Oedipus the King
Oedipus being shown in an updated version is a very effective and understandable way to present it to audiences. The play that was viewed in class was a good adaptation of the original play. Although modern versions of Oedipus are far different today than the way they were performed during Sophocles’s time, I think he would be impressed with the way that modern versions of his play are performed.
The reason I think that the play works so well in an updated version is the fact that most people know the story before viewing it. The play uses tragic irony to keep the audience interested. This story could have been written in any time period and still been able to engage the audience. This is exactly why the play has been around for so long. The story is so good that no matter what way you present it will work because the foundation of the story works so well.
The thing I think that is mostly gained from an updated version is the technology and the overall appeal to the viewer. I really don’t think that I would have enjoyed watching plays in the original Greek theatre because of the way it was. I am probably kind of bias because of the technologies that we have today. We are very spoiled. They would have been hard to understand and uncomfortable to watch. This modern day version of the play works very well. It is easy to understand and easy to follow. The characters appearances were portrayed just as they would be if could not see the characters at all. Oedipus is portrayed as a good looking strong young man that looks like a king. His wife/mother Jocasta looks much older than Oedipus which is very important because this is one of the main plot lines in the play. In ancient versions, a person watching the play would not be able to distinguish the different characters. The characters would just have different kinds of masks to portray the different characters. That is why I think the use of the human characters playing each role works much better than the traditional way the Greek theatre was viewed.
The most important thing that is being lost from showing Oedipus in an updated version is the classic way that the ancient Greek theatre used to present their plays.
Both Niccol’s “The Truman Show” and Sophocles’ Oedipus the King come from vastly different time periods. While Niccol’s “The Truman Show” dates back to 1998, Sophocles’ Oedipus the King dates back to 430 B.C. Despite the fact that Oedipus the King and The Truman Show come from two different time periods, they share numerous similarities including dramatic irony, blindness, and the theme of fate to convey that although times change, the structure for plays remain similar to each other.
The film is fairly close to that of the play. The main reason for the differences between the movie, "Oedipus Rex" and the play "Oedipus the King" are mainly because of the simple fact that you are able to actually see it happening in the movie. Also because they had to cut down the dialogue for the movie because the play’s dialogue was very long, and if they hadn’t have shortened it, then it would have been very long. The play, of course, had much more dialogue that that of the movie.
Sophocles style of plot structure was usually to begin in media res. This is particularly true of Oedipus Tyrannus. When the reader or audience is first introduced to the main character, Oedipus is already a grown man and king of his country. In the first few lines, talk of a "fiery plague ravaging the city" is mentioned (Sopochles 3). In the very early stages of the play the reader begins to feel pity for Oedipus and recognizes his suffering. The time span is also another important factor to consider when analyzing the plot structure. The play in its entirety takes place within a one to two day period. The flashback scenes into Oedipus' childhood give the audience a better sense of the big picture, but can be misleading when focusing on the time aspect element.
Oedipus becomes a more admirable character by the end of the play then during the prologue of the play. This is because his history is reveled and his fate seems to be less of his fault and more of something that was doomed to happen to him, also by his drive to help the city of Thebes shows that he cares for the city and his ability to accept his fate but to try and help others from suffering.
Blindness in the play demonstrates how although Oedipus has the ability to see, he chooses not to in order to hide himself from the harsh truths of reality. As demonstrated by Oedipus, it is much easier to create a fake reality then face the harsh reality of life. Tiresias demonstrates how those who are blind have the capability to see the truth because they are not impaired by sight and the fake realities that sight can create. Blindness in the play demonstrates that without the distractions that vision causes, there would not be as many lies and destruction due to this imparity. In the play Oedipus has trouble facing the truth because he is distracted by life while Tiresias, who is blind, is able to see the truth because it is the only thing he can see.
The play "Oedipus Rex" is a very full and lively one to say the least. Everything a reader could ask for is included in this play. There is excitement, suspense, happiness, sorrow, and much more. Truth is the main theme of the play. Oedipus cannot accept the truth as it comes to him or even where it comes from. He is blinded in his own life, trying to ignore the truth of his life. Oedipus will find out that truth is rock solid. The story is mainly about a young man named Oedipus who is trying to find out more knowledge than he can handle. The story starts off by telling us that Oedipus has seen his moira, his fate, and finds out that in the future he will end up killing his father and marrying his mother. Thinking that his mother and father were Polybos and Merope, the only parents he knew, he ran away from home and went far away so he could change his fate and not end up harming his family. Oedipus will later find out that he cannot change fate because he has no control over it, only the God's can control what happens. Oedipus is a very healthy person with a strong willed mind who will never give up until he gets what he wants. Unfortunately, in this story these will not be good trait to have.
