Classical Studies Oedipus the King Intermediate 1 and 2

Transcription

1 Classical Studies Oedipus the King Intermediate 1 and

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3 August 1998 HIGHER STILL Classical Studies Oedipus the King Intermediate 1 and 2 Support Materials

4 CONTENTS Introduction 1. Background Notes 2. Commentary 3. Notes on Plot and Characters 4. Social Issues Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 1

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6 INTRODUCTION These student support materials for Classical Studies were developed as part of the Higher Still Development Programme in response to needs identified at needs analysis meetings and national seminars. Advice on learning and teaching may be found in Achievement for All, (SOEID 1996) and in the Classical Studies Subject Guide. This support package provides student notes, questions and activities to support the teaching of Oedipus the King as part of the Intermediate 1 & 2 Classical Drama unit. The background notes provide information on Greek drama and drama festivals, the theatre and actors, and on the Oedipus legend itself. These are followed by commentaries on and questions about the main sections of the play. Notes on plot and characters are accompanied by activities for students to undertake. The final section on the social issues raised in the play also has suggested activities/group discussion questions included. The main social issues covered are: men and gods; kings, justice and government; exposure of children; and social attitudes. These activities should help students to understand the customs and attitudes of Athenian society and to make comparisons with modern society. The material is designed so that students should be able to use it in a supported self-study mode, if required. It contains a variety of questions and activities for students to undertake. Some questions are straightforward and can be answered directly from the text. Other questions demand more synthesis and evaluation; these questions contribute to the development by students of the core skill component, Critical Thinking. While students will tackle these questions and activities individually for the most part, there may be opportunities for some collaborative working and staff will wish to discuss points raised with individuals, groups and the whole class. The exact way in which this material is used is, of course, at the discretion of the individual teacher or lecturer. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 3

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8 1. BACKGROUND NOTES Greek Drama Drama as we know it began in Greece. The Greeks used to hold festivals at different times in the year to honour and thank their gods. They worshipped these gods who were important in their everyday life. Drama began with groups of people called a chorus singing and dancing together at the festivals. The groups had competitions with each other for prizes. In time, the Chorus, was joined by an actor who talked to them. Next the playwright Aeschylus put in a second actor. This meant the two actors could talk to each other and also to the chorus. They could act too which made real plays possible and the audiences liked it. Sophocles went further than Aeschylus and brought in a third actor. He wrote over a hundred plays and was one of the most popular playwrights in fifth century Athens. His plays are still popular today, despite the fact they were written well over two thousand years ago because he writes about people and ideas which do not change with time - only the surroundings are altered. The translation of Oedipus the King you will read can be related to the present as well as the past and you may, like one of the Greek audience, find out about your own life by looking at the situation in the play. Sophocles was born around 495/494 BC. In 468 he beat the most popular playwrights of the time in a competition. Afterwards he was a leading playwright in Athens. He was a skilled musician as well as playwright. He had been a soldier and was involved in politics. These experiences were very useful when he wrote his plays. The Great Dionysia This was the chief drama festival held in Athens every year in March in honour of the god Dionysus, god of wine and the theatre. He was worshipped as god of fertility, both of crops and animals. Women followers called Maenads used to sing and dance ecstatically in his honour. It was a time of thanksgiving and celebration, rather like Christmas today. On the first day the whole of Athens was on holiday. There were processions, prayers, singing and dancing in the streets and the city was filled with a party atmosphere. The next three days were for competitions with three serious plays called tragedies. These happened each morning and, after a short lunch-break, perhaps a comedy in the afternoon. The Athenian audience had to sit for up to six hours without a break, watching play after play. Judging by the great popularity of the festival, they didn't seem to mind this at all! Local groups also put on the old type of singing and dancing. On the fifth day the judges decided on the best playwright, actor and chorus and awarded prizes. The Theatre Greek theatres were in the open air, built into the slope of a hill with tiered seating, rather like an outdoor modern theatre. This allowed the audience to get a good view and to hear what the actors were saying from a distance. This semi-circular structure is good for sound or acoustics. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 5

9 A = Orchestra (circular dancing / performing area) B = Stage Building C / D = Parados (entrance ponts for actors ) E = Altar to the gods There were special seats at the front for judges, priests and important visitors. Most of the play went on in the orchestra and the stage building, a kind of scenery, usually the whole front of a palace. Behind this were dressing rooms and storage rooms etc. Actors Greek actors were all male and so women s parts were played by men. This idea is not so ridiculous as it seems as Greek actors wore masks like the one below. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 6

