Characters/Places #1
Where is Apollo's Oracle located?
Delphi
Who is killed at the crossroads?
Lauis
Define Hubris
excessive pride
What was Oedipus' vow at prologos of the play?
To find Laius's killer
Give one example of how Oedipus tries to alter his prophecy
run from Corinth
They are the voice of the people of Thebes
the Chorus
Who is the author of the Theban Plays?
Sophocles
Define harmartia
fatal flaw
What is Oedipus' last act of free will?
He blinds himself
A tragic hero meets his or her doom with courage and dignity. What is the request that Oedipus asks of Creon.
To be exiled from Thebes
Who is Oedipus' adopted mother?
Merope
This is where Oedipus was left to die
Mt. Cithaeron
What is the meaning of Oedipus' name and how did it originate?
swollen foot. His ankles were pinned as a baby.
The chorus states, "You are my great example, you, your life your destiny, Oedipus, man of misery---I count no man blest. This is an example of which theme?
Fate
This is where Oedipus was raised
Corinth
Who says, "A prophet? Well then, free youself of every charge!"
Jocasta
List three of Oedipus' extrordinary abilities
intelligence, leadership, and pro-active
Define dramatic irony and give one example from "Oedipus the King"
When the audience knows something that the characters do not. We know that Polybus and Merope are not his real parents. We know that Jocasta is his mother. We know that he(Oedipus) killed Lauis at the crossroads.
Who is Tiresias and why is his character important to the play?
He is the blind prophet. Tiresius is physically blind but can see the truth throughout the entire play.
Who says, "Not I, I'm not the man to yearn for kingship…"
Creon
Who is the one lone survivor at the crossroads?
List five events in order that lead to Oedipus' catastrophic end.
the plague of the city----Apollo's instructions to find the murderer of Lauis----Tiresius' confrontation----shepherd/messagers testimony----realises prophecy is true----Jocasta's death----self-inflicted blindness
Oedipus states to Tiresius, "It does but not for you old man. You've lost your power, stone-blind, stone-deaf---senses, eyes as blind as stones." Which technique is represented?
ad hominem
Why is the plague afflicting Thebes at the start of the play is described as a miasma?
It is a corruption caused by an unresolved murder of King Laius that infects the entire city until the culprit is exiled or killed.