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Q: How does Oedipus at the beginning of the play contrast with Oedipus at the end of the play?
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What are the main events of Oedipus' life before the play begins?

The play 'Oedipus Rex' begins with Theban King Oedipus coming outside his palace to speak with a priest and congregated Thebans. Oedipus' people are concerned about the unabated losses and suffering from a stubborn plague that reduces their numbers, their livestock, and their harvests. Until the concluding scene, the rest of the play in many ways works as a flashback on Oedipus' life. What readers and viewers find out in the rest of the play is what Oedipus does with his life before he becomes king.In essence, Oedipus is the son of Theban King Laius and Theban Queen Jocasta. But he's left on a hillside as the prey of the weather, the dogs, and the birds. Such a quick end to a three day old baby nevertheless is averted.Through the help of two shepherds, Oedipus ends up in Corinth as the adopted son of King Polybus and Queen Merope. The couple need a male heir, Oedipus fits the bill, and the truth of the adoption is kept from many, especially Oedipus. But the rumored adoption comes to the attention to Oedipus, who decides to find out the truth from the Delphic Oracle. But the Oracle warns Oedipus of his fate as the killer of his own father and the husband of his own mother.Oedipus decides not to return to Corinth, which he thinks is the home of his true parents. Outside of Delphos, he ends up in a street brawl with a surly stranger over a right-of-way. In self defense, Oedipus kills the stranger, who actually is Theban King Laius en route also to consult the Oracle.The identity of the victim is unknown to Oedipus, who must choose his escape route from one of three roads. He chooses the road that takes him to Thebes. Outside the city, a Sphinx terrorizes all passersby with a fateful riddle. No one has the answer, so all die. But Oedipus realizes that man is the living being that moves on all fours in the morning, on twos in the afternoon, and on threes in the evening of life.Oedipus' life is saved, the Sphinx ends up dead at the bottom of the nearby cliff, and Thebans see the end to fear and taxes. In gratitude, they offer Laius' vacated throne and grieving widow to their savior. And so Oedipus takes on his father's familial and royal responsibilities. He has the love of his people, his wife who also is his mother, and his children who also are his half brothers!But Oedipus is polluted and a polluter. He needs to be cleansed of the murder of his own father and of his sovereign. Father and king killing are serious offenses. And that's not all. He also is the perpetrator of both murder and incest. Both demand ritual cleansing. And so the unclean Oedipus is making his city and his people unclean as well, because his lack of cleanliness opens the door of Thebes to the plague.


What did people do in Tartarus?

Suffer. Tartarus is nothing but an empty space with no beginning and no end.


What is an ancient history Era?

A period of time that encompasses a beginning and an end to a cycle or event.


What do the Vedas teach us about early Indian societies?

Creation has a definite beginning ans also an end


When does Oedipus first realize the truth about his 'wife'?

Oedipus was 'adopted' into a family and when he heard while still a youth from the Oracle that he would murder his father and marry his mother he left Corinth never to return. Unfortunately he met up with and after a violent disagreement killed his real father. Later on he married that mans widow, his mother. Truly, as in the words of Tom Lehrer, 'a tragic end to a loyal son, who loved his mother'.

Related questions

How has Oedipus change since beginning of play?

At the beginning, Oedipus was full of pride and very boastful, "I AM OEDIPUS!" Towards the end, he was more confused and pitied, and just really upset and sad. "I am Oedipus..."


Is the inciting incident when Oedipus realizes that the prophecies have all come true in 'Oedipus Rex'?

No, Oedipus' realization that all the prophecies come true is not the inciting incident in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the inciting incident is the event that makes the story possible. Without it, there is no story. It occurs in the beginning of the play. In contrast, Oedipus' realization occurs at the end.


What damage does Oedipus do to himself near the end of the play?

Oedipus has sex with his mother and murders his father.


Must Oedipus find out how to end the pestilence in Thebes in the beginning of 'Oedipus Rex'?

Yes, Oedipus must find out how to end the pestilence in Thebes in the beginning of "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, Theban King Oedipus is admired and respected by his people. They look to him to solve problems that fight back at going away. Oedipus therefore promises the latest group of suppliants that he will find out how to end the pestilence that threatens harvests and both animal and human populations in Thebes.


Who is Oedipus in 'Oedipus Rex'?

The hero and joint ruler of Thebes, the husband of Thebes' queen, and the parent with her of four children is who Theban King Oedipus is at the beginning of the play "Oedipus Rex."But by the end of the play audiences realize that Oedipus also is many other things. For example, in order to become a hero and king, Oedipus is a hot-headed murderer of an arrogant but elderly stranger. In order to become a husband, he also is the rash, frightened, angry runaway heir to the throne of Corinth. In order to become a father, he weds and beds his own mother.


Is there a pestilence in 'Oedipus Rex'?

Yes, there is a pestilence in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the play begins with Theban King Oedipus and all Thebes trying to figure out what causes and what ends the pestilence. Oedipus gets the news from the Delphic oracle on how to end the pestilence. By the end of the play, Oedipus knows that the pestilence will end even though he loses his friends, his home, his job and his sight in the process.


What is the status of Oedipus in 'Oedipus Rex' and 'Oedipus at Colonus'?

From respected royal to blind prisoner and then from blind exile to lucky spirit is the Oedipus' respective status in "Oedipus Rex" and "Oedipus at Colonus" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, Oedipus begins with the status of king. But by the end of the play, he loses it all to become a blind prisoner under house arrest in Thebes. Between the two plays, the gods punish Oedipus with exile. At the beginning of "Oedipus at Colonus" he moves as a blind exile to the area of Athens. But his status rises when he disappears as a luck bearing spirit.


What does it mean point of attack in theatre?

The point in the overall story where the play begins.IE. In Oedipus Rex, the Point of Attack is near the end of the overall story, where in Hamlet it is near the beginning of the Overall story.


Whose downfall is described in 'Oedipus Rex'?

Oedipus' downfall is described in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, Oedipus is a role model of personal happiness and professional success when the play begins. But in the course of the play, he learns that he is the victim of a mistaken self-identity. By the end of the play, Oedipus loses his home, job, reputation, sight and wife.


Does Oedipus die at the end of 'Oedipus Rex'?

No, Theban King Oedipus doesn't die at the end of 'Oedipus Rex'. The play ends with his blinding himself and waiting to hear whether he'll be executed or exiled. The King's exile and ultimate death is covered in 'Oedipus at Colonus'. That's the sequel to 'Oedipus Rex'. It's at Colonus that Oedipus dies. It's also where the play's writer, Sophocles [c. 496 B.C.E. - c. 406 B.C.E.], grows up and his family is from.


How is Oedipus different at the beginning of Oedipus Rex than at the end?

There are many was that Oedipus is The most obvious being - he is now blind (having blinded himself) and he is aware that the oracle has come true. That he did in fact Kill his father and marry his mother.


What is a critical essay on Oedipus as an abomination?

An abomination describes someone who deserves to be hated and who's worthy of disgust. Theban King Oedipus is an abomination throughout the play 'Oedipus Rex'. But in the beginning, not one of the characters realizes this fact.By the end, though, everyone and most particularly Oedipus realizes the horror of what he is. What happens between the prologue and the exodus is the information on Oedipus' true identity and the true nature of his marriage to Theban Queen Jocasta. By the end, Thebans understand that they've been upholding an indecent relationship as a model marriage, and a double murderer and sex offender as a hero. And Oedipus understands too.