10 Wearing a mask made it easier for the audience to see the actor s face from a distance and recognise which character he was playing. Some masks even magnified the actor s voice, making it louder so that even those at the back of the theatre could hear easily what was going on. Also an actor only had to change his mask and costume and he could play another part. In the plays of Sophocles there were never more than three actors on stage at one time and so it was possible to employ a small group of actors in addition to the Chorus. This cut down on the cost of wages. The Chorus in a Greek play did two things. As well as being characters in the play they stand aside and comment on what is happening to the audience. They do this by reciting, singing and dancing. It is through the Chorus that the playwright makes us think about what the play is really about and any lessons we should learn from it. The Oedipus Legend Greek Actors The Greek audience, unlike a modern one, knew the plot of the play before they came to see it. This is because dramatists chose to write plays based on popular legends and stories passed down from father to son. A Greek audience, therefore, would be fascinated not by what was happening but by how the playwright showed the story to them. So that you will feel like one of the Greek audience, here are some details of the legend of Oedipus. The story so far... Laius, king of Thebes, is told by Apollo (god of predicting the future) that his baby son will grow up to kill him. To avoid this happening, he pins his son s ankles together and gives him to a shepherd to leave on a mountainside to die. This will seem very cruel to a modern reader but leaving babies to die was quite common in ancient Greece, especially if the baby was a girl or if the baby was disabled in any way. The Theban shepherd feels sorry for the baby and decides to give him to a Corinthian shepherd, who is on his way there. The Corinthian shepherd gives the baby to the king (Polybus) and queen (Merope) who have no children and who bring him up as their own son. They call him Oedipus or swollen foot (in Greek) because of the injury to his ankles caused by being pinned together. When Oedipus is a young man he hears rumours which lead him to go and ask Apollo for information about his parents. When he is told by the priestess that he his destined to kill his father and marry his mother, he leaves Corinth immediately so that he cannot - even accidentally - harm the people he thinks are his real parents. On his travels he comes to a crossroads and there meets an old man and some servants. The old man whips Oedipus and tells him to get out of the way; there is a fight and Oedipus angrily kills the old man and all but one of the servants he has with him. He then makes his way to Thebes which is terrified because of a monstrous Sphinx (a beast with the head of a woman). She has set a riddle and refuses to leave until someone solves it. Oedipus manages to solve it and the people are so grateful they make him king. He marries queen Jocasta, the widow of king Laius who was murdered by bandits on the road, and he becomes a new father for her children. He is an intelligent and caring ruler who puts his people first. He is widely respected and Thebes seems to Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 7

11 be doing well until one day a mysterious disease destroys cattle, making crops die, causing pregnant women to have babies born dead, spreading a fatal infectious disease all over the city. The people are in a panic and turn to the gods and to Oedipus. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 8

12 2. COMMENTARY Scene 1: Oedipus, Priest, Citizens of Thebes Oedipus asks the citizens why they come to him begging for help. A priest explains that a disastrous disease is spreading over the city destroying crops and cattle as well as people. Oedipus has sent Creon to ask advice from Apollo and he returns as they speak. He tells them that Thebes is being polluted (made dirty) by a sinful act because the person who killed king Laius, is still in the city. Until he is found and punished Thebes will continue to suffer. Cadmus was the person who built Thebes. The Greek audience would know the story and, by mentioning his name so early on, Sophocles tells them that the play is in Thebes and the main story concerns the royal descendants of Cadmus; the audience would know that Oedipus was, in fact, the son of Laius and so everyone is very tense as they wait to see how and when Oedipus himself will find out the truth. The royal family is as follows: First King Second King Third King Fourth King Cadmus Polydorus (son) Labdacus (son) Laius (son) Oedipus seems to be a caring king, genuinely concerned for his people. He talks to them as though they were his own children and promises to do everything in his power to find the killer of Laius. The dramatic tension increases for the audience who know that he himself is the man he is seeking. This play is full of dramatic irony and it is important you appreciate what this term means. Dramatic irony happens when the audience know details which the actor does not know; the actor speaks and his words have two meanings - a simple meaning and a more complicated one known to the audience and not the speaker. For example, Oedipus says that in taking revenge for Laius death he is acting in his own interests; he means that he is acting in his own interests because the same killer may turn on him. The double meaning is that the audience know that he is acting in his own interests because he is, in fact, the killer. The Sphinx was a creature which had the body of an animal and face of a woman. It terrorised the city and gave the people of Thebes a riddle, promising that it would not leave until it was solved. The riddle was: What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon and three in the evening? Oedipus had solved it by guessing that it meant a man: who crawls on all fours when he is a baby, walks on two legs when he is a young man, and uses a stick as a third leg when he is old. The people of Thebes were so grateful to him for freeing them from the Sphinx they made him the king. Ismenus is the name of a river near the temple of Apollo. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 9

