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Oedipus Rex
More than 2,420 years old but still studied today, the play ‘Oedipus Rex’ tells a tragic tale of mistaken identities, inescapable fates, and horrific human misdeeds. Contributors typically compare and contrast the play’s characters, storytelling techniques, and subject matter with similar pieces of literature from the same and different settings and time periods.
3,240 Questions
What role did those under Columbus's command play in the treatment of the taino?
Well my speculations say that CC was cool.
What do you do when a woman makes false accusations against you?
Offer to take a polygraph test, requiring that the accusing female do the same. * If the employee has a union representative he or she should consult with them before taking any further action. If there is not union representation it would be in the person's best interest to obtain legal advice from an attorney qualified in sexual harassment in the workplace issues. It would also be prudent for the accused not to discuss the situation with anyone, including other employees and supervisory personnel until he or she is informed of their legal standing.
How many choral odes are in 'Oedipus Rex'?
Four (4) is the number of choral odes in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, the first ode comes after Creon and Theban King Oedipus finish their interaction with the priest of Zeus and the suppliants. The second ode happens after Teiresias the blind prophet finishes a most unappreciative interaction with Oedipus. The third ode occurs after Theban monarchs Oedipus and Jocasta finish their interaction with the chorus leader after the fight with Creon. The fourth ode takes place after Oedipus finishes his eye-opening interaction with the Corinthian messenger and the Theban shepherd.
In the story Oedipus Why did jocasta hang herself?
It's a combination of shame for fulfilling the prophecy, not being able to cheat destiny and sleeping with her own son.
That the crime scene, time and victims are similar to those of Oedipus' own past is the reason why Jocasta's account of the prophecy about her child and of her husband's death upset Oedipus in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban King Oedipus kills an older version of himself along with all but one of the victim's escort at the Delphi-Daulia intersection just before moving to Thebes. The appearance and number of victims, the location of the killings and the time overlap with Queen Jocasta's description of her first husband King Laius' murder. Neither one seems to notice the identical prophecy given to Jocasta about her infant son to that given to her second husband, Oedipus, who is young enough to be her son.
Who imposes Oedipus' sentence?
Oedipus, not knowing what he did, declared that the murderer of King Laius would be killed or exiled. He also prayed that the murderer would live a life of wretchedness.
Does Teiresias have good news for Oedipus in 'Oedipus Rex'?
No, Teiresias does not have good news for Oedipus in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban King Oedipus meets with Teiresias the blind prophet in an attempt to collect information about the death of his royal predecessor, King Laius. But he ends up really disliking what Teiresias has to say. Teiresias in fact charges Oedipus with being Laius' killer.
How does Jocasta respond to the messenger's story in 'Oedipus Rex'?
It is with joy and relief that turn into horrified opposition to the telling that Jocasta responds to the messenger's story in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban Queen Jocasta is happy to hear that her first husband King Oedipus' father Corinthian King Polybus is dead from illness and old age. She is relieved because she considers this an indication that Oedipus' predicted fate as his father's killer is an incorrect prophecy. But she loses enthusiasm as with growing horror she learns that Oedipus is a Theban native adopted or fostered into the Corinthian royal household.
What lines are part of the climax of the play Oedipus Rex?
"O light, may I ne'er look on thee again."
"Woe! woe! woe! woe! All cometh clear at last."
The pronoun 'this' refers to Oedipus's fear that he is Laius's murderer.
How did Oedipus once liberate thebes?
Oedipus liberated Thebes by solving the Sphinx's riddle. The Sphinx had placed a heavy tax on the Thebans and forced them into poverty. Oedipus was able to conquer and banish the Sphinx.
What makes Oedipus suspect he killed Laius?
Oedipus remembers meeting a man at a place where three roads meet, and killing him there. When he finds out that Laius was killed by a man at a three-way crossroad, Oedipus suspects that he killed him.
Why does Oedipus refuse to go to Corinth in 'Oedipus Rex'?
