Name: ___________________________________________________________ Per. _________
Oedipus Rex
Discussion Questions: Scene 1 (pg. 307-325)
Directions: Answer each question as thoroughly as possible. Be sure to read all parts of a
question before answering. When we review these in class, be sure to use a different color of ink.
1. Why is Oedipus worried at the beginning of the play? What does the priest explain to
him?
2. Playwrights cannot use narration to describe a character the way novelists can. Instead, they must
use indirect descriptions in characters’ dialogue to accomplish the same job. What things does
Oedipus reveal about his personality in the first few pages of the play?
3. Where was Creon returning from at the start of the play? What news does he bring?
4. What are your feelings about Oedipus at the end of the Prologue? You may consider any of the
following: Do you like him? Is he a good king? Is he wise/smart? You may also discuss your
feelings outside of these questions. Be sure to explain WHY you feel this way.
5. What is the purpose of the chorus? Why do you think it is uncommon to have a chorus like this in
modern plays?
6. Why was Teiresias hesitant to share what he knew about the death of King Laius? How does
Oedipus react when he finally does share?
7. Why is it significant that Teiresias is blind?
8. In line 327, Teiresias speaks as if fate will force out the truth. Do you think Sophocles portrays
Oedipus as a puppet of fate, or as a man with free will?
9. At the end of Scene 1, can you tell who the killer of Laius is? How do you feel about the
foreshadowing Sophocles uses? Is it effective?
Name: ___________________________________________________________ Per. _________
Oedipus Rex
Discussion Questions: Scene 2 (pg. 326-340)
1. Why is Creon upset at the opening of this scene?
2. On pg. 328-329, Creon explains to Oedipus why he is not a “bad friend.” What is his reasoning?
3. Why does Creon call Oedipus a fool (330)? Explain whether you agree or disagree with him, and
why.
4. Why does Oedipus think that believing Creon will mean his death? Does his reasoning make
sense?
5. At this point in the play, what would you say Oedipus’s Tragic Flaw is? How does it make him
great? How does it hurt him?
6. Why does Jocasta say that Oedipus shouldn’t believe Teiresias? Who made the prediction she
uses as her example of why soothsayers shouldn’t be believed?
7. Why do you think it takes Oedipus so long to realize that he is the man he’s been looking for?
What finally triggers the memory that helps him put it together?
8. Why did Oedipus leave Corinth, where he grew up? What events led up to his trip to Thebes?
9. Why does Oedipus want to hear from the shepherd?
10. How do you feel about the play at the end of Scene 2? Is the ending easy to predict? If not, make
a guess at what could happen in Part 2. If so, why would Sophocles write it this way?
Name: ___________________________________________________________ Per. _________
Oedipus Rex
Discussion Questions: Scenes 3&4 (pg. 342-367)
1. What news does the messenger bring from Corinth?
2. Why does Oedipus conclude that Jocasta was right about soothsayers? What does he take as
proof that they are often wrong?
3. Oedipus tells of a prophecy regarding him that he heard before leaving Corinth. What is it,
and why does it make him want to stay away from Corinth? Does it resemble and earlier
prophecies from the play?
4. Who does the Messenger turn out to be to Oedipus? What news does he share to help make
Oedipus feel better about going back to Corinth?
5. On page 348, Jocasta suddenly begins to agree with Teiresias’s earlier statements that the
truth is best kept under wraps. What has changed for her?
6. What does Oedipus finally realize in Scene 4? What was the missing piece of the puzzle that
helped him figure it out?
7. What is Jocasta’s fate? How do we learn about it?
8. What happens to Oedipus? Is his punishment fitting, considering his crime?
9. What is the significance of Oedipus’s punishment?
10. What is the final message of the play? What ideas or questions are examined? What do you
think Sophocles wants the audience to take away from it (aside from the release of catharsis,
that is)?