13 Creon is the brother of Jocasta, Oedipus wife. He has gone to the oracle of Apollo to ask for help. This temple to Apollo at Delphi was famous in the ancient world and many people went there to find out what would happen to them in the future, as Apollo was god of prophecy (predicting the future). We can see from this scene how important is was for the Greeks to have the gods on their side and religion was important in everyday life with prayer and sacrifice. They feared and respected the gods and felt they controlled the forces of nature. They thought it wrong to compare a person to a god as this would make the god seek revenge for a human who was arrogant enough to think that he was on the same level as a god. This is why the priest is careful to tell Oedipus that they think he is a very wise man but not on a par with a god. If a person did directly compare himself to a god this was an act of hubris (extreme arrogance) and resulted eventually in his being punished. The eye witness to the murder of Laius is introduced in this scene. He will play a key role later on but for now all we are told is that he said robbers killed Laius. Questions 1. Who was Cadmus and why is he mentioned so early in the play? 2. What opinion do you get of Oedipus from what he says and does in this scene? 3. Describe in your own words the disaster which has struck the city. 4. The priest says that although Oedipus is an excellent man he is not equal to a god. Explain why he adds that Oedipus is not equal to a god. 5. Give two reasons why the priest wants Oedipus to help the people. 6. What has Oedipus done about the situation so far? 7. Explain what Creon says is the reason for this disaster. 8. Why had the people not held a public inquiry into Laius death at the time? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 10

14 First Choral Ode The chorus of old men of Thebes express the feelings of the people and try to encourage the gods to help the city against this death-bringing disaster. 1. The Chorus begin by saying how frightened the people are in this situation. They want the gods to help them by telling them what they should do. 2. They ask three gods to act together: Athene as she is known for wisdom (also goddess of war); Artemis, goddess of the moon and hunting, as she has a statue in the market place of Thebes; Apollo who is god of hunting and healing as well as prophecy. 3. They describe the effect of the destruction on the people and the grief it is causing. 4. They call the destruction Ares god of death and they want the other gods to drive this god away. 5. The three gods should fight, assisted by Bacchus who is said to have given Thebes its name ( Bacchea was another name for Thebes) and the followers of Bacchus, frenzied women called Maenads who used to dance and behave savagely under the influence of worship and wine. Questions 1. What are the main feeling of the Chorus when they begin? 2. To which gods do they appeal particularly and why? 3. The chorus say it is like a battle. What are the two sides? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 11

15 Scene 2: Oedipus, Chorus, Teiresias Oedipus announces that he is looking for information about the killer of Laius. He promises that if the killer owns up he will only send him away but if he does not, he and anyone trying to protect him, will be driven out of the city. He will not be allowed to have anything to do with anyone; he will be driven out publicly with no friends or means of support. The Chorus advises Oedipus to listen to the words of Teiresias, a respected prophet, and Oedipus greets him with courtesy, asking for any information he can give him. When Teiresias seems reluctant to tell what he knows, Oedipus angrily accuses him of having something to do with the murder himself. This makes Teiresias openly accuse Oedipus. Shocked and enraged, Oedipus goes on to accuse Creon of the murder, accusing him of plotting with Teiresias and trying to steal his throne. Teiresias seems to Oedipus and to the Chorus to be speaking in riddles when he talks of a son who is also a husband and a father who is also a brother. Oedipus speeches in this scene are full of dramatic irony; he describes himself as an outsider to Thebes (the audience know he was born there) and says he will fight to find Laius killer as if he were doing this for his real father (the audience know he is his real father). The idea of the relationship of men and religion/gods is continued here with purification being necessary. The fact that the murderer had not been punished was seen as polluting or putting a stain/curse on the city. The only way to clean the city is to find the murderer. People today would think this act was more of a legal than a religious one. This shows how much the Greeks linked the actions of the gods with the actions of people and relied on the gods for making sure evil was punished. Here, Oedipus shows respect for the gods when he points out that a human being cannot force a god to give him information. Teiresias, the blind prophet, is a highly respected character, who knows what the gods want and can predict what will happen to people. From the entry of Teiresias, Sophocles continually talks about seeing and being blind in this play; Teiresias, though physically blind, can see the truth; Oedipus though physically able to see, is blind to the truth; later on, when Oedipus finds out the truth he chooses to blind himself physically. The speeches here are examples of dramatic irony as the audience know what he will do from the beginning of the play. Oedipus thinks that because Teiresias does not want to tell him bad news he is guilty and accuses him of having a hand in the murder. When Teiresias points out he has no real motive for killing Laius, Oedipus jumps to the conclusion that Creon had put him up to it because he was jealous of Oedipus and wanted to steal his throne. He thinks that this was why Creon had asked to go and consult Apollo personally. Oedipus loses his temper and insults Teiresias and we see another side of his character. He seems arrogant and cruel, assuming that he is right and he refuses to listen to others. He only stops for a moment when Teiresias mentions his parents. This seems to strike a chord with him (which he explains later on to Jocasta) and he hesitates, asking Teiresias to tell him more about his parents. However, he cannot understand what Teiresias means and the Chorus are unclear too, so Teiresias leaves, with Oedipus convinced that he and Creon are plotting together to get rid of him by making up this accusation. Questions 1. What will happen to the killer of Laius if he confesses quickly? 2. What will happen to him, or anyone shielding him, if he does not come forward of his own accord? 3. Give an example of dramatic irony from this scene, explaining why it is dramatic irony. 4. Who do the Chorus advise Oedipus to consult and why? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 12

