Structure of Sophocles' Oedipus the King

***Prologue: Oedipus addresses Suppliants,

accepts plea of the Priest,

explains the mission he has has sent Creon on.

Creon reports the Delphic Oracle’s revelation.

***Parodos: Chorus’ lament, and prayer to various Gods.

***Episode I: Oedipus’ exhortation and oath/curse

Agon between Tiresias and Oedipus (Oedipus’ interrogation of Tiresias).

***Ode I:

***Episode II: Agon between Creon and Oedipus

a) Jocasta mediates this conflict, then

b) seeks to ally Oedipus’ anxiety

c) by dismissing Tiresias’ prophecy

d) by dismissing prophecy in general

e) by adducing a case in point (reporting a particular history).

f) Oedipus (however) is disturbed by Jocasta’s proof.

g) Oedipus & Jocasta resolve to call the old servant for interrogation.

***Ode II:

***Episode III:

a) Jocasta invokes the aid of Apollo.

b) Messenger brings news from Corinth:

c) King Polybdos has died (of natural causes),

d) and Oedipus is called back to Corinth to be king there.

e) Oedipus is still reluctant to return (since his mother is still alive).

f) Messenger seeks to allay his fears by offering a further revelation (Oedipusis not the son of Polybdos & Meropê.

g) Oedipus wants confirmation from the old shepherd.

h) Jocasta realizes the truth, and begs Oedipus to desist.

I) Oedipus persists.

***Ode III:

***Episode IV: Brief agon between Oedipus and the Old Shepherd(Oedipus interrogates the Old Shepherd).

Oedipus realizes the truth,

rushes into the palace.

***Ode IV: "O the generations of men / the dying generations...." [Fagles] /"Alas for the seed of men...." [Fitzgerald].

***Exodos:

(Second Messenger enters from palace, reports to Choragos)

a) the death of Jocasta and

b) Oedipus’ self-blinding..

c) Oedipus enters: dialogue with Choragos: lament & petition.

d) Creon enters: dialogue with Oedipus.

e) Oedipus’ repents his treatment of Creon; Creon accepts this.

f) Oedipus requests to see daughters; Creon agrees.

g) Antigone & Ismene enter. [They speak no lines.] Oedipus addresses them

h) Mini-agon with Creon: Oedipus relents and is led away.

I) Choragos: "People of Thebes...look upon Oedipus...."

_________________________________________________

Notes on terminology

***Prologue (prologos): the initial speech or address in a Greek tragedy. Ithas the function of setting forth the situation that gives rise to the subsequentaction of the play.

In modern terms: it accomplishes the exposition (by summarizing the morbidcondition that has befallen Thebes) and introduces the precipitating incident(Apollo's diagnosis, through the Delphic Oracle, that this sickness is due to acorruption within the city, in the person of the murderer of its former king,and his prognosis that this will continue until the murderer is eliminated byexpulsion or death).

***The prologue is followed by the parados, the entry of the Chorus (cf. ourderived term "parade").

***The Chorus (choros) is a group, often identified as the citizens of the citywhere the action takes place. It can be a silent witness to the dialogues thattake place between the characters, but periodically it will perform a dance

that it accompanies with words -- a stasimon or ode (odos). Odes serve topunctuate the action into distinct episodes, by commenting on what has justhappened -- expressing thoughts and feelings it has aroused in the witnesses.

While the characters in tragedy came to be played by professional actors, themembers of the chorus were amateurs, often stemming from the tribe of theplaywright.

***The personage who speaks on behalf of the Chorus, in dialogues, is theChoragos, in some translations (e.g., that of Fagles) referred to as Leader.

***The term agon means "struggle" (cf. our derived term "agony"), and inGreek tragedy refers to an episode in which two or more characters come intoconflict, when one character tries to extract information from another who isat pains to withhold it (e.g., the Oedipus's interrogation of Tiresias.

***An episode (episodos), in Greek tragedy, is the part of the play betweentwo choric songs. Since it is the equivalent to a unit of developed situation inmodern theater, it is sometimes designated as a "scene," even though theGreek word skenos refers to a physical part of the theater itself.

***The exodos is the part of a Greek drama that follows the last song of theChorus. (Compare the English word exodus, taken directly from Latin,meaning "departure." At the end of the exodos, in fact, the actors and chorusleave the playing area (orchestra).