Oedipus the King

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Oedipus the King Antigone

• Greek Theatre
• Sophocles
• Greek Tragedy
• Oedipus the King
• Antigone

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• Greek Theatre

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Theatre developed from two sources

• 1. The need to imitate
• Fun to pretend to be someone or something else
• As a means of communication - to demonstrate a
  situation/storytelling through words and actions
• 2. The need to worship the gods in order to
  please them

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• In Greece, plays were presented out of doors
• on a flat place, or orchestra, at the base of a
  hill.
• At first, they just used open space, no walls or
  ceiling (little scenery or set). The orchestra
  was usually circular.
• The orchestra was the main performing place for
  actors.
• The auditorium, or theatron, was the hillside
  itself where the audience stood and watched
  plays. Seats were gradually added eventually
  permanent sets were constructed of stone.

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• An alter to the god Dionysus (son of Zeus, god of
  wine revelry), called the themele, was always
  located in the middle of each site.
• Later, in the 5th century B.C., a skene building,
  or scene house was added.
• Provided a place where the actors might dress
  wait before going on stage
• Eventually, they used it to add background
  scenery to the stage, as well as a prop
• Passageways for chorus to enter and exit were
  called parodos

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• Attending plays was considered a civic duty.
• The price of a ticket was two obols, which was
  equal to the wages an unskilled man might earn
  for a day's work.
• There was a special fund that citizens could
  apply for to receive money if they could not
  afford the ticket on their own.

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Sophocles

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Born in Colonus, a small town outside Athens,
Greece in 495 B.C.
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• As a young boy, Sophocles was prized for his
  exceptional abilities in poetry, music, and
  dancing.
• Sophocles began as a performer at age 15, as he
  was chosen to perform at a celebration in Athens.
• He went on to become an established playwright in
  Athens. He was first recognized as a playwright
  for winning 1st prize at an annual theatrical
  competition when he was 28 years old.
• This was significant because he won the prize
  over the predominant playwright in Athens at that
  time

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• Over 62 years, Sophocles wrote over 120 plays, 24
  of which won first prize the others placed in
  second at the competition!
• Only seven exist in their entirety today. They
  are

Ajax 445 B.C. Antigone 440 B.C. Electra
440 B.C. Oedipus Rex 430 B.C. The
Trachiniae 413 B.C. Philoctetes 410
B.C. Oedipus at Colonus 401 B.C.
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Sophocles greatly influenced the technical
aspects of Greek theatre.
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Sophocles changes in Greek tragedies

• 1. Originally, drama was performed on an open-air
  theatre with few props or sets. Sophocles
  expanded using stage machinery (utilized
  technological advances) and sets. He was the
  first to use a crane to miraculously lower and
  take away actors! He also used painted scenery.
• 2. Variations in the types of music sung by the
  chorus

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Sophocles changes continued

• 3. Changed cast size (Introduced a third actor
  and reduced the chorus from 50 people to 12)
• 4. Used more elaborate costumes, including masks
• How do you think Sophocles new ideas and changes
  impacted drama?

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Sophocles Impact

• More complex plot development due to added
  actors, and costumes (allowed them to portray
  more characters)
• Easier to distinguish sets, more developed sets,
  doesnt leave quite as much up to the imagination
  
• Easier to distinguish characters, due to
  costuming and elaborate masks
• Interesting, unexpected events by using machinery
  

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• Sophocles was said to have been especially
  blessed by the Greek gods because he was
  attractive and had exceptional abilities.
• Society had much admiration and deep respect for
  him because of the impact he made on their lives.
  
• All of Athens mourned upon Sophocles death in 406
  B.C.
• They established a shrine called Dexion (The
  Entertainer) for him. Members of society paid
  respect to him annually by offering sacrifices in
  his memory.

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• Greek Tragedy

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• Sophocles, playwright of Oedipus the King, is
  known as one of the most famous tragedians of all
  time.
• Greek tragedies are considered the theatrical
  works produced mainly in Greece during the 5th
  century.
• Greek tragedies deal with universal issues and
  with contemporary politics/topics (themes such as
  war, incest, and murder).
• Often times, tragedies involved the hero changing
  between states of fortune misfortune. The
  heros flaws and errors were pointed out followed
  by the heros recognition of their actions. Ex.
  Oedipus the King

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• Most tragedies were written as connected
  trilogies that carried a similar storyline.
• In ancient Greek times (5th century), tragedies
  were intended to be performed in a theatre before
  a live audience.
• Tragedies were produced and performed during the
  religious festival in honor of the god Dionysus
  (god of fertility). The playwrights competed
  against one another for first prize.

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Greek Tragedy

• A Greek tragedy is structured as follows
• (each genre has a different structure)
• I. Prologue Spoken by one or two characters
  before the Chorus appears.
• The prologue usually gives the background
  information needed to understand the events of
  the play.
• II. Parodos the song sung by the Chorus as it
  makes its entrance
• III. Episodes/Scenes the main action of the play

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Greek Tragedy Cont

• IV. Odes a song (and often dance) that reflects
  on the events of the episodes, and weaves the
  plot into a cohesive whole
• A. Choragos the leader of the chorus who
  often interacts with the characters in the
  scenes

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• B. Chorus the singers/dancers who remark on the
  action react as the playwright hopes the
  audience will
• 1. Strophe The movement of the chorus from
  right to left across the stage
• 2. Antistrophe The reaction to the strophe,
  which moves across the stage from left to right.

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The Chorus

• The chorus was made up of amateur actors.
• In Oedipus Rex, the chorus acts like a character
  as well as a group of citizens.
• They are used to set the mood and heighten the
  dramatic effects. The chorus adds movement,
  song, dance.

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Chorus Cont

• They usually entered just after the opening of
  the play and remained on stage until the end.
• During their part, they periodically stopped
  moving to allow the audience to consider what
  they are saying.

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The chorus usually wore similar masks to unify
them as a group, but actors wore them to
distinguish between various characters. Since all
Greek actors were men, it was necessary to wear
masks in order to portray female characters.
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• Since there were only three parts, masks allowed
  for more characters to be portrayed.
• Each character had a different mask, so the three
  actors had to be highly skilled individuals to
  portray each role appropriately.
• All performers were men, however, anyone could
  attend theatre productions.

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Greek Tragedy Cont

• V. Exodos Sung by the chorus as it makes its
  final exit, which usually offers words of wisdom
  related to the actions and outcome of the play

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Dramatic Irony

• An occasion where the audience knows more than
  the characters in the story do
• Dramatic irony makes an audience feel privileged
  and engaged in the play
• Dramatic irony is used for the first time in
  Sophocles Oedipus Rex

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• Oedipus the King
• Playwright Sophocles
• 60 Second Recap

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Sacrifice

• The oracle warned Oedipus' parents that he would
  grow up to kill the father and sleep with the
  mother. This so shocked them that the baby was
  taken away to be killed from exposure on the
  mountainside.
• The baby's ankles were pierced and tied to keep
  him from moving. "Oedipus" means "swollen ankles"
  in Greek

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Oedipus the King

• Oedipus solved the riddle
• Man he crawls on all fours as a baby, then
  walks on two feet as an adult, and walks with a
  cane in old age. Bested at last, the Sphinx then
  threw herself from her high rock and died.
• As a reward for his victory, Oedipus is crowned
  the new king of Thebes

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Major Characters in Antigone

• Antigone protagonist, daughter of Oedipus
• Creon King of Thebes and Antigones uncle
• Ismene Antigones sister
• Haemon Creons son and Antigones fiancé