1. Oedipus Rex Oedipus Tyrannos
by Sophocles

2. Sophocles
496 – 406 B. C.
a playwright who lived a long, comfortable, happy life
grew up in a wealthy family in ATHENS, GREECE

3. Sophocles his dramatic work portrayed misery and tragedy
he also became a distinguished public official

4. Sophocles produced 123 plays (only seven survive today)
the age of Sophocles in Greece was a time when anything seemed possible through human effort and reason

5. Sophocles
toward the end of Sophocles’ life, Athens raged a war against Sparta, their bitter rivals
there also was a great plague in 430 B. C.

6. Sophocles
Sophocles’ surviving plays (written after 440 B.C.) are deeply troubling

7. Sophocles
These plays depict characters caught up in unsolvable dilemmas that test their faith in divine and human justice

8. Greek Drama Actors wore masks and cothurni (elevated shoes).
All people participated either in acting or in the audience.
Performed in outdoor amphitheaters

9. Greek Drama -- Chorus Choral songs were divided into stanzas:
strophe (turn)
antistrophe (turn the other way)
epode (added song) that were sung while the chorus moved (danced). While singing the strophe an ancient commentator tells us they moved from left to right; while singing the antistrophe they moved from right to left.

10. Greek Drama -- Chorus Choragus – The producer of the play
He paid for the production.
If the play won a prize, it was awarded to him.

11. OEDIPUS REX
INTRODUCTION

14. OEDIPUS REX
one of the world’s greatest tragedies

15. OEDIPUS REX
a TRAGEDY is a serious drama featuring a main character who strives to achieve something and is ultimately defeated!

16. OEDIPUS REX
The main character’s downfall is often due to an inborn character flaw or weakness – the tragic flaw.

17. OEDIPUS REX - Background
During the early years of the Peloponnesian War, when Oedipus Rex was produced, Athens suffered from political instability and devastating plague.

18. OEDIPUS REX - Background
Sophocles opens his play with a situation that the people of Athens could identify with: a plague with no end in sight!

19. Ancient Athens – 5th Century B. C.

21. OEDIPUS REX-Prologue
The city of Thebes is ravaged by plague
Citizens beg King Oedipus for help

22. OEDIPUS REX-Prologue
Oedipus sends his brother-in-law, Creon, to the oracle of Apollo at Delphi.

23. OEDIPUS REX-Prologue
Creon returns and announces that the plague will end when the Thebans punish the murderer of the their previous king, Laius.

24. OEDIPUS REX-Prologue
Oedipus tries to take the role of savior and vows to do everything in his power to apprehend the murderer and save his people

25. OEDIPUS REX-Prologue
Oedipus does not realize that his vow will relentlessly lead him to an encounter with himself, his past, and his darkest secrets!!!

26. MAIN CHARACTERS

27. Teiresias
blind prophet and servant of Apollo
reveals the reasons for the devastation and plague in Thebes

28. Teiresias
one of the most powerful characters in the play
tells Oedipus he will become blind and poor

29. Jocasta (Iocaste) the wife and mother of Oedipus
she tells Oedipus not to trust in the oracles
she tries to protect Oedipus from the awful truth

30. Jocasta
she alternately condemns and upholds the authority of the oracles as best suits the direction of the argument at the moment

31. Oedipus protagonist his name means “swollen-foot”
he inspires both pity and fear

32. Oedipus
a hereditary curse has been placed on his family, and he unknowingly has fulfilled the terms of the prophecy that he would kill his father (Laius) and marry his own mother (Jocasta)

33. Oedipus
when he curses the murderer of Laius he is cursing himself and predicting his own exile and consequent life of “wretchedness.”

34. Oedipus
he is wise, revered by his subjects, and dedicated to the discovery of truth
he wants to rid Thebes of the plague, but fate and the gods have other things in store for him

35. Chorus of Theban Elders
men of Thebes who honor and respect the king and the gods
their odes reveal both a strong attachment to the king as well as grounding in religious culture

36. Creon
brother of Laius
Oedipus feels threatened by Creon and believes that he covets the throne
Creon defends himself saying he has no desire to be king and that Oedipus harms himself in making such accusations

37. Messenger tells Oedipus that King Polybos of Corinth is dead
Oedipus learns from the messenger that Polybos was not his father
the messenger had been given Oedipus as an infant by one of Laius’ men

38. Shepherd of Laius
reveals his information only after Oedipus threatens his life
admits to receiving the infant (he gave to Polybos’ messenger) from Laius and Jocasta
Oedipus eventually realizes his own identity and his crimes of patricide and incest after hearing the shepherd’s story

39. Second Messenger announces and describes Jocasta’s suicide
predicts future sorrows for a people whose kings descend from this polluted line

40. The Chorus choral odes bring an additional viewpoint to the play
offer a broader and more socio-religious perspective than those offered by individual characters

41. THEMES
quest for identity and truth
nature of innocence and guilt
nature of moral responsibility

42. Imagery
references to light and darkness to predict the future

43. Example of Imagery
The priest says at the beginning: "All the house of Kadmos is laid waste; all emptied, and all darkened”

44. Example of Imagery
Oedipus promises Creon: “Then once more I must bring what is dark to light.”

45. Example of Foreshadowing
Teiresias tells Oedipus that it is he who is blind
“But I say that you, with both your eyes, are blind. You cannot see the wretchedness of your life”

46. SUMMARY
Oedipus Rex is the story of a king of Thebes upon whom a hereditary curse is placed and who therefore has to suffer the tragic consequences of fate.

47. SUMMARY
During the time of plague, fires, and other forms of decimation, Oedipus decides to take action to restore life and prosperity to his kingdom.

48. SUMMARY
Oedipus discovers, through his quest for truth, that his identity is not what he thought.
He learns he has killed his father, married his mother, and had children with her.

49. Creon becomes King of Thebes
SUMMARY
Oedipus’ wife/mother – Jocasta – kills herself and Oedipus blinds himself and goes into exile
Creon becomes King of Thebes

50. Terms to Know Exodus – concluding scene of the play
Parados – Chorus’ 1st response (song) which is their interpretation of the play’s content
Episodia – series of scenes where the action and events are presented

51. Terms Stasimon – Chorus’ interpretation & response to preceding scene
Prologue – Here the audience learns of the conflict gthe play addresses