OEDIPUS REX
Sophocles
CHORUS
• Greek drama was developed from lyric
poetry; because of that, many of the
characters in the play would be performed
by a singing chorus.
• The chorus could sing, dance, and act for specific parts, sometimes
speaking lines of dialogue, and usually consisted of 14 men.
• In Oedipus Rex, they play the old men and
people of Thebes.
GODS AND GODDESSES
• The ancient Greeks were polytheistic, meaning they believed in many
different gods.
• The most powerful god was Zeus, the king of the gods.
• The most important god in Oedipus Rex is Apollo, whose oracle at
Delphi gives important prophecies to Oedipus and Creon. His
knowledge is absolute, meaning if he says something will happen,
then it definitely will happen. However, his prophecies are not always
clear instructions.
RELIGION
• Greek religion did not have much of a moral
code. The people did not necessarily love the
gods, but feared and respected their power.
• Humans won the favor of the gods by
making sacrifices and offerings.
• Certain crimes like homicide and incest
offended the gods, as well as a lack of
offerings and sacrifices. To punish
people, they would punish an entire
community.
SPHINX
• The sphinx was a monster sent by the
goddess Hera against the city of Thebes. It
was part lion, part eagle, and part woman.
• The monster would ask a riddle, and
those who could not answer correctly
were devoured by it.
• According to Greek mythology, when
Oedipus answered the sphinx’s riddle
correctly, it threw itself off of the top of
a cliff and died.
SUPPLIANT
• A suppliant is anyone who makes a request or
prayer from a position of powerlessness.
• Being a suppliant was a sacred responsibility and
one must follow a specific code of behavior and
dress in a certain way (i.e. carry olive branches).
• Traditionally, a suppliant would kneel before the
person they were supplicating and touch their
knees. Often, they would take refuge, or find
safety, at an altar to the gods.
STAGE DIRECTIONS
• Manuscripts of ancient Greek tragedies
did not have stage directions. The
reader must figure out when characters
enter and exit.
• The dialogue for the text, however, is
filled with clues for stage directions,
like words that would indicate that a
character is pointing at someone or
something.
THEBES
• Thebes was a major city in Greece
and a rival of Athens in ancient times.
• According to mythology, when
Hera sent the sphinx to Thebes,
Oedipus won his kingship by
defending the city against the
monster.
• Other Greek epics took place in Thebes,
such as The Iliad and The Odyssey.