16 5. On the arrival of Teiresias, would you describe Oedipus tone as: (a) flattering (b) rude (c) indifferent? Give a reason for your answer. 6. Why does Oedipus tone towards the prophet change in the course of their conversation? 7. Of what does Oedipus accuse Teiresias? 8. How does Teiresias react to this accusation? 9. Does Oedipus seem to you to behave in the way any ordinary person would in his situation? Give reasons for your answer. 10. Oedipus suspicion now spreads. Who does he accuse next and what motive does he think this person has for trying to say that he (Oedipus) is the murderer? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 13

17 Second Choral Ode The Chorus thinks about what Teiresias has said and say they are still loyal to Oedipus as he has saved the city of Thebes from the Sphinx. 1. They say that there is an unknown murderer whom Apollo and the Fates are tracking down. The Fates were goddesses who were believed to spin out a picture of a person s life before he was born and they made sure that the person lived the life which was set out for him. 2. Parnassus - a mountain where Apollo was worshipped. The voices of the gods go on forever and the Chorus compare the murderer to a hunted animal being chased by the gods out of hiding. 3. They feel that this accusation against Oedipus is bad news and they do not know whether to believe it. They know of no argument between the royal family of Thebes and that of Corinth (they think that Oedipus natural father is Polybus king of Corinth) and so there would be no motive for this killing. 4. They say they believe in the gods but realise that human prophets sometimes cannot be trusted. They finally say that they refuse to think that Oedipus could be guilty as he saved the city from the Sphinx. Questions 1. Here, as elsewhere, the Chorus are part of the action of the play but they stand back as if they are commenting about events. Write down two lists of: (a) what the Chorus do as actors in the play (b) what the Chorus do as observers. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 14

18 Scene Three: Creon, Chorus, Oedipus, Jocasta Creon has heard that he has been accused by Oedipus of plotting against the king and cannot believe Oedipus would think he was capable of this. Oedipus enters and angrily accuses him of treason. Creon tries to reason with Oedipus, pointing out that he has no motive for doing this. He asks for time to prove his innocence and he is supported by the Chorus who urge Oedipus not to jump to conclusions. Jocasta, who has heard the argument, enters and asks both of them to behave reasonably; she urges Oedipus to believe Creon when he says he is not guilty. When Creon leaves Oedipus tells her of Teiresias accusation. She tells him not to trust fortune-tellers and - to reassure him - she explains that she and Laius had been told by a fortune teller that Laius would be killed by his own son, when in fact robbers had killed him. Her account of the murder and the place where it happened reminds Oedipus of something in the past and he asks for more details. As she describes the situation, he begins to realise he may have been the killer of Laius. He decides to send for the one surviving eye-witness to put their minds at rest. He tells Jocasta that when he was a young man an oracle had told him that he would kill his father and marry his mother and - to avoid any chance of this - he had left Corinth in case, even accidentally, the oracle came true. He had come to a place where three roads meet and killed an old man and some of his companions; he fears the old man might be Laius. The scene ends with a mood of alarm and anticipation. Creon s surprise shows that he and Oedipus were friends since he is obviously upset that Oedipus should think he would be capable of doing this. Oedipus behaves even more irrationally here than in the scene with Teiresias. He throws question after question at Creon, accusing him without waiting for an answer. Unlike Creon, he appears to the Chorus (and the audience) to be acting in a very unreasonable way; Creon asks to be given a chance to explain himself and Oedipus sends him away him, saying that he is a smooth talker and he will still refuse to believe he is innocent. Creon is very persuasive; he points out that he has no motive for plotting against Oedipus. He already has a third of the wealth of the city with no responsibility and would not want to take on the stress of being a ruler. He has all the advantages of power at the moment without the trouble. The Chorus make it clear that they are on the side of reason and cannot approve of anyone who acts in a fit of temper. There is much dramatic irony in Jocasta s speeches; it is because she wishes to comfort Oedipus that she tells him the story of Laius murder, when in fact it has the opposite effect of throwing him into more panic, as he realises he might be the murderer. This leads him to tell her about the oracle of Apollo which brought him to Thebes from Corinth. An oracle was a prediction given to people about their future. Greeks often visited the shrine of Apollo at Delphi where a priestess, who was meant to chew laurel leaves and breathe in herbal fumes, was said to be possessed by Apollo - a bit like a medium today. People asked questions about their future and gave a present or some money and the priestess would go into a trance and give them an answer, often in the form of a riddle, or a message difficult to understand at the time but which became clear later - in the case of Oedipus, too late! We can see from the way Jocasta tells Oedipus about the leaving of her baby son to die on the mountainside, that this practice was relatively common in the ancient world and that people did not seem to think of it as shocking at all. People would expose babies either because they looked weak or deformed in some way or because they were a girl (girls were more expensive to keep and would not be able to support the parents in later life as girls did not go out to work to earn money) or because they simply did not want the baby. In the case of Laius and Jocasta, they would have had two motives for exposing Oedipus: they thought he might kill his father in later life and he was cursed by the gods. Any one of these would have been reason enough. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 15

