Oedipus Rex / Oedipus Tyrannus / Oedipus the King, is a Greek tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC The story starts with Oedipus becoming the king of Thebes while unwittingly fulfilling a prophecy that he would kill his father, Laius (the previous king), and marry his mother, Jocasta (whom Oedipus took as his queen after solving the riddle of the Sphinx). The rest of the play is about Oedipus' search for the murderer of Laius in order to end a plague ravaging Thebes, unaware that the killer he is looking for is none other than himself. At the end of the play, after... Show more Oedipus Rex / Oedipus Tyrannus / Oedipus the King, is a Greek tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC The story starts with Oedipus becoming the king of Thebes while unwittingly fulfilling a prophecy that he would kill his father, Laius (the previous king), and marry his mother, Jocasta (whom Oedipus took as his queen after solving the riddle of the Sphinx). The rest of the play is about Oedipus' search for the murderer of Laius in order to end a plague ravaging Thebes, unaware that the killer he is looking for is none other than himself. At the end of the play, after the truth finally comes to light, Jocasta hangs herself while Oedipus, horrified at his patricide and incest, proceeds to gouge out his own eyes in despair. Show less
Oedipus Rex / Oedipus Tyrannus / Oedipus the King, is a Greek tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC The story starts with Oedipus becoming the king of Thebes while unwittingly fulfilling a prophecy that he would kill his father, Laius (the previous king), and marry his mother, Jocasta (whom Oedipus took as his queen after solving the riddle of the Sphinx). The rest of the play is about Oedipus' search for the murderer of Laius in order to end a plague ravaging Thebes, unaware that the killer he is looking for is none other than himself. At the end of the play, after the truth finally comes to light, Jocasta hangs herself while Oedipus, horrified at his patricide and incest, proceeds to gouge out his own eyes in despair.
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