Ancient Greece
Sophocles and Oedipus Rex
 T= Oedipus the King
 A= Sophocles
(496 B.C. – 406 B.C.)
 N= Greek
 G=Drama
 Pages 204-262
Sophocles
 Wrestler, musician,
general, politician
 Very handsome and
successful
 Celebrated playwright
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120 (ish) plays
20 (ish) first prizes
 Only 7 plays remain –
the most famous:
Oedipus Rex
Greece in the 4th Century B.C
 Greece was the
superpower of the
known world
 The Greeks worshipped
many gods: Zeus,
Hera, Athena, Apollo,
etc.
 Greek citizens were
required to attend
festivals to worship and
honor the gods.
 The origins of ancient Greek drama (theatre)
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began with dances and songs.
Theatre was used to honor gods.
Dionysus was specifically honored for being the
god of wine and procreation.
The official debut of theatre records was during
the sixth century.
Greek theatres were held outdoors.
Competitions for tragedy and comedy sponsored
three week-long festivals.
Festival of Dionysis
 Dionysis was the god of
wine, agriculture, and theater
 During this religious festival
there was a theater
competition – each
competing playwright
submitted 3 tragedies and 1
comedy
 Winners won a goat
 The most successful and
recognized playwright was
Sophocles
Library Research
 Today we will go to the library, and you will
complete a sheet while researching different
Greek gods.
 You will work in pairs with NO TALKING!
 First team with completed sheet wins a No
Homework Pass!!!
 If you talk you will be disqualified.
Homework
Zeus is hiring. In fact all the gods and goddesses are looking for
assistants. (Controlling the world and everything on it is hard work!)
Create a Help Wanted Ad for the Greek god or goddess of your
choice. If your god or goddess needed help, what type of person
would be suitable for him or her? For example, Poseidon is the god
of the water, hurricanes, etc. what qualities would he be looking for
in an assistant. Make sure you include at least 6-8 required skills
and of course contact information (the applicant needs to know how
to get in touch with his or her future employer!) If this is handwritten
it MUST be neat. Typing is better and colorful is even better. In other
words, I want CREATIVE!!!! DUE Friday!! October 08, 2010
 Tragedy: 1) a play in which the main character is brought to ruin
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or suffers a great sorrow. 2) The main character is usually a
hero. 3) The downfall is usually caused by a tragic flaw. 4) The
purpose of tragedy is to arouse pity and fear in the audience.
Tragic flaw: personality trait that leads to the downfall of the
hero
en media res: (Latin for “in the middle of things”) when the story
starts in the middle of events, flashes back, then picks back up
in real time
turning point: point of great tension and determines which
direction the action will take
epithet: a way of naming that provides an important description
(“gray-eyed Athena”)
epiphany: a great realization of the lesson to be learned (when
the light bulb comes on)
 Chorus: a performer or group of performers whose
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function is to comment on the action that has just
occurred in a drama. (They may sing and dance.)
Foreshadowing: clues that hint to what will happen in a
work of literature
Dramatic irony: the reader or audience knows
something that a character does not know.
Personification: when human qualities or thoughts are
given to an animal, object, or idea
Symbolism: when a person, place, or thing stands for
something else in addition to itself
Protagonist: the main character. The action will follow
this character. (It is not always the good guy.)
Antagonist: a person or force in conflict with the
protagonist. (Not always the bad guy.)
 Drama-- a story acted out on a stage by actors and
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actresses who take parts of specific characters (a play)
Dialogue--conversation held by the characters which serve
to advance the story’s action
Stage Directions--words that tell actors where to go, how
to move, and how to say their lines
Aside--words spoken by a character in a play in a low
voice, not to be heard by other characters
Monologue--long, uninterrupted speech that is spoken in
the presence of other characters
Soliloquy--a speech usually long in which a character is
alone on stage and expresses his/her thoughts aloud
 It was a citizen’s civic duty to participate in Greek dramas.
 Women were not allowed to act. They were excluded from
the audience or made to sit in the upper rows of the theatre.
 Costumes were worn to add size and distinction.
 Masks were the most distinctive features.
 The five uses of masks were: helping identify the
specific character, use as a megaphone,
distinguish a role, help the audience to glean the
personal message, and identify age, sex, mood,
and rank.
 Masks were made of: bark, cork, leather, and
linen.
 A mask was called a persona.
Theater of the Greeks
 Every show was done during the day
 Audiences could be as many as 14,000
 Minimal, if any set
 Only the “chorus”
 Thespis – first “actor”
 All the actors were men – wore masks
 Never showed any violence on stage.