19 Questions 1. How does Creon feel about Oedipus angry accusation? 2. Do you think Oedipus gives Creon a fair chance to put his case? Explain why you think as you do? 3. Why do you think Oedipus abruptly asks Creon how long ago it was since Laius disappeared? 4. Say briefly what Creon says about having no motive and what he feels Oedipus is doing to their friendship by acting on suspicion. Does this speech convince you? Give reasons for your answer. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 16

20 Third Choral Ode The Chorus asks people to be honest and obedient to the gods. Leaders who do not think about the needs of their people end up by being rejected. What point is there in believing in the gods if evil people are not punished for their wrongdoing? 1. The Chorus wish for simple honesty and fairness. Men should obey the laws of the gods which last forever. 2. A king who arrogantly does what he likes, without thinking about his people, ends up hated and rejected, whereas a considerate king is highly respected. 3. Someone who does not regard honesty as important, is like someone who steals from the temples of the gods. Those who see him getting away with it see no point in behaving honestly themselves. 4. What is the point of showing respect for the gods if some men disobey the rules made by the gods? This makes the gods into a laughing stock. They end by asking Zeus to use his power to help them. The Greeks believed that moral laws were, if anything, more important then legal ones as they were made by the gods and the sign of a just and honest person. Without this they felt that both the individual and society would be damaged. They point out that arrogance or hubris (acting in a self-centred way with no respect for others/gods) is always unpopular and leads to disaster. We cannot help thinking of Oedipus behaviour in the preceding scene as he arrogantly refused to listen to reason. They see the person who is not honest or moral as a robber of the temples of the gods. The Greeks were very respectful of temples and superstitious about the bad luck which would befall anyone doing something like this. This comparison shows it is a very serious fault. Delphi (sacred to Apollo) and Olympia (sacred to Zeus) were important shrines to the gods and people made special journeys there to show their respect. The Chorus feel that people will think they are wasting their time being respectful to the gods if those who have committed crimes like murder get away without being punished. It is important to note that the Chorus are not accusing Oedipus of anything here. They are thinking about what has happened in the previous scene so that the audience can think about them and come to their own conclusions. Question If you were one of the audience listening to this Choral Ode to what extent would you agree with what the Chorus say here and how much of it makes you think of the events of the preceding scene? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 17

21 Scene Four: Jocasta, Corinthina, Oedipus, Chorus Jocasta makes offerings to Apollo to help get rid of the curse on the city. A messenger from Corinth comes to tell Oedipus that Polybus is dead and he is now king of the whole area between Thebes and Corinth. At first Oedipus thinks this is proof that the oracles of the gods are wrong as he did not kill his father as they said he would. The Corinthian messenger asks if the oracle of the god has been keeping him away from Corinth. When he hears it has, he tells Oedipus news which he thinks will reassure him ie that Polybus and Merope are not his real parents and that he himself had given him to them as a baby. A Theban shepherd, had given the baby to him, the same servant of Laius who was the only eye-witness to his death at the crossroads. Jocasta slowly realises the truth and begs Oedipus not to pursue the matter any further. He ignores her, thinking that she is worried that he will be found to be of humble birth, and asks that the Theban shepherd be brought to him at once. Jocasta, who in the previous scene had said she did not believe in oracles now prays to Apollo (god of oracles) for help. This could mean she is anxious or suspicious about Laius death, and there is a mood of desperation. Note the deliberate pun when the Chorus call Jocasta both the wife of Oedipus and mother of his children. In performance they only needed to hesitate a little after the word mother and the audience could not fail to see the irony here, and feel a sense of panic as if all will be revealed. The Corinthian messenger makes it clear he only wants to do good for Oedipus and admits that this is because he hopes to be rewarded. This short conversation brings some light relief for the audience from the tension of the previous scene. Oedipus receives the news gladly and assumes it proves that oracles are false. He and Jocasta are clearly happy and relieved, as they feel that Oedipus is now safe. Jocasta says that this proves that chance is what rules peoples lives, and in saying this she is showing disrespect for the gods. This pride, or hubris, certainly comes before a fall as the scene continues. The Corinthian shepherd, again wanting to please Oedipus, and to earn a large reward gladly tells him that he need not worry about marrying his mother as Merope is not his real mother. He was found as a baby and he tells him that his ankles are still swollen-looking because they were pinned together. All this time Jocasta is listening and realises that Oedipus, the baby, is her son. This is why she begs him not to try to find out more as she knows what effect it will have on him. When she fails to persuade him to listen she leaves fully intending to kill herself, as she cannot live with her shame. Oedipus does not know why she is leaving and thinks she is ashamed of having married someone who may be from a poor family. This makes it clear that even now he cannot see to the truth. The audience will be feeling sorry for him, knowing that he cannot remain ignorant for much longer. The whole scene is very tense. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 18

