Further study
Oedipus the King is one of the more famous Greek tragedies and its plot is based on the myth about Oedipus. This tragedy is considered one of the best tragedies regarding plot and fable organization - dating from Aristotle era. It was written by Sophocles.
Like in many other dramatic and epic works everything starts "in media res" - in the middle of everything. Plot starts from the moment that is not the same as chronological beginning, but in the middle of the story. All this gives author more options as far as the plot goes, because chronology can go either way - forward or backward from this moment.
As for the Oedipus the King action goes back mostly because Oedipus subsequently discovers what happened and the action unravels. All this gives the impression of greater tension.
Although play was written after Antigone, it is set chronologically before the events of Antigone.
Video Summary
Summary and Citations
The play Oedipus the King starts in the city of Thebes. The city is in a terrible situation. There's a plague going on, and people are dying. The crops aren't growing, and animals are sick.
The people are desperate. They gather in front of the palace and beg their king, Oedipus, to save them.
Oedipus is a great king. He saved the city once before by solving the riddle of the Sphinx, so the people trust him. They believe he can save them again.
"You have your several griefs, each for himself; but my heart bears the weight of my own, and yours and all my people's sorrows."
Oedipus promises that he will find a way to end the plague and protect the city. He tells them that he's already sent Creon, his brother-in-law, to the Oracle at Delphi to ask the gods what they need to do to stop the plague.
Not long after, Creon returns from the Oracle. He has important news. The Oracle told him that the plague is happening because the murderer of the previous king, Laius, is still living in Thebes. The city won't be free from the plague until the killer is found and punished.
"The killer of Laius will bring the city to ruin unless he is driven out."
This shocks Oedipus and everyone else. The people never knew who killed Laius, so the mystery was never solved.
Oedipus promises that he will find Laius's murderer and bring him to justice. He will be punished. He declares that he will not rest until the murderer is found, and he vows to protect Thebes from this curse.
"I curse myself as well… if by any chance he proves to be an intimate of our house."
To help with the investigation, Oedipus calls for Tiresias, a famous blind prophet. Tiresias is known for his wisdom and ability to see the truth. Oedipus believes that Tiresias will be able to tell him who the murderer is. When Tiresias arrives, though, things don't go as planned.
At first, Tiresias refuses to speak. He doesn't want to tell Oedipus what he knows. This frustrates Oedipus. He demands that Tiresias reveal the truth. Tiresias finally gives in: "You are the curse, the corruption of the land!"
Tiresias tells Oedipus that he is the murderer. Oedipus is stunned. He can't believe it. He thinks Tiresias must be lying or plotting against him.
Oedipus gets angry. He accuses Tiresias of trying to frame him. He even starts to suspect that Creon might be involved in some kind of plot to overthrow him.
"What wickedness is this? To slander a king without proof?"
Oedipus is so sure that Tiresias is wrong that he refuses to listen to him. But Tiresias doesn't back down. He tells Oedipus that the truth will come out, whether he wants to hear it or not. Then, he leaves.
Oedipus is confused and furious. He confronts Creon and accuses him of treason: "You think you can get away with this, a palace plotter without punishment?"
Creon is shocked and denies everything. He says that he has no interest in being king and has always been loyal.
The argument gets pretty heated, but before things can get out of hand, Oedipus's wife, Jocasta, steps in. She tries to calm them down.
Jocasta tells Oedipus not to worry about what Tiresias said, and that prophecies aren't always true. She explains that she and her first husband, Laius, received a prophecy from the Oracle long ago.
"An oracle came to Laius… it said he was doomed to die by the hand of his own son."
The Oracle said that Laius would be killed by his own son. To avoid this, Laius and Jocasta abandoned their baby on a mountainside, thinking that if the baby died, the prophecy couldn't come true.
Laius was killed by a group of robbers at a place where three roads meet, not by his son. This proves that prophecies aren't always right.
When Oedipus hears this story, something starts to click in his mind. He begins to remember something from his past that troubles him. He starts asking Jocasta more questions about where and how Laius was killed. Jocasta's description of the location - the place where three roads meet - makes Oedipus nervous.
Oedipus explains that many years ago, he left his home in Corinth. At the time, he believed that King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth were his parents. But one day, a man told Oedipus that they weren't his real parents.
This upset Oedipus a lot. So, he went to the Oracle at Delphi to find out the truth. Instead of answering his question, the Oracle gave Oedipus a terrifying prophecy. The Oracle said that Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother.
"Was I not born for torment? Look at me, doomed as I am to marry my mother and kill my father."
Horrified by this, Oedipus fled from Corinth, determined to avoid the prophecy. He thought that by running away, he could escape his fate.
On his journey, Oedipus came to a crossroads. There, he got into a fight with a man in a chariot and some of the man's servants. In the heat of the moment, Oedipus killed them all. He thought it was just a random encounter, but now, he begins to fear that the man he killed might have been Laius, his real father.
Oedipus becomes desperate to know the truth, so he sends for the one surviving witness of Laius's murder, a servant who worked for Laius. This servant had fled after the murder but is still alive. Oedipus hopes that he can tell him whether or not he was the one who killed Laius.
While they are waiting, a messenger arrives from Corinth. He brings news that King Polybus, the man Oedipus believed to be his father, has died of natural causes. It seems like the prophecy about him killing his father didn't come true after all.
"Ah, Polybus, with whom I shared a father's love, is dead by chance - not through my hand."
Oedipus is relieved at first, but he's still worried about the part of the prophecy that says he will marry his mother. He tells the messenger that he's afraid to return to Corinth because of this. The messenger, trying to comfort Oedipus, reveals something unexpected - Polybus and Merope weren't his real parents.
