1. The Pre-Oedipus Story
All the knowledge that a student needs to know BEFORE reading “Oedipus”
Ms. Shaw
Classical Mythology/English 12
Hackensack High School

2. Once Upon a Time . . .
It all began in Greece, in a city-state by the name of Thebes.
King Laius and Queen Jocasta were expecting their first child when they received a rather disturbing prophesy:

3. Their son would kill his father!!!
(That’s King Laius for those of you not following too closely.)

4. What to do?
Faced with a bad situation, Laius and Jocasta decide to KILL their new little baby.
They pierce their son’s ankles (don’t ask why, no one is quite sure) and give him to a shepherd to kill.

5. What to do?
The shepherd doesn’t like this situation at all!!! He can’t kill the baby either!

6. Cithaeron
A mountainside where different shepherds bring their sheep to graze
Shepherd #1 gives baby to Shepherd #2, thinking that this is good enough. The baby will never make it back to Thebes. Right?????

7. WRONG

8. Corinth
Shepherd #2 gives the baby to King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth, who haven’t been able to have their own children.
They raise Oedipus as their child, never telling him that he is, in fact, adopted.

9. The TRUTH But, the truth will surface.
At a wedding, a guest who has indulged a bit too much, tells Oedipus that Polybus and Merope are not his parents.

10. I don’t know; do you?
Oedipus confronts Polybus and Merope, who promptly deny it.

11. A Riddle Oedipus loves a good riddle.
He decides to go to the Oracle at Delphi to ask it about his parents (hoping for a straight answer).

12. The Oracle at Delphi
Of course, the Oracle isn’t really good at straight answers.
Oedipus asks the Oracle if Polybus and Merope are his real parents.
The Oracle answers him by giving him a prophesy:

13. “You will kill your father and beget (have) children by your mother.”

14. AHHHHHHH!!!

15. Go west young man!
Oedipus decides that he can’t go back home (Corinth), otherwise he may kill his father (Polybus) and marry his mom (Merope).

16. But, as the reader, we know . . .
Polybus and Merope are not his real parents.
Therefore, he could go back to Corinth if he wanted to.
The worst way that he could head is towards Thebes.
Therefore, he heads towards Thebes

17. Meanwhile, back in Thebes . . .
A plague has beset the people of Thebes in the form of the Sphinx.
The Sphinx asks a riddle, and if you can’t answer it, well, it’s not good.
To help his people, King Laius decides to travel to the Oracle at Delphi to seek a solution.

18. At the crossroads Guess who meets at the crossroads of three roads?
If you guessed Oedipus and King Laius, you’d be right.
Oedipus running from the Oracle and Laius to it.

19. Father and Son Meet Only, neither knows that they are father and son!!
They argue over who has the right of way.
Legend has it that Laius strikes Oedipus, and Oedipus gets a little angry.
They fight and Oedipus kills King Laius.

20. First part fulfilled
If you’ve been following closely, you will realize that the first part of the Oracle’s prophesy has now been fulfilled.

21. Thebes
Oedipus continues onto Thebes and meets the Sphinx, which is still terrorizing the people.
The Sphinx asks Oedipus its riddle:

22. “What goes on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?”

23. His Reward
After correctly answering the riddle and ridding Thebes of the Sphinx, the people wish to reward Oedipus by making him their king (who has mysteriously disappeared).
The easiest way to accomplish this is for him to marry the queen, Jocasta (his mom).

24. Second part of prophesy fulfilled!

25. Happily ever after????
Oedipus and Jocasta marry and have four children.
About years pass.
The play begins.

26. In the works of Sophocles, the characters are often victims of their own fate and shortcomings. In portraying his characters, Sophocles raises irony to a high art. The irony is both verbal (with characters speaking words laden with meaning unknown to them) and dramatic (with characters ensnaring themselves in predicaments charged with danger that they do not recognize but that the audience well knows will lead to disaster).  

27. Characteristics of a Sophoclean Tragedy
The protagonist is a person of noble stature.
The protagonist has a weakness, and because of it, becomes isolated and suffers a downfall.
Because the protagonist’s downfall is not entirely his or her own fault, the audience may end up pitying him or her.
The fallen protagonist gains self-knowledge. He has a deeper insight into himself and understands his weakness.
The audience undergoes catharsis, a purging of emotions, after experiencing pity, fear, shock, and other strong emotions.
The drama usually unfolds in one place in a short period of time, usually about a day, and has a single unified plot. This is known as the three unities principle.

28. Major themes in Oedipus the King
The willingness of man to ignore the truth
The question of the legitimacy of prophets/prophecy
The limits of free will
You cannot outrun your fate. (Not even Zeus can change his own fate)

29. Literary Terms Hamartia- tragic flaw
Hubris- great pride that leads to a down fall
Ate- an act of blindness that is the result of hubris
Nemesis- the punishment/downfall of your actions
Dramatic Irony- when the audience knows something the character(s) doesn’t know
Verbal Irony- when the character says one thing but means another
Situational Irony- when there’s a contrast between what is expected to happen and what actually occurs, or the difference between the purpose of an action and its result
Foreshadowing- hints revealing what will happen in the future

30. Fate, the Gods, and the Oracle
This play was written in 430 BC, long before Christian values appeared. The Greeks believed that many gods controlled their lives; Apollo was one. Many people traveled to a shrine, Apollo’s oracle, to learn the future.
At the time Oedipus is created, Greeks are beginning to question the existence of the gods, fate, and the legitimacy of prophecies.