Aristotle defined a tragic story as the adventure of a good man who reaches his ultimate downfall because he pushed his greatest quality too far. Sophocles advocates the definition in the tragic play Oedipus Rex. He develops the play with the great polarities of fame and shame, sight and blindness, and ignorance and insight to show Oedipus’ experiences in search for knowledge about his identity. Through his search, Oedipus pushes his quest for truth too far and ultimately reaches his doom. Oedipus’ reliance on his intellect is his greatest strength and ultimate downfall.
Sophocles' Oedipus the King as Nothing More Than a Detective Story. The play “Oedipus the King” is a Greek tragedy written by Sophocles in the early days of antiquity and is based upon an ancient story in Greek mythology. It was written around a time when Rome was in power. and Athens was the centre of the world.
In Ancient Greece theater was a necessary part of Greek culture; it was almost law that everyone from every city-state had to go watch the public performances. Oedipus itself is a play, written by Sophocles, which means that all the Greeks knew of his story and through Sophocles’ plays the Greek theater continued to develop. During the Greek festivals, that had the performances of the plays, there would actually be sacrifices to the gods because each theater was dedicated to a god. Although this is one form of a ritual, Oedipus himself is like a sacrifice because he was fated from the beginning to be punished in order to save Thebes from its plague. “Upon the murderer I invoke this curse- whether he is one man and all unknown, or one of many- may he wear out his life in misery to miserable doom! On you I lay my charge to fulfill all this for me, for the God, and for this land of ours destroyed and blighted, by the God forsaken.” (Oedipus Rex 246-249) During the play, there is a plague on Thebes which can only be stopped by killing the murderer of the previous king; this quote is Oedipus unknowingly cursing himself and being a sacrifice for the peace of Thebes.
Oedipus has a "tragic flaw" that leads to his demise, and efforts to attribute one to him to him seem forced . In his quest to uncover the truth and rid Thebes of the plague, he exhibits all the heroic qualities that made him the savior of Thebes during the Sphinx's reign of terror. Oedipus as a victim of a fate he could not control. He had enormous control over the events of his "destiny" through the numerous decisions he makes. He chooses to believe the oracle and leave Corinth.
Let us first discuss the mirror stage, with application to Oedipus the man. Within the mirror stage there are five phases. The first of which is the "fragmented body stage." While existing in this stage man is unaware of himself. In this dark, 'lost' state man is unaware of his surroundings as well as himself as a being. Oedipus prior to the opening of the play lives his entire life in this "fragmented" state; he is completely unaware of himself and his actions on his society. In this state Oedipus is caught up in the pomp of his title. The role of King carries an elevated perception of an idealized life (Lee 19).
A good plot in Aristotle view is a complex one. `Oedipus The King" can be as complex as it gets, with so many twists and turns it can never be seen as simple. Some ways of gaining this complexity Aristotle argues is by making sure the play contains some sort of reversal ("change from one state of affairs to its exact opposite") with some sort of recognition ("a change from ignorance to knowledge") taking place as the story continues.
The original Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet, has been redone many times before, but some versions of it are more interesting. The Baz Luhrmann version of the play makes it way more dramatic than the original Shakespeare play already was. The 1996 movie also makes the movie more funny and playful in the parts that were already funny in the play. The movie basically made everything in the play amplified. The modern interpretation of Romeo and Juliet by the director Baz Luhrmann affects the original story in many ways.
In Oedipus Rex the main characters are Oedipus, Jocasta, Tiresias and Creon. Oedipus is the protagonist and the king of Thebes. Jocasta is the mother and wife of Oedipus. Tiresias is a blind clairvoyant. Creon is Oedipus's brother-in-law.
What is the Role of the Chorus in Oedipus the King? In answering this question, I will look at the question in two ways. Firstly, I will look at the role of the chorus objectively, examining the basic role of the chorus in the play, and looking at the role of the Chorus as Sophocles would have intended the role of the Chorus to be understood. However, I will then look at how I think the Greek audience would have perceived the role of the Chorus and then how the role of the Chorus is perceived today in the 20th century and examine the key differences in the two different sets of perceptions. Finally, I will look at the importance of the role of the Chorus to a 20th century audience and a Greek audience.