The messenger explains that many years ago, he found a baby abandoned on a mountainside near Thebes. That baby was Oedipus. The messenger gave the baby to Polybus and Merope, who raised him as their own son.
Oedipus is shocked! He starts asking more questions about where the baby came from. The messenger tells Oedipus that Laius' servant gave him the baby. Hearing this, Oedipus begins to suspect the worst. It seems like everything is pointing to the prophecy being true.
Jocasta, realizing what is about to happen, begs Oedipus to stop asking questions. She begs him to leave the matter alone, but Oedipus refuses. He's determined to find out the full truth.
Finally, the servant who witnessed Laius's murder arrives. Oedipus questions him, and the servant confirms everything.
"It was your hands that shed that blood."
Many years ago, Laius and Jocasta gave him their baby to abandon on a mountainside. But instead, he gave the baby to the messenger from Corinth. That baby was Oedipus.
Now, Oedipus knows the horrible truth. He realizes that he killed his real father, Laius, at the crossroads, just as the prophecy said he would. He also realizes that he married his real mother, Jocasta. The prophecy that he tried so hard to escape has come true in the worst possible way.
Oedipus is devastated by this revelation!
Jocasta, unable to handle the shame and horror of the situation, runs into the palace. She locks herself in her room. A short time after, a servant comes out and announces that Jocasta has hanged herself.
Oedipus, filled with grief and guilt, rushes into the palace and finds her body. In his agony, Oedipus takes the pins from Jocasta's dress and stabs out his own eyes. He blinds himself because he can't bear to see the world now that he knows the terrible truth.
"No more shall you see the horrors I have suffered."
Oedipus believes that his life is cursed and that everything he has done has led to this tragic moment.
After blinding himself, Oedipus stumbles out of the palace, covered in blood. He calls for help and asks to be exiled from Thebes. He believes that if he leaves the city, Thebes will be freed from the curse. Oedipus doesn't want to cause any more harm. He begs to be sent away to live far from everyone.
"Drive me out of this country as quickly as you can, to a place where no human voice can ever greet me."
Creon, who is now in charge of Thebes, arrives. He's shocked by the sight of Oedipus, but he tries to remain calm.
Oedipus asks Creon to take care of his daughters, Antigone and Ismene. He's worried what will happen to them now that the truth has come out. He knows that their lives will be hard because of the shame brought upon them. He fears that no one will want to marry them, and that they'll suffer because of his actions.
Creon shows compassion toward Oedipus. He promises to take care of the girls and protect them. Oedipus is grateful but still feels overwhelming guilt and sorrow. He says goodbye to his daughters. His heart breaks as he realizes that he's the cause of their suffering.
Oedipus continues to beg Creon to banish him from Thebes. He believes his exile is the only way to stop the suffering in the city. Creon agrees to exile him, but he says that they must first consult the Oracle one more time to make sure they're following the will of the gods.
Oedipus, blinded and broken, waits for the Oracle's answer. As he waits, he reflects on everything that has happened.
He thought he could outsmart fate by running away from Corinth. But no matter how hard he tried to escape, everything the Oracle predicted came true. Oedipus realizes now that fate is something no one can avoid. The gods had already decided his path, and nothing he did could change it. He was destined to kill his father and marry his mother from the moment he was born. This realization fills him with despair. All his efforts to control his destiny were pointless.
"It was Apollo, friends, Apollo, that brought this bitter bitterness, my sorrows to completion."
The Chorus, made up of Theban elders, steps forward once again. They reflect on the tragedy that has unfolded. The Chorus talks about how Oedipus, who was once a powerful and respected king, has fallen so far. They remind the audience that no one, no matter how great or wise, can escape their fate. The gods have ultimate power, and humans are powerless to change it. The Chorus also talks about how Oedipus's story serves as a warning to others. His downfall shows the dangers of hubris, or excessive pride.
As Oedipus waits for the final word from the Oracle, he asks Creon to bring him back into the palace. He's in terrible pain, both physically and emotionally. He doesn't want to be seen by the people of Thebes in his broken state.
Creon agrees and leads Oedipus back into the palace to wait for the Oracle's instructions.
In the meantime, Oedipus recalls how perfect things seemed when he became king. He saved Thebes, married the queen, and was beloved But now, looking back, Oedipus realizes that everything he thought he knew was a lie. His whole life has been a series of tragic mistakes, all leading to this moment of complete devastation.
Oedipus also thinks about the gods and their role in his life. He questions whether they ever had mercy on him or if they were always intent on making him suffer. He wonders if he was just a pawn or if he could have avoided his fate. But deep down, he knows fate is unchangeable, set by the gods before his birth.
"Was it my fate to couple with my mother, to take the life of my father, my own sire?"
Finally, the Oracle's answer arrives. Creon tells Oedipus that the gods have confirmed that he must be exiled from Thebes.
"It is the god’s command: it is his will that governs us in all things great and small."
Oedipus is relieved. Before he leaves, he asks Creon to take care of his daughters, Antigone and Ismene, and to make sure they are protected. Oedipus lost everything - his wife, his children, his sight, and his kingdom. But he accepts his fate. He understands now that his life was shaped by forces beyond his control.
He leaves Thebes knowing that he will live out the rest of his days in misery and isolation.
As Oedipus is led away, the Chorus delivers one final message. "Count no man happy till he dies, free of pain at last."
They talk about the power of fate and the fragility of human life. They remind the audience that no one can escape their destiny, no matter how hard they try.
Oedipus's story serves as a lesson to everyone: the gods control the world, and humans must accept their fate, even when it's cruel and unjust.
The play ends with Oedipus walking into exile.
Author: Summary King
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