22 The Theban shepherd and the man who escaped when Laius was killed turn out to be the same man. Oedipus speech at the end of the scene is full of irony and suggestions for the audience to pick up. He talks of Jocasta, then talks about his mother, explaining that he means that Fate is his mother but it is obvious to the audience he is referring to Jocasta. He talks of being determined to get to the truth of who he is and the audience knows this knowledge, far from bringing relief, will bring misery. Questions 1. Explain in your own words the message brought from Corinth about Polybus. 2. How do Oedipus and Jocasta react to the news? Do you think this reaction shows hubris? Explain and use the text in your answer. 3. The messenger fills in some unknown details about his family and tells him that a Theban shepherd gave him to him as a baby. What effect will this news have on Jocasta and why? 4. In what way does this scene show us (a) that the exposure of children was accepted by the Greeks? (b) that the Greeks were worried about social class? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 19

23 Fourth Choral Ode (Oedipus remains on the stage with the Chorus) The truth will soon be revealed about Oedipus birth. They wonder if he really was found on Mount Cithaeron or whether he is the son of a god or goddess. 1. If a human can predict the future, I think that we will know within a day if Oedipus is that baby found on Mount Cithaeron. We will thank the god Apollo for this news. 2. Maybe an Olympian goddess was his mother, or the god Pan who made love to a woodland goddess; or is he the son of Apollo; did Hermes make love to a nymph on Mount Cyllene? Is he son of Dionysus and a mountain nymph conceived on Mount Helicon? The mood of these two verses is light-hearted. This is to relieve some of the tension of the previous scene and to give the audience a break to prepare for the tension of the next scene. The Chorus do not want to commit hubris by saying that a human being has the powers of a god to predict the future and so they are careful in their wording to avoid angering the gods. They will thank the god Apollo as he is the god of predicting the future. They then wonder if another god could have been his father on another mountain: Pan - god of nature and the countryside; Hermes - messenger god, born on Mount Cyllene; Dionysus - god of wine and fertility (both human and in the soil) worshipped in Boetia where Mount Helicon is situated. Worshippers of Dionysus, called Maenads, used to go up to the mountains at night to dance, drink wine, take part in wild rituals. The Chorus talk about the god Dionysus seducing these women while taking part in his rituals. Question In what way does the Chorus in this short episode act differently from other scenes? Suggest a reason for this? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 20

24 Scene Five: Oedipus, Chorus, Cornthian, Shepherd The shepherd who had given the baby to the Corinthian and who was the only remaining eye-witness enters. Oedipus and the Corinthian question him about the baby. At first he tries to avoid answering but they force him to tell them that the baby was the son of Laius and he had given the baby to him to save its life. Oedipus now knows the truth; he has killed his father and married his mother. He goes into the palace and the two shepherds leave. Oedipus wants to be sure that the shepherd is the correct person and he asks the Corinthian to prove his identity. He behaves here intelligently and genuinely desires to find the truth. Sophocles wants to make it clear to the audience that Oedipus had not deliberately been deceiving anyone, but that he himself is as much in the dark as the people. We can see that it is Oedipus own pride and determination which bring about his downfall as he forces the shepherd to speak by threats. The shepherd does not want to tell Oedipus the truth because he knows what effect it will have on him and he thinks it might lead Oedipus to order that he be killed. He did not expose the child out of pity - another example of a person wanting to do something good but which turns out to be the opposite. Oedipus does not feel it necessary to ask him about the killing of Laius, even though this is why he first sent for him, because it is now clear to everyone that he is guilty. We are left to work out that the man had lied about robbers killing Laius because he would then see the killer of Laius on the throne. To save his own life he went away from Thebes so that Oedipus would not recognise him. He will not have realised that Oedipus is the baby until now and this is why he remarks that Oedipus was cursed by the gods from the time he was born. Questions 1. What impression do you have of Oedipus by the way he speaks to the shepherd? Refer to the scene in your answer. 2. What final two details does the shepherd tell Oedipus? 3. Why does Oedipus refer to light at the end of this scene? To what earlier theme does this return? Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 21