That his presumed mother still lives and that he is prophesied to marry his mother is the reason why Oedipus refuses to go to Corinth in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Oedipus receives the horrifying prophecy that he will kill his father and marry his mother. He feels safe from the first part of the prediction since the death of his presumed father, Corinthian King Polybus, is from old age and illness during the time that Oedipus is King of Thebes. But he still does not want to return to his presumed hometown of Corinth, where his presumed mother, Corinthian Queen Merope, lives.
Who offers comfort when Oedipus emerges from the palace in 'Oedipus Rex'?
No one offers comfort when Oedipus emerges from the palace in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Oedipus emerges blind, disgraced and stumbling. He meets first with the chorus leader, who says that Oedipus is better off never having been born. He then meets with Creon, who lets him meet with his young daughters but chides him for polluting all Thebes with his abhorrent person.
That he has the respect of and is accessible to his people is what the priest's speech tells us about the kind of ruler that Oedipus is at the beginning of "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, the priest of Zeus calls Oedipus the Savior of Thebes. He describes Oedipus as most powerful among men and most favored by the gods. He ends basically by saying that things are going to be sorted out because Oedipus is involved and always means business.
Why is Oedipus concerned about his daughters?
That they're young, without protection, and vulnerable as the children of scandalous parents are the reasons why Theban King Oedipus is concerned about his daughters Antigone and Ismene. His two other children, twin brothers Eteocles and Polyneices, are mature enough to fend for themselves. Additionally, they're Oedipus' heirs. So their future courses are assured as alternate rulers of the Theban throne in a royal power sharing arrangement.
But Antigone and Ismene have no protector in the absence of their father. Their only hope lies in their uncle, Theban King Creon, looking out for them as the children of his only sister, Theban Queen Jocasta. With Creon as protector, the two girls well may find acceptable spouses and lead happily married lives. Without Creon's protection, they never can get away from the stigma of being both daughters and half sisters to their father, and daughters and granddaughters to their mother.
Why is 'Oedipus Rex' considered the epitome of Greek tragedy?
Dude and O what a T R A G E D Y !!! ...esp the part where he consults the Oracle Of Delphi ,spurned on by the suspicion that King Polybus & the Queen are not his parents, and the Oracle lets slip that hes going to bed his mother and murder his "sire" , of course revolted by this , he leaves his adopted parents , and so the tsunami of FATE , the gates that held back destiny , as he caressed the wheat fields on those summer days , lush green grass , babbling streams , happy playful jocularity , pass through his fingers as if an ogre of optimism wills to cup and drink from a stream of mercury , as that fast super liquid metal of solid shimmer , slips through the might of true hearts , that can never achieve justice , for whispering voices have doomed their fate so.
After the innocuous , unassuming , everyday hustle bustle , chariot encounter HE MURDERS HIS FATHER !...Tragic , more so when you reason that Oedipus is such a man that he left his ROYAL household behind in fear , that this kind of catastrophe might happen .Its the awe , of being dragged along by a current and there's nothing you can do , its like watching a NIGHTMARE , but the action hero is YOU , in his mortal might , he who can commit morale decision {like he left his parents , thinking it could be them} in his physical power {as in the murder of another man , Laius his father , unbeknownst to Oedipus}and yet still this rushing current of an estranged undesired fate , twits & turns everything , if you think about it , even if you knew , what can you do ! Another horror of the time , "not knowing" , as conveyed to us in the part where he discloses the "Riddle of the Sphinx" {"Which creature in the morning goes on four legs, at mid-day on two, and in the evening upon three, and the more legs it has, the weaker it be?" She strangled and devoured anyone unable to answer. Oedipus solved the riddle by answering: "Man-who crawls on all fours as a baby, then walks on two feet as an adult, and then walks with a cane in old age".} What irony , not knowing could spell death , and the whole crux of the play is that his parents KNEW!!! , willed to save this man{which Oedipus grew up to be } and themselves by committing infanticide.
