Classics 10: Chapter 18 Oedipus and the Myths of ThebesThe Myths of ThebesI. The Founding of ThebesCadmus and the Site of ThebesBoeotiaCadmus and the DragonCadmus and HarmoniaSecond Foundation Story: Amphion and ZethusThe Two Foundings of ThebesOedipusThe Cursing of Laius?The Story of OedipusSlide 13Slide 14Oedipus and the SphinxSlide 16Sophocles’ Oedipus the KingSlide 18Slide 19Slide 20The Greatness of OedipusThe Death of OedipusThebes After OedipusSeven Against ThebesSlide 25Thebes After the SevenSophocles’ Antigonê (441 BCE)Slide 28Slide 29Sophocles’ Antigonê: Weighing the BalanceSophocles and ThebesClassics 10: Chapter 18Oedipus and the Myths of ThebesI. The Founding of ThebesII. Oedipus and SophoclesIII. The Seven Against ThebesIV. Antigonê: A Study in ContrastsSophoclesThe Myths of Thebes•Whole web of stories, interacting over generations; our knowledge incomplete•Perhaps a lost Greek epic poem about Thebes; on the scale of Homeric poems•2nd most important Greek city in myth (Mycenae is first)•Repeated destruction of family members–From personal faults? “Pride” too easy!–Fate and the gods? Nature of heroic myth?I. The Founding of Thebes•Two complete but separate foundation stories, later joined somewhat artificially•First: Cadmus fights the dragon•Second: the divine twins Amphion and Zethus•Both stories reflected in the city’s naming•Main city called Thebes for Zethus’ wife Thebê, while the acropolis (the heights) called the Cadmeia for CadmusCadmus and the Site of Thebes•Cadmus, son of Agenor and sister of Europa, is sent by his father to find her–Zeus as a bull had abducted Europa to Crete•Ultimately goes to the oracle for help•Goes to Delphi, who tells him to give up the search and found a city instead•“Follow the cow with the special mark and found your city where she rests”•City = Thebes; region = Boeotia: “Cowland”BoeotiaCadmus and the Dragon•Yet a huge serpent-dragon lives at a nearby spring, kills some of Cadmus’ men•Cadmus himself then pins the dragon to a tree after a great fight•On Athena’s suggestion, he then knocks out the dragon’s teeth and plants (half of) them•Armed men grow from the spot, immediately start fighting each other•Only five remain at the end, the Sparti, who become the heads of the five great families–Sparti = “sown men”; no relation to SpartaCadmus and Harmonia•Cadmus marries Harmonia (an illegitimate daughter of Ares and Aphrodite)•Wondrous wedding, which the gods attend•Their children often go to mythical ruin–Semelê mothers Dionysus, blasted by Zeus –Ino madly kills her children because of Hera’s anger over her caretaking of Dionysus–Agavê rips apart son Pentheus as a Maenad–Grandson Actaeon ripped apart by his dogs •But even so Thebes becomes a great city in Greek mythologySecond Foundation Story:Amphion and Zethus•Otherwise unknown son of Cadmus, Polydorus marries Nycteïs•Her sister Antiopê seduced by Zeus, has twin sons Amphion and Zethus•Twins are abandoned but raised by a shepherd, Antiopê mistreated because of her adultery, but escapes and finds her sons, who avenge her•Then they found Thebes, named for Zethus’ wife Thebê–Amphion marries Niobê, who boasts that she is better than Leto because she has more kids (whoops!)The Two Foundings of Thebes•One Near Eastern, modeled after cosmic dragon combat (and creation story)?–Dragon’s teeth = source of world?–Here downgraded to source of Thebans?•The other is local and more like folktale–Twins with opposing characters, but saved from early death to return in triumph•Unclear why Thebes would have TWO foundation storiesOedipus•A connection between the two founding stories found in Oedipus•His mother Jocasta = a great-granddaughter of Pentheus (hence from Cadmus)•His father Laius the grandson of the otherwise unknown son of Cadmus, Polydorus, who married Nycteïs (the aunt of the twins)•The marriage of Laius and Jocasta thus reunites the two parts of the family tree•Yet Laius told by an oracle that their son would kill him (compare Acrisius and Perseus)The Cursing of Laius?•In late sources, we find a reason why Laius’ son was to kill him•While visiting King Pelops in Elis, Laius had raped the king’s son Chrysippus•King Pelops cursed Laius for this•Hence Laius’ son will be cursed to kill his father and to sleep with his mother•This curse does NOT seem to be known to Classical Greeks (e.g., Sophocles)The Story of Oedipus•When Oedipus is born, Laius remembers the oracle and has Oedipus abandoned–Blood not on his hands if baby dies in the wild–He pins baby’s ankles together for good measure (i.e., so that his ghost will not be able to walk)•Shepherd who is supposed to abandon the baby gives him to a friend, who gives baby to the King and Queen of Corinth•They raise the baby as their own (and only) child•They heal his feet and name him Oedipus (“swollen foot”)The Story of Oedipus•Oedipus grows up as Prince of Corinth•His “mother” won’t address the rumors that he was adopted; he goes to Delphi to ask•Told by the oracle that he will kill his father and marry his mother•He vows never to return to Corinth (!)–But what about the adoption question?•On the road to Thebes, he experiences road rage; ends up killing a whole party of travelers (including one old enough to be his father!), except for one who gets awayThe Story of Oedipus•Oedipus then continues to Thebes, finds the Sphinx terrorizing the city•Sphinx = female human-headed lion with wings who would eat all who did not answer her riddle:•“What goes on four legs in the morning, two at midday, and three in the evening?”•Oedipus: “A human” (Gk. anthropos) (crawls as baby, walks as adult, needs cane in old age)•Sphinx kills herself in shock and shame; Oedipus has saved Thebes and so is made king–King Laius has recently died …Oedipus and the Sphinx•Oedipus (as traveler) contemplates the riddle of the Sphinx, on an Attic drinking cup, ca. 490 BCE•His ability to solve the riddle reveals his power of intelligence: can he solve the riddle of his own identity?The Story of Oedipus•As king, he marries the previous queen Jocasta•They have four kids:–Sons Polynices and Eteocles–Daughters Antigonê and Ismenê•Cause of Laius’ death never determined•Plague comes to Thebes, many sick and dying•Oracle at Delphi reveals that the