Angelina Mistretta
AP English Literature
Mrs. Martin
27 March 2012
Oedipus General Questions
1. In Oedipus the King, the peripeteia, anagnorisis, and catastrophe all occur at the same
moment. This is the moment when Oedipus realizes the true fate that he has indeed slept
with his mother and killed his father. He was most severely affected by it because he was
denying the truth the entire time, and when the reality hit him, he could not believe it and
so he took out his own eyes. That right there shows the shock that Oedipus felt.
2. Sophocles describes Oedipus’ life piecemeal, out of chronological order. To be put into
chronological order, it should have started out with Oedipus’ birth. From there his parents
give him to the shepherd. Then he grows up and ends up killing his father, without him
knowing that it was his father. Next, Oedipus is in search of the killer, not knowing it was
him. He is then told about his fate, which he was refused to believe, and then Jocasta finds
out it was Oedipus who killed her husband, and also that he is the father of her kids. She
then hangs herself, and Oedipus gouges out his eyes.
3. The major conflict throughout the play is the conflict within Oedipus himself. He is in his
own battle of truth and fate. Ever since he heard the prophecy told by Tiresias, he refused
to believe and was in a state of despair. This conflict was ongoing until he finally gave in a
let the truth devour him.
4. Oedipus the King is a tragedy because of the downfall of himself, and of his kingdom. The
deaths of Jocasta, King Laius, and the gouging of Oedipus’ eyes are all events that make this
play a tragic one. The fate of Oedipus of him killing his father and sleeping with his mother
and having kids that are really his cousins, and then it all coming true, is tragic because
Oedipus did not want to believe it for it was so far-fetched.
5. Dramatic irony comes into play from the beginning. We as the readers know that Oedipus
indeed killed his father, King Laius, where Oedipus did not know so. We also knew that he
did sleep with his mother and have children with her, where Oedipus did not know he would
do so. We also knew that Tiresias always tells the truth, and that his prophecies will come
true. Oedipus did not want to believe him.
6. The function of the Chorus and Choragos is to give insight as to what is happening; they add
feeling and detail to the events. They also have their own opinions and state the known and
unknown. They commit to telling the reader what was not already told in the play through
the other characters.