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The Oedipus StoryQuoted fromhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus
(accessed: 1st September 2012)
Oidpousmeaning "swollen foot") was a mythical Greek king of
Thebes. He fulfilled aprophecy that said he would kill his father
and marry his mother, and thereby broughtdisaster on his city and
family. This legend has been retold in many versions, and was
used by Sigmund Freud to name the Oedipus complex.
There are many different versions of the legend of Oedipus due
to its oral tradition.Significant variations on the legend of
Oedipus are mentioned in fragments by severalancient Greek poets
including Homer, Hesiod, Pindar, Aeschylus and Euripides.
However,the most popular version of the legend comes from the set
of Theban plays by Sophocles:
Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone.Oedipus was
the son of Laius and Jocasta, king and queen of Thebes.After having
been married some time without children, Laius consulted the Oracle
of Apollo
at Delphi. The Oracle prophesied that any son born to Laius
would kill him. In an attemptto prevent this prophecy's
fulfillment, when Jocasta indeed bore a son, Laius had hisankles
pinned together so that he could not crawl; Jocasta then gave the
boy to a servantto abandon ("expose") on the nearby mountain.
However, rather than leave the child to dieof exposure, as Laius
intended, the sympathetic servant passed the baby onto a
shepherdfrom Corinth and then to another shepherd.
Oedipus the infant eventually came to the house of Polybus, king
of Corinth and hisqueen, Merope, who adopted him as they were
without children of their own. LittleOedipus/Oidipous was named
after the swelling from the injuries to his feet and ankles.The
word "oedema" (British English) or "edema" (American English) is
from this same
Greek word for swelling: , or oedma.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_mythologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Thebes_(Boeotia)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polybus_(King_of_Corinth)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polybus_(King_of_Corinth)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delphihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delphihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle_of_Apollohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oracle_of_Apollohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Thebes_(Boeotia)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Thebes_(Boeotia)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jocastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jocastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laiushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laiushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigone_(Sophocles)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigone_(Sophocles)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_at_Colonushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_at_Colonushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_the_Kinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_the_Kinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Theban_playshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Theban_playshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euripideshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euripideshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeschylushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeschylushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pindarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pindarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesiodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesiodhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_complexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus_complexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigmund_Freudhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigmund_Freudhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Thebes_(Boeotia)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Thebes_(Boeotia)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_mythologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_mythologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IngresOdipusAndSphinx.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oedipus
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After many years of being son of the king and queen of Corinth,
Oedipus was told by adrunk that he had in fact been adopted by
them. Oedipus confronted his parents with thenews, but they denied
every word. Oedipus sent word for the same Oracle in Delphi
hisbirth parents consulted. The Oracle did not tell him he was son
of the king and queen ofThebes, but instead informed him he was
destined to murder his father and marry hismother. In his attempt
to avoid the fate predicted by the Oracle, he decided to not
return
home to Corinth. Oedipus decided to travel all the way to
Thebes, as it was near Delphi.As Oedipus traveled, he came to
Davlia, where three roads crossed each other. There heencountered a
chariot driven by his birth-father, King Laius. They fought over
who had theright to go first and Oedipus killed Laius in self
defense, unwittingly fulfilling part of theprophecy. The only
witness of the King's death was a slave who fled from a caravan
ofslaves also traveling on the road at the time.
Continuing his journey to Thebes, Oedipus encountered a Sphinx,
who would stop alltravelers to Thebes and ask them a riddle. If the
travelers were unable to answer hercorrectly, they would be killed
and eaten; if they were successful, they would be free tocontinue
on their journey. The riddle was: "What walks on four feet in the
morning, two inthe afternoon and three at night?". Oedipus
answered: "Man: as an infant, he crawls on allfours; as an adult,
he walks on two legs and; in old age, he uses a 'walking' stick".
Oedipuswas the first to answer the riddle correctly and, having
heard Oedipus' answer, the Sphinxwas astounded and inexplicably
killed herself by throwing herself into the sea, freeingThebes from
her harsh rule.
The people of Thebes gratefully appointed Oedipus as their king
and gave him the recentlywidowed Queen Jocasta's hand in marriage.
