Oedipus Rex

That the guilty, those who know but do not share information and those who harbor or help all will be punished in the same way are three things that Oedipups proclaims about Laius' murder in Scene 1 in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus hears from his brother-in-law and royal colleague, Creon, that execution or exile must be the punishment of the guilty in King Laius' murder. He does not have the right to do so, but he extends the application of the punishment. He calls for the same punishment to be carried out to whoever hinders the investigation or harbors the guility even if the guilty ends up being a member of the royal household.

Aristotle (384 B.C.E. - 322 B.C.E.) is the great philosopher who wrote about "Oedipus Rex" defining the basic rules of drama.

Specifically, Aristotle defined basic rules by which drama achieved its purpose of entertainment and instruction in ancient Greece. He illustrated his rules by examples from "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.). In particular, Aristotle pinpointed the dramatic irony of every one of Oedipus' avoidance decisions and escapist actions only serving to ensure the realization of a horribly predicted fate.

Because he does not see how he can kill a man whom he does not remember meeting is the reason why Oedipus calls Teiresias a liar in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the Apolline oracle says that the pestilence in Thebes will end only with the identification and punishment of the guilty in the unsolved murder of Theban King Creon. Oedipus, Thebes' currently reigning king, seeks help from Teiresias the blind prophet, royal advisor to all of Thebes' kings since the city's founding by Cadmus. Teiresias says that the killer is Oedipus, but Laius already is dead when Oedipus moves to Thebes. Oedipus therefore does not see how the blind seer can be telling the truth.

Oedipus' self-blinding is the spectacle in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the term spectacles describes something unusual. The description fits Theban King Oedipus' self-mutilation. Oedipus blinding himself is one of the most unusual events in the play and in fact in entire theater history.

That he needs to go home is what Jocasta says to Creon in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban Queen Jocasta's brother Creon and husband King Oedipus argue. Jocasta attempts to stop the fight. She says that are more important things to worry about than their petty fights and that each one just needs to go home.

Where Oedipus is going to die is the theme of "Oedipus at Colonus" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus lives and relives on a daily basis the dreadful prophecy that results in his personal and professional disgrace. But he makes a stop at a grove near Colonus outside Athens. There, he remembers that the prophecy is not all bad. Indeed, the prophecy reveals that Oedipus will die a special death and that his burial place will give luck to its location.

It is his presumed mother that Oedipus claims still to fear in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus is offered the Corinthian throne recently vacated by the death of his presumed father, King Polybus. He mentions that his prophesied fate of killing his father appears not to be true since Polybus dies of illness and old age. But he questions the wisdom of going back to Corinth where his mother whom he is predicted to marry still lives.

Outside the royal palace of Thebes is the setting when the play "Antigone" begins.

Specifically, the scene takes place in the open space before the front entrance to the royal palace. The time is daybreak. The first two characters that the reading and viewing audiences meet are Theban Princesses Antigone and Ismene, orphaned daughters of the tragically incestuous previously reigning royal couple and nieces of current Theban King Creon.

That it foreshadows the play's end is the significance of Creon appearing without Oedipus as the second scene opens in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the term foreshadowing describes a hint of things to come. Creon is a subordinate member of the royal power sharing arrangement that his brother-in-law King Oedipus dominates. That he will succeed Oedipus as sole king of Thebes is foreshadowed in his appearing alone.

Sending Creon to consult the oracle at Apollo's shrine is the step already taken by Oedipus to deal with the plaque in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. -- 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus shows himself to be an effective, informed, sensitive ruler. He knows of the current pestilence in Thebes and anticipates that Thebans will ask for his help. When they do, he hopes to have an answer by way of the oracle's information.

Yes, Oedipus falls from a position of power in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Oedipus is king of Thebes. He also is revered as his city's savior for defeating the monstrous Sphinx. But within a day's time, he loses family, friends, home, job, reputation and sight.

Ancient Greece is the country in which the play "Oedipus the King" is set.

Specifically, the play's author Sophocles (c. 496 B.C.E. - c. 406 B.C.E.) sets the opening scene outside the royal palace of Thebes. It is clear that he means the ancient Greek city, not the ancient Egyptian place name. One way that Sophocles makes this clear is by having the characters and the chorus refer to other places in Greece, such as Corinth and Delphi. The characters and the chorus also reference names from ancient Greek mythology, such as Cadmus and Zeus.

It is from the audience's knowledge of Oedipus as Laius' killer that dramatic irony arises in part in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, irony refers to inaccurate or incomplete understanding of situations by the affected individuals. Theban King Oedipus promises to identify and punish the guilty in King Laius' murder. But he does not know what the audience already knows: he himself is the person whose public humiliation and punishment he seeks.

The truth of the testimonies of the Corinthian messenger and the Theban shepherd is the turning point in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the eyewitness testimony of the Corinthian messenger establishes that Theban King Oedipus is not the biological son of Corinthian King Polybus. The eyewitness testimony of the Theban shepherd establishes that Oedipus is the biological son of Theban monarchs Laius and Jocasta. It also establishes that Oedipus is his father's killer and his mother's husband. It is the turning point from which no life ever can be the same.

Ismene'sdeath is not mentioned in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, the amount of information available on different members of the Theban royal family varies. For example, there is more information on Antigone and her twin brothers Eteocles and Polyneices than about Ismene. Additionally, there are variant versions about important details, such as the place and cause of death. For example, elsewhere in the ancient Greek myths, it is suggested that Ismene is killed during the successful storming of Thebes by the descendants of those who side with Polyneices against Eteocles.

Yes, Oedipus is a tyrannical ruler in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, a ruler is tyrannical if he seizes power illegally in ancient Greece. That description fits Theban King Oedipus. He ends up as King of Thebes because the job is open and because he marries Thebes' widowed queen. But King Laius dies because he is killed, and that killer turns out to be Oedipus. Oedipus therefore ascends the throne by illegal means.

A formal request by the priest of Zeus for help from Oedipus is what happens second in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.),

Specifically, the priest presents the problems of ailing livestock, dying babies and failing crops. He counts on Theban King Oedipus' problem-solving skills as victorious against the monstrous Sphinx, most powerful among mortals and favored by the gods. Otherwise, the priest says that Thebes is lost.

No, Jocasta does not say that an oracle comes to Laius in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, oracles do not travel around ancient Greece. Instead, they live in shrines dedicated to Apollo the sun god. They accept visitors who come from all over ancient Greece to hear their divinely inspired prophecies.

That Thebes has a problem that can benefit from divine intervention in its solution is the reason why the gods are mentioned in the prologue to "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, a pestilence afflicts Thebes. It can be an indicator of human commissions that the gods find offensive. Or it can indicate the equally offensive omission of mandated human behavior in terms of the gods.

That he reckless is what Oedipus' confrontations with Teiresias and Creon say about his character in "Oedipus Rex" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).

Specifically, Theban King Oedipus is reckless in his overreactions to what he dislikes. He hears Teiresias accuse him of a murder that he does not remember committing. He gets back by claiming groundlessly and insultingly that he is being framed so that Teiresias and Creon can grab all the royal powers for themselves.