Oedipus Antigone Questions And Answers

Oedipus, Antigone, and the Poetry of Sappho

Question One: Fully explain who Laius is, how he died, and how Laius’ s death led to the downfall of Oedipus. (5 points max)

Laius was the first husband of Jocasta, and the biological father of Oedipus. The play begins when Laius is already dead, and it is explained that he was overtaken by a gang of thieves on a crossroad and killed by an unknown man. It is later found out that the son of Laius is responsible for the murder. Before the boy is born to them, a prophet warns Laius that he will aid in the conception of a son who will kill him and sleep with his wife; he will die by the hand of his own flesh and blood, who will take his own mother as a bride. This struck fear into the mind of Laius,
When the oracle approached Jocasta and Laius with a prophecy of his fate, she was indifferent to the words of the gods. She did not completely doubt their authority, per se, but did not take their words as sovereign over the choices of humanity. One could say that she didn’t buy into the school of predestination, but gave a greater regard to free-will. So, when Oedipus was conceived, she had made the decision to chain him up and leave his fate to the chances of survival. In this way, she would not be held responsible for whatever would happen to him. It was expected that the child wouldn’t survive the dry desert, but that he would quickly
When he confronted his father, Creon, he not only kept the opinions of the common people in mind, but skillfully applied their concerns to his argument, and in doing so may have influenced the chorus of elders, persuading them not to be so one-sided (the elders being something of a group of “yes” men). His feelings may have stemmed from loving Antigone, but he fought against the irregular punishment that would be the first of its kind inflicted upon women. Haemon was careful to craft his words which he spoke to his father, so as not to pose an absolute threat but to rattle him with an implied threat of death if he were to carry out the aforementioned intentions of discipline. It is true that Haemon could be seen as a coward for not killing Creon on the spot, but simply walking away was an act of level headedness that proves a worthy testament to his rational thinking. This self control is a thing that both Antigone and Creon lacked, which set him apart as the most rational