answersLogoWhite

0

In Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex," the chorus refrains from looking at Oedipus after he gouges out his eyes because they are horrified by his self-inflicted mutilation and the tragic realization of his fate. His blindness symbolizes not just his physical condition but also his previous ignorance to the truth about his identity and actions. The chorus, representing the moral voice of the community, is both shocked and empathetic, struggling to reconcile their feelings of pity with the Horror of his actions. Their avoidance of eye contact underscores the profound shame and tragedy of Oedipus's downfall.

User Avatar

AnswerBot

4mo ago

What else can I help you with?

Continue Learning about Performing Arts

Who gouges his own eyes out in Antigone?

No one. Oedipus blinds himself in the play 'Oedipus Rex'.


What punishment does Oedipus exact upon himself?

Oedipus gouges out his eyes, and asks Kreon that he be exiled to a place where no Theban will ever see him.


How does oedipus react when teiresias reveals to him the truth?

When Teiresias reveals the truth of Oedipus's parentage, Oedipus is horrified. He is sickened by the fact that he killed his father and married his mother. When he finds that his mother/wife has killed herself, he gouges out his own eyes.


How does Oedipus gouge out his eyes in 'Oedipus Rex'?

It is with his wife's gold brooches that Oedipus gouges out his eyes in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, Theban Queen Jocasta hangs herself with the threads from her own robes. King Oedipus, her son and her second husband, removes her body to the floor. He then takes the gold brooches that hold the robes together and uses them as a weapon with which to blind himself.


Where does Oedipus pray in 'Oedipus Rex'?

It is in the royal bedroom that Oedipus gets the closest to praying in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the term prayer describes a confession, entreaty and gratitude. The description fits disgraced Theban King Oedipus' call to Apollo the god of prophecy after he finds his wife Queen Jocasta hanging by the threads of her own robes. Oedipus gouges out his eyes. He invokes Apollo in the sense that he blames Apollo for life's misfortunes but admits his own guilt in blinding himself.

Related Questions

Who gouges his own eyes out in Antigone?

No one. Oedipus blinds himself in the play 'Oedipus Rex'.


What punishment does Oedipus exact upon himself?

Oedipus gouges out his eyes, and asks Kreon that he be exiled to a place where no Theban will ever see him.


How does oedipus react when teiresias reveals to him the truth?

When Teiresias reveals the truth of Oedipus's parentage, Oedipus is horrified. He is sickened by the fact that he killed his father and married his mother. When he finds that his mother/wife has killed herself, he gouges out his own eyes.


What was Oedipus's response when he learns he had killed his father and married his mother?

He gouges out his eyes with his mother's/wife's brooches so that he does not have to see the horrors of the world. Note: That is not quite the correct answer. When he realizes that he indeed fulfilled the prophecy, he runs through the palace with a sword, crying out in anguish for his wife/mother. Oedipus gouges his eyes out when he sees that Iocasta is dead; not when he first finds out about what happened.


How does Oedipus gouge out his eyes in 'Oedipus Rex'?

It is with his wife's gold brooches that Oedipus gouges out his eyes in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, Theban Queen Jocasta hangs herself with the threads from her own robes. King Oedipus, her son and her second husband, removes her body to the floor. He then takes the gold brooches that hold the robes together and uses them as a weapon with which to blind himself.


Did jocasta kill her children?

In Greek mythology, Jocasta did not directly kill her children. She unknowingly married her own son, Oedipus, and had children with him. Oedipus later learns the truth and gouges out his own eyes in despair, while Jocasta commits suicide.


Where does Oedipus pray in 'Oedipus Rex'?

It is in the royal bedroom that Oedipus gets the closest to praying in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the term prayer describes a confession, entreaty and gratitude. The description fits disgraced Theban King Oedipus' call to Apollo the god of prophecy after he finds his wife Queen Jocasta hanging by the threads of her own robes. Oedipus gouges out his eyes. He invokes Apollo in the sense that he blames Apollo for life's misfortunes but admits his own guilt in blinding himself.


How is Oedipus blind?

Oedipus is blind both literally and metaphorically. Literally, he becomes physically blind after he gouges out his eyes in despair upon discovering that he has unwittingly killed his father and married his mother. Metaphorically, he is blind to the truth of his circumstances and his identity throughout much of the play, refusing to see the signs and prophecies that lead to his tragic fate. This blindness underscores themes of fate, knowledge, and self-awareness in Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex."


What is oedipus rex about-?

Oedipus Rex is about King Oedipus. A plague has descended upon the city of Thebes. Oedipus makes it his mission to find the cause of this plague. At one point he accuses the prophet Tiresias of being the murderer of Laius, the king before Oedipus. However, a shepherd reveals to Oedipus that Laius's murderer was Oedipus himself. Laius and Jocasta had given Oedipus to the shepherd. While Oedipus went to see the sphinx, he murdered Laius because Laius would not give him the right of way. He solved the sphinx's riddle, traveled to the city of Thebes, and married his mother. Jocasta kills herself and Oedipus gouges his eyes out and is sent out of Thebes.


What does the servant report as Oedipus' explanation for his self-mutilation in 'Oedipus Rex'?

It is to no longer see an incestuous relationship that the servant reports as Oedipus' explanation for his self-mutilation in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the servant exits from the palace to inform the chorus of the goings-on inside. He indicates that disgraced Theban King Oedipus now is blind. He states that Oedipus announces his determination never to see the incestuous mess of his marriage and plunges his wife's brooches deep into both eyes.


What does Oedipus do when he finds Jocasta dead in 'Oedipus Rex'?

He puts out his own eyes.


What do you learn from the Second Messenger in 'Oedipus Rex'?

That Jocasta is dead and that Oedipus is blind is what the audience learns from the Second Messenger in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).Specifically, the Second Messenger comes out of the main entrance to the Theban royal palace. He informs the chorus of Oedipus' initial plan to kill his wife Jocasta with his sword. But he finds her already dead by hanging with the threads from her own gown. Oedipus removes the brooches from Jocasta's robes and plunges them into both his eyes.