Oedipus complex Team:6 Member: 林洵鋌、張瓊文、廖婉雯、張硯鈞、楊哲 維、劉冠廷

The story of oedipus complex A long time ago, a king lived in a place called Thebes whose name is Laius, and his wife, Jocasta.It have the oracle once it warned Laius can't give birth to and bring up children; otherwise, his son may kill his father after growing up, and marry his mother. Later, Jocasta gave birth to a son. Laius determined to abandon the son in the mountain, let him die of hunger, or let the wild animal eat up him.

Laius lets the shepherd take him to the mountain to abandon, in order to prevent in case, he cuts off the son's foot muscle, in case that he escapes from coming back to the town. The shepherd followed the king's order, bring the child into the mountain, but meet a shepherd from Corinth on the way. The herdsman of Corinth sympathized with the experience of this little boy, then require the shepherd from Thebes, let him give the child to the Corinth’s king.

That's settled then, the little boy is adopted by the king and queen in Corinth who didn’t have child, and become the princes of this city state. Oedipus grew up and became very handsome. Everybody liked him very much, but no one had told him, the king and queen of Corinth were not his own parents. But one day, on the banquet that be held in the palace. A guest suddenly mentioned that Oedipus was not the king's own child at all, but when Oedipus ran to ask queen, she prevaricated, being not willing to answer him positively.

Oedipus had to go to asked for oracle. He asksed Apollo's woman pontifex, whether he is the right heir of the throne of Corinth.The pontifex said: ' leave your father! ' Otherwise, you will kill him when meeting next time, then marry your mother give birth to several children with her. Hearing this prophecy, Oedipus did not dare to go back to Corinth because he thought yet till now, the king and queen of Corinth are his own parents. He began to roam about everywhere, arriving in Thebes nearby finally. He met one carriage that be pulled by four horses, and a rich man with sat above.

Several bodyguards were clustering round this rich man, a bodyguard of them beat Oedipus,asking him to give way. Then both sides begin to fight on the road, Oedipus killed rich man and all the bodyguards. Only the carter escaped and brought the news news back aloned. He said, the king has been killed by a robber on the road. The queen and ordinary people were all very extremely mournful. But, at this time, an important thing happend in Thebes.

Monster with a lion’s body and person’s face who is named Sphinx, garrisoning on the way of leading to Thebes and put forward a puzzle to every transient person. The person didn’t answer, will be torn in two by the monster. The government in Thebes sent out the notice: No matter anyone, if someone can found a clue to the mystery of Sphinx, the queen will marry him, and let him inherit the throne that Laius left over.

Oedipus saw the notice, forgetting the tragedy immediately, and went to the hill that the monster occupied. The monster ask a puzzle of him: What thing walk with four leg in morning, two legs at noon and three legs at night? Oedipus answered the monster: ' The answer is the mankind because we have three stages in life. We crept on the ground with both feet and hands as a child, walking on two legs after growing up. Finally, we walk unstable when being old, so we have to hold a cane.'

After that, a pestilence took place in Thebes. Greeks at that time believed, the coming of this kind of calamity showed Apollo feeling extremely angry to a certain thing that took place in human world. So, Thebes sent the special envoy to go to asking in oracle. The woman pontifex said that the Apollo fell the pestilence, because of the king of Thebes, Laius had been plotted to murder for many years, but the murderer was still free so far, if the whole city’s people of Thebes wanted to keep the life, must found murderers and restrained by law. Oedipus received the oracle, without thinking and undertook the responsibility that investigated the murderer who had killed the king at once.

He has never expected, the murder had close relation with this fight on the road many years ago. In this way, the murderer became a person who pursued and captured the murderer. He found a seer in the city first, asking who had murdered Laius, but this person who can insight the case of human world refused to answer because the answer is too cruel. But Oedipus, who was diligent in government affairs and love the people was unwilling to give up, pressing for an answer constantly. The seer had to tell Oedipus silently, the person who killed the king was him.

Oedipus remembered the thing happened on the road years ago at last, he awared that he had killed Laius, but there didn’t have any proof showed till now that he’s own son of Laius. Oedipus was a broad and level gentleman, he demanded to say out all truth Finally, he called the shepherd of Thebes and the shepherd of Corinth in the front, and let them confronted. They proved that Oedipus had killed his father but also married his mother. The truth came out at last. After the grief, Oedipus dug out his two eyes with hands and his mother killed herself, too.

The source of the information ion?qid= ion?qid= es_com/taweichi/333/oe.jpg ages/2-3.gif

Work Assign PPT: 劉冠廷 Report: 林洵鋌 Arrange the information and translate: 楊哲維 Find the information: 張瓊文、廖婉 雯、張硯鈞