The distraught Sphinx throws herself off the cliff side. Oedipus's reward for freeing the kingdom of Thebes from her curse is the kingship and the hand of Queen Dowager Jocasta, his biological mother. The prophecy is thus fulfilled, although none of the main characters know it.Again this constant HORRIFYING theme , THAT YOU DO NOT KNOW , stemming from a play where THEY DID KNOW AND THOUGHT THAT THEY {including Oedipus} HAD ACTED TO AVOID TRAGEDY .................. wow !
... Thebans arrive at the palace to call upon their King, Oedipus, to aid them with the plague of Apollo ravaging the city. Oedipus had sent his brother-in-law Creon to ask help of the oracle at Delphi, and he returns at that moment. Creon says the plague is the result of religious pollution, caused because the murderer of their former King, Lauis, had never been caught. Oedipus vows to find the murderer and curses him for the plague that he has caused. I mean that is just such an unbelievable twist , Oedipus is in search of his fathers killer ! It just defies FICTION , again reasserting itself as a master of tragic performance , that can only be summed up in the phrase that "Sometimes TRUTH is stranger than FICTION" which brings home the reality of such a tragedy.
Tiresias the prophet leaves, muttering darkly that when the murderer is discovered he shall be a native citizen of Thebes; brother and father to his own children; and son and husband to his own mother.I mean can you really just mentally digest the ongoing theme , the prophet who Oedipus consults IS BLIND !!!...And to talk about NOT KNOWING , the prophet refuses to say , only telling Oedipus to call of his search for the killer of the King , WHO IS INFACT OEDPISU S REAL FATHER , BUT OEDIPUS DOES N O T KNOW !!! O the tragedy of the mortal condition , truly it can be said "Ignorance is bliss"
Oedipus's wife Jocasta {his MOM} enters, and attempts to comfort Oedipus, telling him he should take no notice of prophets. Many years ago she and Laius received an oracle which never came true. It was said that Laius would be killed by his own son, but, as all Thebes knows, Laius was killed by bandits at a crossroads on the way to Delphi.
TAA DAA TAAA DAAAAAAAA , ALARM BELLS RING ... Thrusting tragedy after slashing catastrophe , it is as if it were symphony .Now Oedipus discovers , that it was him , on that crossroads , and that bit of WWF wrestling and a spot of rush hour commuter murder , WAS IN FACT HIS FATHER !!!
NOTE: How at the time , the King was on his way to Delphi , a place famed for its , fore SIGHT , hind SIGHT , , ,{"Let us not again wonder our destiny , for it is through the cloak of ignorance that a mans life we shall see" 1725}
Well , Oedipus finds out , his MOM , hangs herself , he storms round the palace asking for a sword {there's really no need for him to do this , i mean he is royalty , not short of a few pennies,but this is what nobility and having scruples does to you} he sees his MOMs body , takes it down , and with the gold pins that fastened her dress , STABS his eyes out ... O how very tragic , O how very torturous , O how very forlorn in misery & despair he must be to loose his SIGHT {because he never knew , he really genuinely did not know}
On an empty stage the chorus repeat the common Greek maxim, that no man should be considered fortunate until he is dead .Because that man realises that there are powers , be they preternatural or or natural , THAT ARE OUT OF YOUR CONTROL , like the statue of justice which is blind folded , for fear of discrimination , but surely the Gods {in there piety should have divinely intervened, seeing how it was set in polytheistic early Athenian society , surely they could see} ...
Of course , I could go on , but I hope in this summarily created synopsis , Ive to some extent conveyed to you the reason , why Oedipus Rex is considered one of the most spledid tragic plays of ancient Greece ... :]
What world view is represented by Oedipus' anagnorisis?