More Theater of the Greeks
 The Chorus
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A group of about 15 men
Speak in one voice as one “character”
Represent the people – in this case the people
of Thebes
Offer prayers to the gods
Summarizes the action
Oedipus Rex Notes…
 Background
 Oedipus leaves his home city of Corinth to go
wandering
 Comes to a cross road and kills a man who
wouldn’t get out of his way
 Comes to city of Thebes who has recently lost
their king.
 Thebes is under siege of the Sphinx and her
riddle
 Oedipus answers riddle, Sphinx dies, Oedipus
is made king and marries the previous queen
Sphinx’s Riddle…how smart are you?
 What walks on four legs
in the morning, two in
the afternoon, and three
in the evening?
 Answers? (you die if
you get it wrong…)
 A man – child, healthy
adult, old man with a
cane
Oedipus Rex Notes…
 Remember:
 This is a story that
was not invented by
Sophocles
 The original
audiences would
have known the story
and how it ended
Apollo…
 Greek god of music,
medicine, light, truth, and
poetry
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Also the sun god
(sorta)
 Had an oracle at Delphi –
which was the most famous
oracle of Ancient Greece
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An oracle is a
priestess who delivers
the prophesies of the
god
Oedipus Rex Notes…
 Themes
 Willingness to ignore the truth
 Limits of free will
 Human pride
 Symbolism
 Sight and Light = Truth
 Blindness and Dark = Ignorance/lies
 Motifs (when an author uses a literary element over
and over – in this case symbols and irony – that
emphasize the themes)
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Sight vs. Blindness / Light vs. Dark
Dramatic irony
Literary Terms to pay attention to…
 Irony – when the opposite of what is expected
happens
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Situational Irony – when a character or reader
expects one thing to happen but something
else entirely happens
Verbal Irony – when someone says one thing
but means another
Dramatic Irony – the contrast between what a
character knows and what the reader or
audience knows
 Assign parts:
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Oedipus – King of Thebes (Quinton) Josh
A priest of Zeus (John) Zachary
Creon- brother of Jocasta (Sean) Damian
Chorus- Theban citizens (Whitney Hannah Jay ) Pea, Ashley
Kelsey
Tiresias- blind prophet (Terrel) Trent
Jocasta- queen, wife of Oedipus (Alexis) Simone
Messenger from Corinth (Mr. Page) Brent
Shepherd (Timothy) Brandon ,Maria
Messenger of Thebes (Tyler D.) Steffone
Antigone and Ismene- Jocasta and Oedipus’ daughters (Chelsea
G., Jarely) Jennifer, Krysten
Guards and attendants (Aaron, David) Jonathan, Michael
 List clues to the killer.
 Apply literary terms.
 Our characters will learn many things about
themselves that are surprising. What is the
most surprising thing you have ever learned
about yourself? Write a quickwrite paragraph
about this experience.
Oedipus the King, Act I
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
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10)
11)
12)
13)
14)
15)
16)
17)
18)
What walks on four legs in the morning, two at noon, and three in the
evening?
In what city does the drama occur?
What four disasters are occurring in Thebes? (lines 31-33)
What did Oedipus save the city from years ago? (line 44)
How does Oedipus feel about what is happening to his city? (page
266)
Who did Oedipus send to Delphi and why?
What set the plague upon the city?
Who was Laius?
“Where on earth” are the murderers?
Who did the witness say attacked Laius?
Who persuaded the city “to let mystery go”?
Oedipus says he is a “to the story, a to the crime.”
Oedipus’s curse on the murderer is to live “his life in.”
Oedipus says, “So I will fight for him as if he were my.” (line 301)
Creon sent for, the blind prophet.
What does Tiresias in lines 374-375?
Who did Oedipus blame in lines 395-397?
Who did Tiresias blame for the murder?
Analyze the incidents of dramatic irony in part one. Draw
and fill out the T-chart below to indicate what Oedipus
knows opposed to what the audience knows.
What Oedipus Knows
What the audience knows
 You must create a map telling the story of Oedipus’s life. Make
sure you label the places Oedipus traveled and tell the
importance of the events that took place there.
 Your map MUST include:
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Oedipus’s birth
*the murder of King Laius
The shepherd
*the sphinx
Mt. Cithaeron
*Oedipus as king, married to Jocasta
the messenger *Thebes
Polybus and Merope
*Corinth
The drunk man *Delphi
Apollo’s oracle
*Daulia
*Phocis