Oedipus Rex

That he has experience with disloyalty and that he intends upon change in the midst of stress are details in his speech that emphasize Creon's role as a tragic character in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Creon's speech can be seen as foreshadowing of troubles yet to come. He begins his speech with references to popular support for rulers during troubled times. He asks his listeners to support drastic change in the aftermath of a violent civil war and during a time of great stress. The speech acts as a flag of tragedy to come since it is not an inspiring pronouncement of present victory and future optimism.

The Delphic Oracle is the source of Oedipus' prophecy in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, an oracle is a person who is a respected source for the expression of divine will in ancient Greece. Theban-born Oedipus is living in Corinth when he feels the need to find out whether or not Corinthian monarchs Polybus and Merope are his biological parents. As a well brought up royal, he decides the best information source is an oracle, of which the Delphic Oracle at Delphi is the most famous and most highly respected.

That he is the city's savior is the reason why Oedipus remains important to Thebes in "Oedipus Rex," "Oedipus at Colonus" and "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Oedipus becomes the disgraced King of Thebes. But he cannot be dismissed or ignored historically. He rescues the city from the monstrous Sphinx and from a pestilence of ailing livestock, dying children and failing crops.

That everyone else dies is what happens to Theban King Creon's family by the time that the play "Antigone" ends.

Specifically, there are only three members left in Creon's family when the play begins: his wife Theban Queen Eurydice, his son and heir apparent Haemon, and himself. But Haemon kills himself because Creon sentences Antigone, his own niece and future daughter-in-law, to death. Then the Queen kills herself once she learns that the last of her four children is now dead. So Creon ends the play all alone since his family would rather commit suicide than spend one more minute in his presence.

That the gods win even when they appear to lose is the cosmic irony in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, cosmic irony describes a situation of incomplete or incorrect understanding of the workings of divine and natural forces in the universe. The description fits the role of divinely ordained fate in the lives of Theban monarchs Jocasta, Laius and Oedipus. All three hear unacceptable prophecies which they believe to sabotage. But every step that each one takes away from unenviable fate is a regular contribution to that very destiny's fulfillment in all its horror.

Antigone, Ismene, and Polyneicesand Eteocles are the names of Oedipus' children in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Eteocles and Polyneices are the twin sons of Theban monarchs Oedipus and Jocasta. They are Oedipus' heirs and the direct maternal and paternal descendants of Cadmus, Thebes' founder king. They are the eldest children and the brothers of two young sisters. Princess Antigone the elder and Princess Ismene the younger are the brothers' younger sisters.

Execution or exile is the punishment threatened by Oedipus for withholding information about the murderer in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Thebes suffers from a pestilence that the Delphic oracle says will end with the identification and the execution or exile of the guilty in Theban King Laius' murder. King Oedipus takes it upon himself to extend that punishment. Whoever withholds information or harbors or helps the guilty also will be punished with execution or exile.

Readers can sympathize with Antigone because of her compassion. Antigone doesn't see the ties of blood, love, and respect as ending with life. She asserts that she has no chance of having another brother, because both her parents are dead.

Antigone also considers that she will spend much more time dead than alive. So she must think of how she treats death and the dead. She feels the additional responsibility of being the great great great granddaughter of Cad mus, who founded the city of Thebes in about 2000 B.C.E.; and the great great great great great granddaughter of Poseidon, the sea god.

With such an ancestry, it isn't surprising that she wants to be in compliance with the enduring legacy of the gods, and the equally enduring traditions of Thebes' founder.

"Oedipus the King" is the meaning of the title "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the title "Oedipus Rex" is in Latin. It is a translation of the original title of "Oedipus Tyrannus" in ancient Greek. But the Latin is not a literal translation since the Greek translates literally into English as "Oedipus the Tyrant."

That he cannot think of any other information source for the lies that Teiresias appears to tell is the reason why Oedipus accuses Creon in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus must identify and punish with execution or exile the guilty in the murder of his royal predecessor, King Laius. He is angry, insulted and terrified when his royal advisor, Teiresias the blind prophet, accuses him of killing a man whom he never remembers meeting. He therefore assumes that Teiresias conspires to grab all royal powers and that the co-conspirator is Creon, the person who most benefits by Oedipus' overthrow.

That it deals with a hero's misfortune, has universal appeal and is written in classical times are ways in which "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.) is a classical tragedy.