25 Fifth Choral Ode The Chorus say that what has happened to Oedipus shows that good fortune does not last. He seemed to be one of the most fortunate men alive. Was there no way this could have been discovered earlier? Now the time has come for you to pay the price for your wrongdoing. 1. Happiness and good fortune are only temporary. We learn this from what happened to Oedipus. 2. He aimed and shot down his prey, ridding Thebes of the Sphinx and making the city proud to be ruled by him. 3. Now he is suffering just the opposite of good fortune. He has to suffer more than a human being can endure. It is amazing that a secret could have been kept; the powers of nature should have given some hint when he married his mother. 4. Time can see everything and has now tracked you down and will make sure you are punished. We wish you had never come to Thebes, you who were our saviour and now the cause of this destruction. This Ode is serious and emotional. The Chorus point out the lesson to be learned from Oedipus' situation; happiness cannot be relied upon and can suddenly disappear. Oedipus has experienced more than his share of good fortune, his great success has now become great suffering. The Chorus feel both pity and disgust for Oedipus: pity that nature itself could not somehow have warned him when he was going to marry Jocasta; disgust at the idea of the son marrying his mother. The audience too would have felt disgust at this picture. They show their disgust at the end by saying that they wish they had never seen Oedipus. This may seem to a modern reader to be cruel, but it is human to wish not to be connected with crime, especially one so incestuous. People often think being involved makes them guilty too. The Chorus also could wish they had never seen Oedipus because they are suffering with him and know how much he is suffering. The idea that Time sees everything reminds us of the scene with Teiresias when Teiresias says Oedipus is blind now but later he will see. As Oedipus leaves he says that everything is now in the light of day. This underlines the fact that people are not able to see the truth about themselves or the world in which they live. This is one of the main issues in this play. Question The Chorus here act both as characters in the play and observers, pointing out what we can learn from the events of the play. Give examples from the Ode of what they do as actors and observers. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 22

26 Scene Six: Messenger, Oedipus, Chorus, Creon An attendant enters and says that Jocasta has committed suicide and vividly describes Oedipus stabbing out his eyes. The Chorus moan in pity for Oedipus as he staggers in, obviously in great pain. He talks of his crimes and wishes he had never been saved at birth. Creon enters and is kind to Oedipus. He will give Jocasta a proper funeral and he has sent for the children, Antigone and Ismene, Oedipus daughters. The girls enter crying and Oedipus tells them he wishes better fortune for them than he has had. He worries that people will reject them because they are affected by the sins he has committed. He asks Creon to look after them and to send him away out of Thebes. Creon says that this decision cannot be made by him but by Apollo, and if Apollo does not object, Oedipus will leave the city. Oedipus goes into the palace, suddenly begging to take his children. Creon does not allow this and they go inside. The Chorus ask that we think about Oedipus situation and learn that human beings cannot be regarded as happy until they have died happy. In Greek tragedy murders almost always happened off-stage and were reported by a messenger. The corpse was then wheeled out at the end either on a revolving stage or on a low wheeled platform pushed through the central opening of the stage (no more than ten feet by six feet) called an ekkuklema. The messenger speech is usually, as here, full of vivid details to emphasise the horror of the scene and can seem to be exaggerated to a modern reader. The description of Oedipus repeatedly stabbing out his eyes with Jocasta s brooches is particularly horrifying and would make the audience gasp. Jocasta kills herself because she has sinned by marrying her own son, who murdered her husband. The ideas of seeing and being blind, light and darkness, day and night, come to a climax with the stabbing out of the eyes. Now that Oedipus is blind he can see the truth for the first time. The messenger speech also serves to build up suspense for the entry of Oedipus. This is continued by the Chorus who show their horror by gasping/exclaiming at details of Oedipus appearance. They tell Oedipus he must suffer a double pain, the pain of his physical wounds and the pain of his guilt. They feel Oedipus might be better to have killed himself than to live as he is. Oedipus explains that if he had died he would have been face to face with Laius and Jocasta in the Underworld. The Greeks believed that your soul passed into the underworld at death; Oedipus soul would meet up with the soul of the father he had murdered and the mother he had married. Oedipus now takes the punishment he had ordered for the killer of Laius - banishment; to allow Thebes to recover from destruction. The rest of this speech shows the pity of his situation and how he had committed wrong acts without knowing it. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 23

27 Oedipus expects Creon to be as angry with him as he had been to Creon when he accused him of treason. Creon however is kind and understanding but firm and determined to obey the orders of the gods. He reminds the Thebans that the person who pollutes the city must be seen only by his family and he must be ignored. When Oedipus asks to be sent away, he refuses to do so without permission from Apollo. Creon here is behaving in exactly the opposite way from Oedipus in scene three; he is being reasonable and giving respect to the gods, showing Oedipus the correct way to behave. Oedipus, once proud and arrogant, now has to beg with Creon for favours. His words and appearance are meant to stir up the pity of the audience as he asks to be allowed to be with his children for the last time, but this pity becomes unpleasant as he calls himself both their brother and father. We see how prejudiced the Greeks were as he explains how his children will be rejected by others and left on their own. No one will want to marry his daughters because they will regard the whole family as having a share in Oedipus shame. This sort of attitude can exist today in small rural communities where grudges are held for years and families are outcasts because of something one of their ancestors did. Oedipus begs his children to live quietly, and in this way they will be better than their father - he knows he is a man who has done very wrong things and does not want this for his children. This idea of behaving with moderation occurs again and again in Greek drama. We feel pity for his pain at being separated from his children as he is led inside the palace. The Chorus have the last word and point out the moral of the play to the audience. The idea of considering no human being happy until you look at the whole of his life was again a common theme in Greek literature. Similar ideas are held today; people comment that we can never tell what is round the corner. When someone famous is involved in a scandal or accident people say that wealth or fame does not keep you safe or happy. 1. Describe the death of Jocasta. Questions 2. What did Oedipus do when he found her body? 3. How do people feel towards Oedipus in this scene? Use the text in your answer. 4. Why doesn t Oedipus kill himself? 5. Why do the Chorus back away from Oedipus on a couple of occasions? 6. Why doesn't Creon allow Oedipus to leave at once? 7. How does Creon behave towards Oedipus? How is his behaviour in this scene different from Oedipus behaviour in scene 3? 8. What reasons does Oedipus give for going to Cithaeron? 9. Explain the final message/moral of the play. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 24

