The Oedipus Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone - Paperback

by F. Storr (Translator), Sophocles (Author)

The Oedipus Plays of Sophocles:
Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone

Oedipus the King

Oedipus the King, also known by its Latin title Oedipus Rex, is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed about 429 BC. It was the second in order of Sophocles's composition of his three Theban Plays dealing with Oedipus. Thematically, however, it was the first in the plays' historical chronology, followed by Oedipus at Colonus and then Antigone.

Oedipus the King tells the story of Oedipus, a man who becomes the king of Thebes, whilst in the process unwittingly fulfilling a prophecy that he would kill his father Laius and marry his mother Jocasta.

The play is an example of classic tragedy, putting emphasis upon how Oedipus's own faults contribute to his downfall (as opposed to the portrayal of fate as the sole cause). Over the centuries, Oedipus the King has come to be regarded by many as the masterpiece of Greek tragedy.

Oedipus at Colonus

This is the second installment in Sophocles's Theban Plays that chronicles the tragic fates of Oedipus and his family. After fulfilling the prophecy that predicted he would kill his father and marry his mother, Oedipus blinds himself and leaves Thebes, to wander in the wilderness accompanied by his daughters Antigone and Ismene.

Antigone

This is the final installment in Sophocles's Theban Plays, following Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus. Oedipus's daughter Antigone deliberately breaks the laws of Thebes when she buries her brother's body and is sentenced to death. She clashes with Creon, the King of Thebes, over what constitutes justice and morality: the laws of the state or the laws of the individual.

Author Biography

Sophocles
(c. 497/6 BC - winter 406/5 BC)

Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides. According to the Suda, a 10th century encyclopedia, Sophocles wrote 123 plays during the course of his life, but only seven have survived in a complete form: Ajax, Antigone, The Women of Trachis, Oedipus the King, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus. For almost 50 years, Sophocles was the most-fêted playwright in the dramatic competitions of the city-state of Athens that took place during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia. He competed in around 30 competitions, won perhaps 24, and was never judged lower than second place. Aeschylus won 14 competitions, and was sometimes defeated by Sophocles, while Euripides won only 4 competitions.