Oedipus Rex/Oedipus the King: The Play’s Synopsis or Overview
Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King was written by Sophocles around 429 B.C. The play is a Greek tragedy and deals with the tragic downfall of the king, Oedipus, who killed his father and married his mother unknowingly. In today’s article, you will learn about the synopsis or overview of the play, Oedipus Rex, so that you can mainly learn the story scene-by-scene in short.
Synopsis of Oedipus Rex:
The following are several sections of the synopsis of Oedipus Rex:
Background Information:
Many years ago, before the start of the play, King Laius was told that his son would kill him and marry his mother. On hearing this prophecy, Laius pinned his son’s ankles together and gave him to a shepherd to be left on the side of the mountain, Cithairon, to die. But the baby was rescued and given to the king and queen of Corinth (Polybus and Merope). Then, the baby was given the name, Oedipus. He became an adult without any knowledge of his true origin. One day, owing to a dreadful prophecy related to his parents by an oracle at a shrine of Apollo that he would kill his father and marry his mother, he left Corinth. On his way, he met a stranger who was actually his father (King Laius), and he killed him in rage after being insulted by him. After this, he came to Thebes and solved the riddle of Sphinx (a monster) and was appointed the king of Thebes. He then married the widow of Laius, Queen Jocasta, who is his real mother. Then, the play starts multiple years later.
Prologue of the Play:
In this section, we see that the city of Thebes suffers from a dangerous plague that causes the death of its newborns, crops, and shepherds, etc. So the Theban supplicants gather outside the palace of their king, Oedipus, to request the end of this calamity. On hearing their plea, the king says that he has already sent his brother-in-law, Creon, to ask the oracle for a solution to the plague at Apollo’s shrine. Creon returns with the oracle’s answer. The answer is that if the murderer of King Laius is found and punished with death or exile, the plague can be ended. On hearing the response, Oedipus promises to find the killer to end the plague while being unaware that he is the killer himself.
Parodos in the Drama:
Then, the chorus of Theban elders enters the stage and prays to Apollo, Artemis, and Athena while singing to end the plague of the city. Their song communicates the dread and suffering that Thebans suffer because of the calamity.
Scene 1:
In the scene 1, Oedipus vows to find the killer and banish him from Thebes and orders all Thebans to avoid any contact with the killer. Then, the chorus suggests the king to have guidance from the blind prophet, Teiresias, to find the murderer. But when Teiresias arrives, he doesn’t want to answer the questions of Oedipus because the killer is Oedipus himself. However, a heavy argument starts between the prophet and the king. So Teiresias tells the truth that the killer is Oedipus himself whom he seeks. At this, Oedipus accuses the prophet of being a part of Creon’s conspiracy. According to the king, his brother-in-law conspired against him for royal power. Then, he also taunts the prophet for his blindness during their verbal fight. But Tiresias negates his baseless arguments. In the end, the prophet goes away after stating that the killer is Oedipus who not only murdered his father but also married his mother. He is the father and brother of his children. And he came into this world as a seeing baby but will leave it as a blind man. After this, the scene 1 ends.
Ode 1:
In the ode 1, we see the chorus singing about their disbelief in the words of the blind prophet, Tiresias. But they are uneasy and confused about who’s right. They want to remain loyal to their king, Oedipus, but they also do not want to lose their respect for Tiresias’ prophecy-related ability.
Scene 2:
In the scene 2, Creon arrives and defends himself against the accusation of the king, Oedipus. He says that he has no intention of gaining the throne when he already enjoys the benefits of royalty without any associated burden. But Oedipus remains suspicious and wants to punish him with death. Then, Jocasta intervenes and requests Oedipus to be logical in this matter. On her plea, Oedipus lets him go unharmed. But in trying to comfort Oedipus, Jocasta tells him a story of his baby boy who was thrown on a mountainside to die because of an oracle’s prophecy. The oracle said that the baby would grow up to murder his father and marry his mother. So Laius and she gave their infant to a shepherd after the pinning of his ankles together to be left on the side of Cithairon to die. And according to Jocasta, Laius was murdered by robbers at a crossroads, not by his son, and only one attendant at the crossroads could survive the attack. So the prophecy proved wrong. This story disturbs Oedipus because he also murdered a stranger at a crossroads. Therefore, he begins his investigation and summons the eyewitness or only survivor of King Laius’ murder incident.
Ode 2:
The chorus here sings about the value of divine laws and warns everyone against pride (hubris). It also suggests in its song that if oracles are proven false, then the respect for the gods will be at a huge risk.
Scene 3:
In the scene 3, a messenger arrives from Corinth and informs Jocasta that the father of Oedipus, Polybus, is dead. On hearing the news, Jocasta becomes overjoyed. When Oedipus is informed of the news, he becomes so happy upon realising that the first part of the prophecy that he would kill his father proved wrong. But he is now anxious about the second part of the prophecy that he would marry his mother. On hearing this, the messenger tells Oedipus that he shouldn’t feel worried because he is not the real son of his parents as King Polybus and Queen Merope had adopted him years before. He also tells Oedipus that years ago a baby boy was given to him on the side of Cithairon by a Theban shepherd, who used to work for Laius, to have the baby transferred to Corinth. The same baby grew up to become King Oedipus. Jocasta all of a sudden realises the truth and pleads with Oedipus to stop his investigation. But Oedipus doesn’t accept her plea and carries on his investigation by summoning the Theban shepherd for an inquiry about his origin. He thinks that she wants to stop him so that they cannot learn about his low birth origin that he cannot feel ashamed of if found during the inquiry.
Ode 3:
The chorus, as it is unaware of the reality, sings that Oedipus might be of some noble or divine origin. They sing that he might be the son of a god.
Scene 4:
In the scene 4, the men of Oedipus bring in the old shepherd who once gave an infant to the Corinthian shepherd and also witnessed the killing of King Laius. Under pressure, the old shepherd tells the truth to Oedipus that the infant he gave to the shepherd of Corinth is the son of Jocasta and Laius. The truth is revealed that Oedipus had killed his father and married his mother. The king feels devastated after learning the truth and rushes into his palace.
Ode 4:
The chorus laments the downfall of Oedipus and comments that human happiness is so fragile that even the greatest man among all men can suffer terribly.
Exodus:
In the exodus, a second messenger enters the stage from the palace and informs the chorus of sad news. Jocasta had committed suicide in her chamber, and Oedipus blinded himself with the brooches of her gown after seeing her dead body. Now Oedipus enters the stage and converses with the chorus about the horrors he caused for himself. He wants to be exiled from Thebes, but the chorus wants Creon to lead him in this matter. Then, Creon enters the stage and shows the king cautious mercy. Oedipus begs Creon to send him away from Thebes. Creon agrees with the king, but he insists on consulting the oracle first about the exile. Oedipus also requests him to look after his daughters, Antigone and Ismene, and mourns the disgrace that they will have to endure because of their father who is ruined by the truth that he was so determined to discover.
Conclusion:
So that is all what I have to share with you regarding the synopsis or overview of Oedipus Rex/Oedipus the King. I hope you understood the synopsis properly. And if you feel that the piece is useful, then please share it with your connections. In this way, they can also learn the overview of the play.
