Brief argument of the play Oedipus Rex

A lesson from a TEACHER begins that takes us back to the dawn of the birth of culture as we know it today. Let's meet a brief plot of the play King Oedipus, one of the best known books of Sophocles, a writer of the ancient Greece that he lived about 2,500 years ago now. Undoubtedly, it is curious and surprising the extensive culture that the Greek people were able to develop with such rudimentary means that they had centuries ago to explore the world. However, their civilization was the cradle of democracy and philosophy as we know it now, and they were excellent mathematicians, literati, and astronomers. So his cultural legacy, unfortunately not as extensive as we would like, deserves great respect from us.

Index

1. On Sophocles, the author of Oedipus Rex
2. Part One of Oedipus Rex - Summary
3. Summary of the second part of Oedipus Rex
4. Summary of Oedipus Rex's Argument: Part Three
5. Summary of the argument of Oedipus Rex. Fourth part
6. End of Oedipus Rex

Before entering fully to comment on a brief argument of the work King Oedipus, let's do a quick introduction to the life of Sophocles, the author of it. This Greek writer spent his first years in Corona approximately in the year 495 a. C. From there he began educating him to become one of the most important authors of the Greek tragedy of their time and of all human history.

He had easy access to education, since he was born into a wealthy family. Outstanding Disciple of Lampros, he was the author not only of King Oedipus, also of other well-known tragedies today, such as Antigone, Electra or Ajax.

Throughout his life, he perfected the art of Greek theater, achieving a lyrical reduction in favor of development of the dialogue, introduce more actors in each play or give great prominence to the dress.

In this other lesson we will discover the Characteristics of the Oedipus Rex characters.

Image: Slideshare

We already know the brief plot of the work King Oedipus, which has gone down in history as the myth of Oedipus, and which even gives its name to a psychological condition.

Oedipus is the son of the kings of Thebes, Jocasta and Laius. The king, Laius, is warned by an oracle that it will be this, his offspring, who is going to assassinate him. That is why he decides to escape to his destiny, tying his son three days after being born by the feet and leaving him in the hands of one of his slaves to abandon him to his fate.

However, the slave decides to give it to a companion of his shepherd, who is a subject of the kings of Corinth, Merote and Polybius, who, not being able to have children of their own, live in distress. So they joyfully welcome the child, whom they name Oedipus, and they educate you as a legitimate descendant that he will be the future king of Corinth.

As an adult, Oedipus receives the news at a feast that he is not the biological son of his parents, so he is concerned and decides to leave the city secretly consult with the Oracle of Delphi and thus know what may be the best way to proceed.

However, the oracle refuses to answer his questions, simply announces to Oedipus that he is going to kill his own father and he is going to end up marrying his own mother.

He decides to flee Corinth to avoid such an event, because he goes crazy with the information he has received from the oracle, and wants to avoid it at all costs, because he loves his parents.

Image: Oedipus Rex Wiki

This is how during his journey, he meets Laius, his true progenitor, whom he kills along with his two companions, mistaking them for a band of thieves, since they have been about to run him over on the way. This is how both prophecies of the oracle are fulfilled. He is carried away by anger and uses his staff to kill them, although one manages to escape and tells that he was attacked by several people, so as to reduce the shame of knowing that he was only one aggressor.

Oedipus is alone and homeless, so he arrives in Thebes while he is harassed by a Sphinx, a hideous monster of the roads that kills any traveler who does not know how to answer the enigma that he poses. However, she is committing suicide when Oedipus does resolve the issue.

Arrived in Thebes, and believing these that Laius died at the hands of unknown assailants, they thank Oedipus for freeing them from the Sphinx giving Jocasta, his real mother, in marriage.

However, faced with a terrible epidemic that is ravaging Thebes, Oedipus does not know how to act, so he sends his brother-in-law, Creon, to consult with the oracle what may be the best way to proceed in order to save his town.

The solution that the oracle gives Creon is that for the calamity to end, he has to find the murderers of Laius, the previous king, and punish them with exile or worse, death. That is how Oedipus begins to search for information about Laius, the previous king, and knows that he was murdered on the roads, when he was going to Delphi with his servants, and on his return, they ended his life, saving only one of his servants.

Oedipus has a certain diviner, Tiresias, brought into his presence, who must help him discover the murderer. But he refuses, and only when he is insulted by the king does he agree to participate, blaming himself for having killed Laius.

Later, Oedipus questions Jocasta about her first husband, and observes that the data that this offers him agree perfectly with the murder of him in the way to Laius. At that same moment, a messenger from Corinth informs him that King Polybius has died, so he understands that he is the culprit of the epidemic that devastates Thebes.

Being aware of the situation, he understands that he was the boy abandoned by Laius, who has killed his own father and married his mother. Yocasta. Seized by the horror of the situation, he decides to commit suicide by strangling himself with his braids.

Oedipus, discovering his mother and his wife dead by him, wounds his eyes with the gold clasps of his cloak and goes blind. Soon after, he decides to go into exile to end the misfortune of Thebes.

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