Oedipus Scene by scene, chorus by chorus. ...
Oedipus
Scene by scene, chorus by chorus.
Scene I
What is Oedipus’s “assignment” in this first scene, and how does he respond to it?
Chorus I
What is the gist of the first choral ode, and whom do the chorus appeal to?
Scene II
When Tiresias, the prophet, spells the situation out, why doesn’t anyone believe him?
Chorus II
“What man provokes / the speaking rock of Delphi?” What man is the chorus talking about here, and how much do they know that they are talking about him?
Scene III
Why does Oedipus begin to suspect that he may, indeed, be the murderer of Laius? How does he mean to prove that he did not?
Chorus III
“If prophecies don’t show the way / I will no longer honor . . . Earth’s navel at Delphi.” Unless what?
Scene IV
When Oedipus finally meets the shepherd he called back in the previous scene, what makes it inevitable that he will find out that he is not only the murderer of Laius but also his son? Who figures it out first?
Chorus IV
What does the chorus have to say about Oedipus now?
Final Scene
At the end of the play, is Oedipus merely a man crushed by fate, or could we describe him some other way? Remember the situation at the beginning of the play. What has the hero accomplished by his sacrifice?
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