Oedipus Rex

Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.) is the author of the play "Oedipus Rex."

Specifically, the original title of the play is "Oedipus Tyrannus." The play is better known under its Latin title, "Oedipus Rex." The Latin title is translated directly and literally into English as "Oedipus the King."

That it is the swooping flight of death is what the bird flight is in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the flight of birds is mentioned in the parados when the chorus members make their first onstage appearance, just after Theban King Oedipus' opening interaction with the priest of Zeus and then with his brother-in-law and royal colleague Creon. It is referenced about half way through the ode. It serves as a metaphor of newly born children dying because of the pestilence in Thebes.

Help in ending the pestilence and in finding the guilty in Laius' death are the pleas in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the priest of Zeus and the Theban suppliants ask for help in ending the pestilence in Thebes. Theban King Oedipus hears how to end the pestilence. He therefore issues a plea for help in tracking down the guilty in King Laius' murder.

That she is a snob is the way in which Oedipus interprets Jocasta's sudden exit in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus discovers that he is the adopted or biological son of his presumed parents, Corinthian monarchs Polybus and Merope. He then finds out that his birthplace is within the Theban not the Corinthian royal household. Oedipus observes that his presumed humble birth to a palace servant offends his wife Queen Jocasta, who undoubtedly leaves because she likes to put on airs about her noble and royal ancestry.

Bully, insult, malign and reject is what Oedipus does to Teiresias in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus bullies Teiresias into saying what only serves to upset him and his quick temper. He insults Teiresias by calling him a criminal, a fake and a liar. He rejects what Teiresias says and dismisses him unceremoniously. He sustains his anger by maligning Teiresias to the chorus leader, Creon, and Jocasta.

That he recognizes it as his place of death is what happens when Oedipus arrives at Colonus in "Oedipus at Colonus" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Oedipus arrives at Colonus just outside Athens. He attempts to rest in a grove that is sacred to the Furies of fate. Area residents make an effort to shoo away the disgraced Theban king. But Oedipus recalls the one positive part of a three part prophecy: he will die a special death in a place sacred to the Furies, his death will bring luck to the area and its people.

That he will find out how to end the pestilence and that he will identify and punish the guilty in the murder ofTheban King Laius are the announcements that Oedipus makes to the Theban people in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban children are born dead or die soon after birth, crops are failing, and livestock are ailing. Oedipus announces that Creon, his brother-in-law and royal colleague, is consulting with the Apolline oracle as to the pestilence's cause and solution. He then announces that in compliance with that oracle, he will solve the mysterious murder of King Laius, punish the guilty and thereby end the pestilence.

That he may be Laius' killer is the reason why Oedipus begins to doubt himself in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus can end the pestilence in Thebes by finding and punishing the guilty in King Laius' murder. But every bit of information that he gathers ends up pointing at him as the main suspect. For example, Teiresias the blind prophet identifies Oedipus as the killer. Queen Jocasta, Oedipus' wife and Laius' widow, indicates that Laius' death place is the Delphi-Daulia intersection in Phocis. That is exactly where Oedipus commits a similar crime against a similar person at about the same time.

The permanently swollen nature of his feet is what gives Oedipus his name in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, a rod is run through Oedipus' ankles when he is just three days old. The rod subsequently is removed, but leaves aftereffects. Permanently swollen feet and shuffling gait are among the consequences, of which the former is the actual meaning of the name Oedipus.

That fate cannot be outrun and the gods cannot be outwitted is the main idea in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban monarchs Jocasta, Laius and Oedipus dislike their prophesied fates. They do not suffer it in silence. Instead, they make every effort that they can think of to outrun fate and outwit the gods. But fate and divine will trip them up.