28 3. NOTES ON PLOT AND CHARACTERS The Plot Sophocles creates suspense in this play by having his audience in on what will happen. They want events not to happen, and are helpless to stop what must happen. The end of the play has been described as a time bomb waiting to explode and shows the way Sophocles uses the play to create tension and suspense all the way through. Firstly, he does this by allowing Oedipus to find out small clues which he pieces together as the play proceeds. The trail begins when Jocasta mentions that Laius was killed at a place where three roads meet. This leads Oedipus to ask for more details about Laius death. The mention of this place stirs up a memory for him of killing a man at such place after leaving Corinth when the oracle told him he was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. This makes him send for the Theban shepherd, the surviving eye-witness. Tension mounts as the Corinthian shepherd comes in and tells Oedipus that Polybus is dead. Oedipus, though upset, is relieved that the oracle he heard cannot now come true but still is worried about marrying his mother. The Corinthian tells him not to worry as he knows that Polybus and Merope are not his real parents. As Oedipus and Jocasta feel relief, tension mounts for the audience who know that the Corinthian messenger will tell him that the Theban shepherd they have sent for is the same man who gave baby Oedipus to the Corinthian. The audience, like Jocasta in scene five wish that Oedipus does not find out the truth. Suspense is brought to a climax in scene six when the shepherd tells him that Laius and Jocasta are his real parents. Sophocles creates an interesting plot in this play because the criminal detects himself. In scene one Oedipus describes what he will do to the murderer and then in scene six carries out his threat on himself. Sophocles writes the play so that we see Oedipus, not just as a tragic person in his own right, but as an example of what can happen to all of us. Other characters in the play, like Oedipus, do things for admirable motives which cause disaster. Jocasta tells him about the murder of Laius to put his mind at rest about fortune-tellers - this makes him realise that he might have killed Laius and leads to her own death. The Corinthian shepherd gladly tells Oedipus that Polybus and Merope are not his real parents to put his mind at rest - this makes the Theban shepherd tell him Laius and Jocasta are his real parents. The Corinthian shepherd, who had hoped for a reward of money is rewarded by knowing he caused great pain. The Theban shepherd, who feels sorry for Oedipus and lets him live, is punished because he was the eye-witness to the death of Laius and also sees the killer become king; this means he has to go away in case the killer recognises him. His reward for kindness, therefore, is banishment. These minor tragedies are all part of the major one and show Sophocles message that life can be cruel, even to innocent people, but that things do not happen just by chance - there is a pattern worked out in advance by the gods which human beings cannot change, whatever their motives. Characters Oedipus Heroes in tragedy sometimes have qualities we admire and a fault or flaw which makes them act in a way which leads to disaster. In Greek tragedy the fate of the hero is linked to a system beyond the control of one person and may even (as with Oedipus) be decided before he is born. Oedipus possesses both admirable qualities and human flaws. Good Qualities He is a concerned king who earned the respect of his people. He saves Thebes from the Sphinx by his intelligence. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 25

29 He shows courage and honesty when he finds out he is the killer by punishing himself and accepting responsibility. A weaker man might have tried to cover up his guilt. Find a quote from the play which shows each one of these points. Flaws He is quick tempered and unreasonable towards Creon and Teiresias (and Laius). He shows arrogance/hubris in putting his decisions above the law of the gods when he tells Creon that as king he will decide and what he says must be obeyed as if it were law. Find a quote from the play which shows each one of these points. Things Beyond Oedipus Control Fate/the gods have marked him out for disaster, even before he was born. However much he tries to do the right thing, it will make no difference. Find a quote from the play which shows each of these points. Jocasta Like Oedipus, she is a victim of a plan of the gods which treats her badly. She is a character who commands the respect of her people and Oedipus trusts her. She is sensitive and thoughtful towards Oedipus and she tries to keep the horrible truth about his parents from him even when she knows herself. Find a quote from the play showing her as being: respected by the people a person whom Oedipus trusts trying to save Oedipus from more pain. Classical Studies Support Materials: Oedipus the King 26