1. GREEK DRAMA & OEDIPUS REX Sophocles

2.  One of three major Greek tragedians whose plays still survive  497 BC – 406 BC  Wrote 123 plays  Only 7 survive in their entirety  Most popular is the tetrology of Oedipus  1 – Oedipus Rex  2 – Oedipus at Colonus  3 - Antigone

3. Dramatic Structure  Prologue  Monologue or dialogue explaining the reason for the tragedy  Parados  The entry chant of the chorus  Episode  When an actor interacts with the chorus  Usually 3-5 episodes  Stasimon  When the chorus reacts to the previous episode  Stasimons indicate the end of an episode  Exodus  The very last song the chorus sings

4. The Chorus  Who are the chorus?  Additional actors  On stage throughout the performance  Usually only chant or sing lines (almost poetic)  Wear masks so they are seen as one unit, instead of individual actors  What is the purpose of the chorus?  In some instances – all knowing narrator  Summarize the plot of the play  Provide interactions with the gods, so as to not detract from the plot of the drama

5. Greek Drama Vocabulary  Catharsis  release of emotional tension  Deus ex machina  god from the machine  Plot device where an unsolvable problem is suddenly solved by someone/something  Hamartia  tragic flaw leads to the tragic hero’s demise  Hubris  overbearing pride  Perpeteia  reversal of fortune

6. OEDIPUS REX SUMMARY

7. Background: The Sphinx

10. Another riddle… I can run but never walk I have a mouth but never talk I have a bed but never sleep I have a head but never weep What am I? A RIVER

11. And another! This thing all things devours Birds, beasts, trees, and flowers Gnaws iron, bites steel; Grinds hard stones to meal; Slays king, and ruins town; And beats high mountain down. What is this thing? TIME

12. One more riddle! A cloud was my mother, the wind is my father, my son is the cool stream, and my daughter is the fruit of land. A rain is my bed, the Earth my final resting place, and I'm the torment of man. What am I? A RAINBOW