Anagnorisis is the tragic hero's change from ignorance to knowledge. In the case of 'Oedipus Rex', Theban King Oedipus changes from ignorance to knowledge of the workings of fatein his life. For example, he begins with a view in which he believes that he can control world events because of his free will. But the more he tries to escape his fate, the closer he gets to it. Oedipus learns of his predicted fate to kill his father and marry his mother. He thinks that he can escape such a horrendous fate by fleeing his home in Corinth. Little does he know that Corinthian King Polybus and Corinthian Queen Merope aren't his biological parents. In his ignorance, Oedipus ultimately ends up in his true hometown of Thebes. On the way, he comes to the meeting place of three roads. At that crossroads, a stranger engages him in a street brawl over the right-of-way. Oedipus kills in self-defense the stranger, who actually is his own father and sovereign, Theban King Laius. At Thebes, he saves the city's people from the Sphinx. As a reward, he marries Laius' grieving widow, Theban Queen Jocasta. The happy couple became parents to twin sons, and two daughters. Unbeknownst to Oedipus, his doom is complete since Jocasta is his biological mother. And so Oedipus begins with a confident belief in his ability to control his life. He ends with a horrified realization of his complete inability to escape his fate. So he moves from a position of free will to one of fateful resignation.
What illegal act does Oedipus commit in 'Oedipus Rex'?
Murder and incest are the illegal acts that Oedipus commits in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Oedipus does exactly what he does not want to do: He kills his father and marries his mother. The killing is made more serious by the fact that Oedipus' father is also his sovereign. It is bad enough to kill a father, but it is even worse to kill a king in ancient Greece. Additionally, it is acceptable to marry an older woman, but not one who is a biological parent in ancient Greece. That is something that only the gods get to do: It is the way in which Gaia started up divine and human populations in the universe, and it is blasphemy for mortals to imitate the gods in that very act of creation and procreation.
Oedipus was raised by the King and Queen of Corinth...those were his "adoptive parents." His actual parents were King Laios and Queen Jocaste of Thebes. His original parents "executed" him after hearing the fate of their son Oedipus.
Why does Oedipus kill an old man at the crossroads in 'Oedipus Rex'?
It is in self-defense that Oedipus kills an old man in the crossroads in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Oedipus is coming from Delphi. An older version of himself is accompanied by a five-member escort party that is heading towards Delphi. Oedipus has the right-of-way, which nevertheless is disrespected by the elderly man. The elderly man's servant pushes Oedipus, the old man hits him on the head with a double whip, and it really hurts. Oedipus responds in self-defense, which quickly escalates to deadly force against the old man and four of his five companions.
Henchard's hamartia, or tragic flaw, is his pride and impulsiveness. These characteristics lead him to make rash decisions, such as selling his wife, Susan, in a moment of anger and desperation. His inability to reconcile his past mistakes and his struggle with vulnerability ultimately contribute to his downfall and isolation throughout Thomas Hardy's novel "The Mayor of Casterbridge."
What happens to Oedipus as a child?
The crippling of his feet, an escape from an early death, and placement in three foster homes are what happen to the future Theban King Oedipus as a child. He's fated to kill his father and marry his mother. So his parents decide to have him die by exposure to the weather and the elements. They have a rod driven through the three day old baby's ankles.
But Oedipus is rescued by a Theban shepherd. The shepherd ends up giving the baby to a fellow shepherd. The second shepherd is Corinthian born. He takes Oedipus back home with home. Oedipus then is placed permanently in the royal palace of Corinth. The Corinthian monarchs, King Polybus and Queen Merope, are childless. Oedipus is raised as their son and heir apparent.
What is the theory that Oedipus immediately develops about Laius' death in 'Oedipus Rex'?
That it is the work of thugs hired by Laius' enemies in Thebes is the theory that Oedipus immediately develops about Laius' death in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban King Oedipus has to find and punish the guilty in King Laius' murder. He hears what his brother-in-law and royal colleague Creon has to say. Creon identifies robbers on the basis of the sole surviving eyewitness to Laius' murder. Oedipus observes that money from Laius' enemies in Thebes is behind the crime and that the same can happen to him as current king of Thebes.