Specifically, tragedy describes a story line that reveals the unfortunate turn or end to a hero's life. The tragedy is classical when its writing dates back to the cultural heights achieved by the ancient Greek and Latin civilizations in art and literature. It also is considered classical when it fulfills all the genre's requirements and especially when its attraction transcends the place- and time-interests of worldwide audiences.

That Oedipus cannot be the cause and that therefore all prophecies do not come true are the reasons why Oedipus and Jocasta are joyous about the news of Polybus' death in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus fears a prophecy that he will kill his father and marry his mother. But he and his wife, Queen Jocasta, hear from a Corinthian messenger about the death of Oedipus' father, Corinthian King Polybus, from old age and illness. At the time of death, Oedipus is in Thebes and therefore nowhere near Corinth. Jocasta therefore suggests that Oedipus' dreadful prophesied fate will not come true.

Just outside the front entrance is the part of the palace that is involved in the setting of the play "Antigone."

Specifically, it is the open space where the royal family interacts with each other and with their subjects regarding city issues. Different characters are described as going in or out of the palace. But no action of the play actually takes place inside the royal palace of Thebes. In fact, bit by bit, the secrets of the royal family are revealed in the space outdoors where Theban royals and Theban citizens meet.

That her husband dies at the very place Oedipus kills someone is what upsets Oedipus about Jocasta's story of Laius' death in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. -- 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban Queen Jocasta identifies her husband's place of death as the spot where the roads from Daulia, Delphi and Thebes meet in the land of Phocis. The meeting-place is distinct and known to Oedipus, who passes through that intersection on the way from Delphi to Thebes about the time that Laius passes from Thebes to Creon. Additionally, Jocasta's description of her husband fits Oedipus' memory of one of the four people he kills there.

Creon's royal accession and meeting with Oedipus as well as Oedipus' demand for exile and meeting with his daughters are four incidents in the resolution of "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the resolution happens between the falling actions and the play's actual conclusion. It includes Creon's accession to the Theban throne that disgraced King Oedipus must vacate for criminal acts and immoral behavior. It also involves Creon's meeting with Oedipus as well as Oedipus' request for exile, a meeting with his daughters, and permission to be accompanied by his daughters into exile. It terminates with Oedipus being led under house arrest into the palace.

That he already has things as he likes them is the rational argument that Creon uses to convince Oedipus that he has no designs on the throne of Thebes in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Creon identifies King Oedipus, his brother-in-law and royal colleague, as the ultimate powerholder in Thebes. He says that he has no desire to change the situation. The way things currently are, Creon states that he gets everything that he needs and wants without the stresses of being responsible and making decisions.

Empathy is Oedipus' best character trait in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the term empathy describes an individual's ability to feel the pain and sufferings of others. The description fits Theban King Oedipus's feelings for his citizenry and his children. Oedipus indeed is at his best when he fusses over the well being o f his city and worries over his daughters' futures.

A pestilential environment is the situation in Thebes in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, a pestilence afflicts the entire city and surrounding area. Livestock ail, children die and crops fail. It can go on until all life dies in Thebes or until the guilty in Laius' murder can be found and punished.

Yes, there is alliteration in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, alliteration is a literary device whereby at least two successive words begin with the same letter. The precise examples supplied from the play depend upon the particular version that is being consulted. But one early example can be found in the Prologue, where the priest of Zeus speaks of "suppliant sticks."

Those of royal birth, native intelligence and divine favor are the advantages that Oedipus has in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Oedipus is the presumed son and heir apparent to Corinthian monarchs Polybus and Merope. He figures out how to defeat the monstrous Sphinx when all other mortals fail. He marries into the royal house of Thebes and has a family life with a loving wife and four children that is a role model for all Thebans. He therefore owes his personal happiness and professional success to a combination of the advantages of birth, the application of his own abilities, and the help of the gods.

That Oedipus plays and replays the tragedy of his existence is what is prophetic about Creon's remark that natures such as Oedipus' chiefly torment themselves in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Creon characterizes his brother-in-law King Oedipus as stubborn. Oedipus ultimately demonstrates a tormenting stubbornness in going over and over again how he is morally innocent of killing his father and marrying his mother. Over and over again, he torments himself with his accusations against the meddling Furies of fate. Over and over again, he torments himself with his self-defense of a lack of intent and motive because of his mistaken self-identity.