AP English 11
Period 6
Throughout Oedipus Rex, the Chorus generally depicts what the audience is
expected to think and say. It often reflects the common people, and thus serves to not
only tell the onstage characters what to do, but to show the audience what they would
say in the situations shown in the play. The attitudes of the Chorus gradually change
throughout the play, but overall they try to maintain order in Thebes and prevent
change that could disrupt the lives of citizens. In this way, the Chorus displays
Sophocles’s belief in the common people to be generally complacent, and unwilling to
venture into uncertain futures. The Chorus, like the audience, likes peace and security,
and throughout the play works to maintain that peace and security.
At the beginning of Oedipus, the Chorus is desperate for an answer to their
troubles, and calls upon the gods to help them. They are then surprised when they
receive their answer: Oedipus arrives and announces that he himself will end the plague
on Thebes. The Chorus is uncertain as to whether or not to go along with Oedipus,
since it seemed at the time that whatever the cause of the plague, only the Gods would
be able to provide any help. They hesitate to fully accept Oedipus as a substitute for
the Gods, and they suggest he call upon the prophet Terisias for advice.
After Oedipus’s confrontation with Terisias, the Chorus wonders whether or not
the prophet was right, and that Oedipus might have had something to do with the
murder of Laius. They come to the conclusion that whether Oedipus is guilty or not,
they will remain loyal to him no matter what. This decision exemplifies the Chorus’s
continued loyalty to their king and reluctance to willingly allow any major upheaval in
Thebes. Even though Oedipus may be guilty of a terrible crime, they are willing to
overlook it rather than subject themselves to the chaos that would result from a change
of leadership. This continued support displays the Chorus’s efforts to resist change that
could jeopardize their safety and stability. The Chorus reaffirms this position in the First
Episode, when they reassure Creon that Oedipus’s accusations of him were made in a
fit of anger, and later try to calm Oedipus during and after his argument with Creon.
The Chorus’s response to the conversation between Oedipus and Jocasta in the
Second Episode displays their nervousness and unease at Jocasta’s lack of respect faith
in the oracles and prophecies, and their realization that Oedipus’s guilt must be judged.
This reaction shows their fear that there could be a change of power in Thebes and that
the Gods might be angered at Jocasta’s impiety. While they are still standing by
Oedipus, they are worried that he might, by his own proclamation, have to leave them.
After Oedipus’s next conversation with the Messenger from Corinth and his
subsequent discussion with Jocasta, the Chorus seems happy about Oedipus’s search
for the truth; they understand that Oedipus is not Corinthian, and speculate in
anticipation that instead of being descended from commoners, as Oedipus’s
interpretation of Jocasta’s reaction suggests, that he is descended from the gods. This
ode shows the Chorus’s continued support of Oedipus, and even brings to light the idea
that he is on a par with heavenly figures, and therefore is as powerful as they are. In
this way, they present the suggestion that Oedipus is superior to the gods and oracles,
and thus the prophecies, which Jocasta has been denouncing, will be overturned by his
willpower and pride. At this point, the Chorus is waiting for the cue to elevate Oedipus
to a godly status and prove that he is greater than prophets and oracles.
After the final revelation that ruins Oedipus and results in the last major
upheaval in Thebes, the Chorus expresses its sorrow that a great man such as Oedipus
has fallen. They question his about his self-inflicted wounds, trying to make sense of
the situation at hand. By the end of the play, after some semblance of order has been
restored, the Chorus laments ever knowing Oedipus; they do not hate the man,
however. Rather, they hate the heartache he has accidentally brought upon himself,
and the hardships he has unintentionally brought on the city of Thebes. In the last lines
of Oedipus Rex, the Chorus concludes that all men must be miserable until they die, at
which time all their troubles end for good. This last lamentation exemplifies the idea of
the Chorus as being a body that craves stability, and even though they still appreciate
and feel sorry for Oedipus, they despise the chaos he has brought down on them.