Gods and Goddesses in Oedipus and other Greek theater
Dionysus (Bacchus)
 God of fruitfulness and the vine (power and force of all green living
things)
 Worshipped during the Greek harvest festival—place of worship was
the theater
 “bacchanalian” -- characterized by or involving drunken partying
Athene/Athena
 Patron goddess and protector of Athens
 Goddess of wisdom
 Goddess of citizenship and patriotism
 Worshipped at the Parthenon (Temple of the goddess) in Greece
Apollo/King Phoebus
 God of prophecy
 God of the light/god of the sun
 Healer of sickness
 Foretold future of humans through the priests of Apollo at Delphi
Zeus
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Supreme God
Father of the gods
The god of the sky—thunder, lightening, rain, and sunlight
Married to Hera
Artemis
 Goddess of the hunt
Hades
 Western God (sun sets in the West—direction represents death)
 God of death/the underworld
Ares
 God of war
Introductory notes for Sophocles’ Oedipus
Protagoras:
“Man is the measure of all things”
Democratic government
 The word “democratic” in Greek translates to “rule of the people”
Plays attempt to answer the following archetypal questions:
 “What is man?”
 “What is the meaning of life?”
 “What is our purpose?”
During the age of Sophocles:
 People questioned the power and existence of gods/goddesses
 Sculptures of the time period show man’s dignity and power; these
were new vision of man’s greatness
 Religion became subject for debate/discussion
 Hippocrates creates a school for medical doctors where they observed
people and compared symptoms and diseases. They began diagnosing
people, distinguishing between one disease and another.
 Theater became a conflict between the old religious/philosophical
outlook and new ideas (thus “fate” as a theme)
Terms/vocabulary
 Hamartia—“fatal flaw”
 Hubris—arrogance or pride (often is a character’s hamartia)
 Catharsis—purification/purging of emotions
 Situational irony-- the disparity of intention and result: when the result of an
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action is contrary to the desired or expected effect.
Dramatic irony-- a disparity of expression and awareness: when words and
actions possess a significance that the listener or audience understands, but the
speaker or character does not. For example when a character says to another "I'll
love you until I die!" not realizing a piano is about to crush them.
Verbal irony—a disparity of expression and intention: when a speaker says one
thing but means another, or when a literal meaning is contrary to its intended
effect. An example of this is when someone says "Oh, that's beautiful", when
what they mean (probably conveyed by their tone) is they find "that" quite ugly.
Oedipus
Family Tree
Laius
Creon
Jocasta
Oedipus
Jocasta
Eurydice
Haemon
betrothed
Polyneices
Etocles
Ismene
Antigone
Freud Notes (see me to get these in class)
 Freud’s background and own psychological disorders
 Development of personality through stages
 Oedipus complex; Electra complex
 Structure of personality
Thematic Chart for Oedipus
TOPIC
Choice vs.
Fate
Sight/
Blindness
Hunting
metaphor
Line numbers
Speaker
Quotation or Summary
Fertility
Ship
Pollution/
disease
Irony in Oedipus
IRONY
Situational
Dramatic
Line numbers
Speaker
Quotation AND Summary/Explanation
Dramatic
continued
Verbal
Story of Antigone
When Oedipus stepped down as King of Thebes, he gave the kingdom to his
two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, who both agreed to alternate the throne
every year. However, they showed no concern for their father, who cursed
them for their negligence. After the first year, Eteocles refused to step down
and Polynices attacked Thebes with his supporters of the Argive (the Seven
Against Thebes). Both brothers died in the battle. King Creon, Oedipus'
brother-in-law and the sons' uncle, decreed that Polynices was not to be
buried. Antigone, Oedipus' daughter and the sister of Polynices, defied the
order, but was caught. Creon decreed that she was to be thrown into a cave
with a days worth of food, in spite of the fact that she was betrothed to his
son, Haemon. The gods, through the blind prophet Tiresias, expressed their
disapproval of Creon's decision, which convinced him to rescind his order,
and he went to bury Polynices. However, Antigone had already hanged
herself on the way to her burial. When Creon arrived at the tomb where she
was to be left, his son, Haemon, threatens him and tries to kill him but ends
up taking his own life. Creon's wife Eurydice, informed of Haemon's death,
took her own life out of grief.
Haemon is betrothed to Antigone. He must choose between his father
(whom he has always followed) and his lover Antigone. He chooses the
morally right side of Antigone's but cannot separate himself from either due
to the strong ties of family and love. He commits suicide because of his
helpless situation, which also leads his mother to commit suicide. These
actions cause Creon's madness at the play's conclusion.