Oedipus Rex
Characters Protagonist: Oedipus
Antagonist: Fate, the Truth
Oedipus (ED ih pihs or EE dih pihs): King of Thebes.
Jocasta: Wife of Oedipus.
Creon: Jocasta's brother.
Teiresias (ti RE se uhs): Blind prophet.
Antigone(an TIG uh ne): Daughter of Oedipus.
Ismene (iz ME ne):Daughter of Oedipus.
Messenger
Shepherd
Chorus of Theban Elders
Setting
Ancient Greece in the city of Thebes, northwest of Athens.
Theme
.......Fate punishes the proud and the insolent with ironic outcomes terrible to behold. Oedipus as king of Thebes exhibits great pride (hubris) that blinds his ability to accept the truth. (Ironically, the blind prophet Teiresias readily "sees" the truth.) As a result, Fate sends Oedipus tumbling headlong into an abyss of humiliation, grief, and remorse in a single day.
• In nearly every form of art, one can find certain universal that stand out and represent a major theme for the work. In the same way as these ideas regarding universal themes can be applied to novels and short stories, so too can they be applied to dramatic works, such as plays and cinema. Especially in Greek Drama, one can notice the early emergence of Universal Values and key ideas that will have an effect on literature for centuries to come. From playwrights such as Shakespeare, to modern authors such as Stephen King, the ancient works of Greek drama, tragedy and even comedy have acted as an inspiration in both story and style. However, perhaps one of the most widely referenced and well known of the ancient Greek dramas is the Sophocles's trilogy of Oedipus the King. Not only are these three plays tremendously influential to the worlds of drama and literature, they are also key examples of how a universal value can come to affect the entire course of a dramatic work.
Within Oedipus the King lie many common themes and morals that can be drawn upon by the reader. However, perhaps the universal values that are most crucial to the play and its work are those
Antagonist: Fate, the Truth
Oedipus (ED ih pihs or EE dih pihs): King of Thebes.
Jocasta: Wife of Oedipus.
Creon: Jocasta's brother.
Teiresias (ti RE se uhs): Blind prophet.
Antigone(an TIG uh ne): Daughter of Oedipus.
Ismene (iz ME ne):Daughter of Oedipus.
Messenger
Shepherd
Chorus of Theban Elders
Setting
Ancient Greece in the city of Thebes, northwest of Athens.
Theme
.......Fate punishes the proud and the insolent with ironic outcomes terrible to behold. Oedipus as king of Thebes exhibits great pride (hubris) that blinds his ability to accept the truth. (Ironically, the blind prophet Teiresias readily "sees" the truth.) As a result, Fate sends Oedipus tumbling headlong into an abyss of humiliation, grief, and remorse in a single day.
• In nearly every form of art, one can find certain universal that stand out and represent a major theme for the work. In the same way as these ideas regarding universal themes can be applied to novels and short stories, so too can they be applied to dramatic works, such as plays and cinema. Especially in Greek Drama, one can notice the early emergence of Universal Values and key ideas that will have an effect on literature for centuries to come. From playwrights such as Shakespeare, to modern authors such as Stephen King, the ancient works of Greek drama, tragedy and even comedy have acted as an inspiration in both story and style. However, perhaps one of the most widely referenced and well known of the ancient Greek dramas is the Sophocles's trilogy of Oedipus the King. Not only are these three plays tremendously influential to the worlds of drama and literature, they are also key examples of how a universal value can come to affect the entire course of a dramatic work.
Within Oedipus the King lie many common themes and morals that can be drawn upon by the reader. However, perhaps the universal values that are most crucial to the play and its work are those