Oedipus (Greek)- Delphic Oracle- oracle of Apollo at Delphi; place where you could talk to the priest and talk to the gods- Thebes is Oedipus’ birth place and where he ends up in the end- Corinth is where Oedipus leaves to escape the oracle’s prophecy- Moira means “fate”o Humans fated day to dieo Decided at birth by 3 goddesses: the Fates (Moirai)- Fate and free willo Fate is determined by your charactero Born with a certain charactero Character guides actions (free will)o Character leads to fateCharacters: o Oedipus- Greek hero with 2 mortal parentso Laios- King of Thebeso Jocasta- Queen of Thebeso First shepherd- Thebian servanto Second shepherd (messanger)o Polybus- King of Corintho Merope- Queen of Corintho Creon- Odeipus’ birth uncleo Sphinxes- monsterso Teiresias- blind prophetStory: 1. Laios and Jocasta are childless2. Laios and Jocasta go to the Delphic Oracle and ask about having kidsa. If Laios has a son by Jocasta, he will kill the father, Laios3. Laios gets drunk and forces himself on Jocasta4. Jocasta gets pregnant with Oedipus5. Laios wants to expose the baby because it’s said that he will kill Laios 6. Laios pierces the baby’s ankles with metal pins7. Laios gives the baby to a shepherd to expose on a mountain8. The shepherd doesn’t want to let the baby die so he gives the baby to a second shepherd9. The second shepherd gives the baby to Merope and Polybus10. Merope names her baby “Oedipus”a. –oed: “swollen” and –pous: “foot”b. because he had the pins in his ankles11. Oedipus always thinks that Merope and Polybus are his real parents12. Oedipus is taunted by his peers as a young man saying that he is illegitimate (Merope and Polybus are not his real parents, he’s not the aire)13. Oedipus asks the oracle if he is legitimate14. Delphic oracle tells Oedipus that he will kill his father and marry his mother15. Oedipus leaves Corinth so that he will not kill his father and marry his mother (to “save his parents”)16. At the crossroads, an old man (Laios) will not get out of the road17. Laios hits Oedipus’ carriage with a stick18. Oedipus is so mad that he kills everyone except one of Laios’ servants19. Oedipus fulfills the prophecy of killing his father20. Oedipus comes to Thebes and Creon is now the king21. Sphinx are terrorizing Thebesa. Head of a woman, body of a lion, and wings of a bird22. Passersby must answer the sphinx’s riddlea. “What has one voice, but four legs, then two legs, then three legs?” (humans)b. If the passersby can not answer the riddle correctly, then the sphinx eats themc. The sphinx will leave Thebes when the riddle is solved23. Oedipus solves the riddle24. The sphinx jumps to her death because she is so mad the riddle is solved25. Creon rewards Oedipus with his own kingship and Jocasta (Creon’s sister andOedipus’ mother)26. Oedipus and Jocasta have children togethera. Sons: Eteocles and Polyneicesb. Daughters: Antigone, IsmeneOedipus the King- Athenian tragedian Sophocles (496-406 BCE)o Wrote over 120 plays but we only have 7- Oedipus the King- 420s BCE- Philosopher Aristotle (384-322 BCE)- Aristotle uses literary criticism in poetics - Aristotle uses Oedipus the King as a model tragedy- Hamartia is the “mistake” made by the hero of a tragedy- Oedipus’ hamartiao He shouldn’t have left Corintho He won’t give up trying to find out the truth- Anagnoris is the moment of realization for the main character- Oedipus’ anagnoris is when he realizes that he killed his father and married his mother- Dramatic irony is when the audience knows more than the characters- A chiton is a dress with pins on the shoulders and a belt- Themes in Oedipus the Kingo Knowledge (divine vs. human) Certainty (divine)-Apollo’s oracle and Teiresias (everything that they say comes true) Uncertainty (human)- Oedipus and Jocasta (humans that criticize divine knowledge even though it’s always right)o Blindness vs. sight Teiresias- physically blind, but sees the truth Oedipus- physically sighted but blind to the truth- Becomes physically blind in the endo Knowing/ seeing and Oedipus’ name Puns by Sophocles Oed-linked to - Oida- verb “I know”- Idein- verb “to see”- Sigmund Freud suggested the oncept of the “Oedipus Complex”o Sexual desire of son for mothero Jealousy of son for father- Freud says that it is the metaphorical meaning of Oedipus the King- Freud is missing the point of Oedipus the Kingo For Oedipus, marrying his mother and killing his father was a bad thing and he tries to avoid it- Greek historian Herodotus tells of exiled Athenian tyrant Hippiaso Hippias has a dream that he’s going to have sex with his mother o Thinks the dream is a good thingo Invading Persians to restore him to Athenso Old Hippias loses tooth on the beach (so now he does not get to sleep with his mother, or because he slept with his mother?)Story:1. There is a plague in Thebes2. Oedipus wants to figure out why this plague is happening in Thebes3. Creon is sent to Delphi4. Oracle says that the reason why there is a plague in Thebes is because Thebes is polluteda. Thebes is housing a murdererb. Get rid of the murderer, get rid of the plague5. The Oracle says that the “murderers” that killed Laios must leave Thebes6. Oedipus says that he’s never seen Laios7. Teiresias is summoned by Oedipus8. Teiresias doesn’t want to tell Oedipus, but eventually tells him that Oedipus is the murderer9. Oedipus accuses Teiresias and Creon of trechary (trying to overthrow him)10. Oedipus kicks Teiresias out11. Teiresias tells Oedipus everythinga. Says that Oedipus is really from Thebes even though it doesn’t seem like itb. Says that the man in the house is the brother and father of his children12. Oedipus tells what the oracle says13. Oedipus says that it won’t come true though because his father (Polybus) died of natural causes14. Messenger from Corinth says that Polybus is dead15. Messenger also says that Oedipus is adoptedCoincidence #1- this messenger is the one that brought baby Oedipus to Merope (second shepherd)16. Messenger got the baby from Thebian servant, Laios’ servant17. Jocasta realizes that whole truth firsta. “may you never realize who you really are”Coincidence #2- the first shepherd is the sole survivor of the attack on Laios18. The shepherd admits that there was only one murderer of Laios (not several)19. Oedipus realizes the truth (anagnoris)20. Oedipus finds Jocasta’s body
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