Œdipus tyrranus. important names –Œdipus –iocasta –creon –teiresias –polybus –laius...
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Œdipus Tyrranus
Œdipus Tyrranus
• Important names– Œdipus
– Iocasta
– Creon
– Teiresias
– Polybus
– Laius
• Setting– At Thebes, some years
after Œdipus answered the sphinx’ question and was made king.
• Plot– Œdipus himself
gradually reveals that he has murdered his father and married his mother.
OT Plot Summary
– I. Introductory dialogue (1-150)• A. O learns of the plague from a priest of Zeus (1-
57)– 1. O describes the scene and himself (1-8)
– 2. O asks a priest to explain, promises to help (9-13)
– 3. Priest explains the situation (14-57)
» a. Ship of state is reeling (22-24)
» b. The plague (25-30)
» c. Backstory on the Sphinx; n.b. the priest’s characterization of the event (31-39)
» d. Plea for help (40-57)
OT Plot Summary (cont.)
• B. O takes immediate action (58-86)– 1. O feels the city’s trouble (57-64)
– 2. He’s already on it, has sent C to Delphi to get Apollo’s advice (65-77)
– 3. C arrives (78-86)
• C. (87-150)– 1. C reveals Apollo’s oracle: drive out the pollution of
murder by expelling L’s murderers from the city (95-111)
– 2. C tells the story of L’s murder (112-131)
» a. He and his attendants were killed while on an embassy (114-115)
OT Plot Summary (cont.)
» b. The lone survivor claims it was a group of bandits (123-124)
» c. The killer was not hunted down because of the Sphinx (130-131)
– 3. O promises to solve the riddle and avenge the king (132-150)
– II. Parodos (151-215)• A. Chorus calls upon Apollo, Athena, and Artemis
for aid (151-167)
• B. Plague vividly described (168-185)
• C. Chorus calls upon Dionysus for help (210-215)
Athens
OT Plot Summary (cont.)
– III. Episode I (216-461)• A. O speaks with the chorus (216-299)
– 1. He promises amnesty for any who give information (218-232)
– 2. He commands exile for anyone hiding information (233-245)
– 3. He curses the murderer to misery (246-252)– 4. He orders the citizens to uphold his commands (252-254)– 5. Dramatic irony (259-268)– 6. Chorus suggests calling T (284-286)– 7. O is on it, has already sent for him (287-289)
OT Plot Summary (cont.)
• B. O speaks with Teiresias (300-461)– 1. O asks T for help (300-315)
– 2. T refuses to reveal the murderer, O grows angry (316-344)
– 3. O accuses T of complicity in the murder (345-349)
– 4. T is angered, responds that O is the murderer (350-363) and lives in shame with those he loves best (366-368)
– 5. O suspects C of working with T to strip O of the throne (378-389)
– 6. O boasts of answering the Sphinx’ riddle (390-401)
– 7. T responds: O doesn’t know who he is (415-419) or what he will soon suffer (419-425)
OT Plot Summary (cont.)
– 8. T reveals that he knows O’s true parents, but won’t tell who they are (435-438)
– 9. T utters a final prophecy and departs (452-461)
– IV. Stasimon I (462-512)• A. The chorus guess wrongly about the identity of
the murderer (477-482)
• B. They cannot understand T’s words (485-495)
• C. They confuse divine knowledge with human wisdom (495-512)