he “never saw the man. ” We readers realize—just as Sophocles’ original audience did—that Oedipus has seen Laius. In fact, he killed him long ago. • Reread a few scenes from the play, looking for examples of dramatic irony. • Why do you think Sophocles used this technique? Explain using one example from the play. Include the lines from the play.

Myth by Muriel Rukeyser • Read the poem on page 329. • What slant does the poet give to the story of Oedipus?