The marriage of Oedipus to Jocasta fulfilledthe rest of the
prophecy. Oedipus and Jocasta had four children: two sons, Eteocles
andPolynices (see Seven Against Thebes), and two daughters,
Antigone and Ismene.
Many years after the marriage of Oedipus and Jocasta, a plague
of infertility struck the cityof Thebes; crops no longer grew on
the fields and women did not bear children. Oedipus,in his hubris,
asserted that he would end the pestilence. He sent Creon, Jocasta's
brother,to the Oracle at Delphi, seeking guidance. When Creon
returned, Oedipus heard that themurderer of the former King Laius
must be found and either be killed or exiled. Creon alsosuggested
that they try to find the blind prophet, Tiresias. In a search for
the identity of thekiller, Oedipus followed Creon's suggestion and
sent for Tiresias, who warned him not toseek Laius' killer. In a
heated exchange, Tiresias was provoked into exposing Oedipushimself
as the killer, and the fact that Oedipus was living in shame
because he did notknow who his true parents were. Oedipus angrily
blamed Creon for the false accusations,and the two proceeded to
argue fervently. Jocasta entered and tried to calm Oedipus by
telling him the story of her first-born son and his supposed
death. Oedipus becamenervous as he realized that he may have
murdered Laius and so brought about theplague. Suddenly, a
messenger arrived from Corinth with the news that King Polybus
haddied. Oedipus was relieved concerning the prophecy for it could
no longer be fulfilled ifPolybus, whom he considered his birth
father, was now dead.
Still, he knew that his mother was still alive and refused to
attend the funeral at Corinth. Toease the tension, the messenger
then said that Oedipus was, in fact, adopted. Jocasta,finally
realizing that he was her son, begged him to stop his search for
Laius' murderer.Oedipus misunderstood the motivation of her pleas,
thinking that she was ashamed of himbecause he might have been born
of a slave. Jocasta then went into the palace where shehanged
herself. Oedipus sought verification of the messenger's story from
the very sameherdsman who was supposed to have left Oedipus to die
as a baby. From the herdsman,Oedipus learned that the infant raised
as the adopted son of Polybus and Merope was the
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiresiashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyniceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Against_Thebeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eteocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davliahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiresiashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiresiashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubrishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubrishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Against_Thebeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Against_Thebeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyniceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyniceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eteocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eteocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laiushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laiushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davliahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davlia
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son of Laius and Jocasta. Thus, Oedipus finally realized in
great agony that so many yearsago, at the place where the three
roads met, he had killed his own father, King Laius,
andsubsequently married his mother, Jocasta.
Events after the revelation depend on the source. In Sophocles'
plays, Oedipus went insearch of Jocasta and found she had killed
herself. Using the pin from a brooch he took off
Jocasta's gown, Oedipus stabbed his own eyes out, and was then
exiled. His daughterAntigone acted as his guide as he wandered
blindly through the country, finally perishingat Colonus after
being placed under the protection of Athens by King Theseus.
However, inEuripides' plays on the subject, Jocasta did not kill
herself upon learning of Oedipus' birth,and Oedipus was blinded by
a servant of Laius. The blinding of Oedipus does not appearin
sources earlier than Aeschylus. Some older sources of the myth,
including Homer, statethat Oedipus continued to rule Thebes after
the revelations and after Jocasta's death.Oedipus' two sons,
Eteocles and Polynices, arranged to share the kingdom, each
takingan alternating one-year reign. However, Eteocles refused to
cede his throne after his yearas king. Polynices brought in an army
to oust Eteocles from his position and a battleensued. At the end
of the battle the brothers killed each other after which
Jocasta'sbrother, Creon, took the throne. He decided that Polynices
was a "traitor," and should notbe given burial rites. Defying this
edict, Antigone attempted to bury her brother. InSophocles'
Antigone, Creon had her buried in a rock cavern for defying him,
whereuponshe hanged herself. However, in Euripides' lost version of
the story, it appears thatAntigone survives.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyniceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyniceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eteocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eteocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeschylushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeschylushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euripideshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euripideshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theseushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theseushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophocleshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laiushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laius
