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Oedipus and Thebes, Ch 18, Pp. 454-481 Too Much of a Good Thing

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Oedipus and Thebes, Ch 18, Pp. 454-481 Too Much of a Good Thing Oedipus and Thebes, Ch 18, pp. 454-481 Too much of a good thing Thebes, in Boeotia (Greek 'boes' = 'cattle') one foundation myth of Thebes: p.454-5 Cadmus searches for Europa 'her father gave orders to Cadmus, her brother and warned him not to return until he had found the girl, lest he be banished forever' (Ovid, Met.) Delphic Oracle: "an ownerless heifer (cow) will meet you, one never yoked to a plow, Follow wherever she goes, and where she lies down in a meadow, there you must build your walls and name the region Boeotia," Cadmus vs Dragon: (compare Marduk vs. Tiamat, p. 100-102) p. 458 Athena: "'what, son of Agenor, still viewing the snake you have killed? Still alive in the form of a serpent, you too will become an object of the wondering gazes of men'. ... She told him to dig up a furrow and bury the teeth of the dragon as a seed for the new generation ....at last a whole army had grown" -> Thebans as ‘sown men’ ("Sparti", unrelated to the Greek city of Sparta) pp.458 Cadmus + Harmonia, daughter of Aphrodite and Ares wedding gift from Aphrodite: necklace made by Hephaestus! (-> brings doom to whoever possesses it) children: Semele (mother of Dionysus, killed by lightning) Agave (mother of Pentheus, whom she tore to pieces) Ino (took care of baby Dionysus-> revenge of Hera -> Ino driven mad and killed her own children and jumped off a cliff into the sea) Autonoe (her son Actaeon was killed by his own dogs after he saw Artemis) Cadmus and Harmonia become serpents in their old age. Another foundation myth of Thebes Twins Amphion and Zethus: p.460 acieve vengeance for their mother Antiope* vs. their wicked aunt Dirce Amphion -uses his lyre to build walls of Thebes (has seven gates) Amphion + Niobe -> 14 children all killed by Artemis see p. 218) *This Antiope (mother of Amphion and Zethus) is no relation to the Amazon Antiope in the Theseus story The Rise and Fall of Oedipus Oedipus King of Thebes pp.462-70 Laius + Jocasta -> Oedipus Oracle to Laius: will be killed by his son p.463 Laius ‘exposes’ son to die, maims his feet Theban shepherd hands Oedipus to a man of Corinth King and Queen of Corinth adopt him, name him: ‘Oedi-pous’: Gk.: ‘swollen-foot’ Oedipus seeks information about his origins, at Delphi: Oracle to Oedipus: ‘will kill his father and marry his mother’ Oedipus decides not to return home; goes to ... Thebes, kills unknown traveller on the way Thebes in crisis: *Sphinx is terrorizing city *king Laius has been killed by bandits on way to Delphi *Creon, temporary ruler, promises kingship and marriage with queen Jocasta to whoever rids Thebes of Sphinx Riddle of Sphinx: answer: ‘a human’ Oedipus establishes himself as hero by solving the riddle by killing the Sphinx Homer (using a different name, Epicaste, for Oedipusl mother Jocasta): "She all unknowing, committeed a great and terrible crime, marriage to her own son." 5th Cent. BCE Athenian tragic plays about Thebes: Sophocles' Tragedy Oedipus the King p.464 Thebes in crisis: plague caused by unsolved murder of king Laius king Oedipus promises to solve ... 'If any of you knows by whom your king Laius the son of Labdacus was slain I order him to tell me all he knows." Oedipus discovers too much: p.467 (1) he himself is the murderer of Laius (2) Laius is his father (3) Therefore he is married to his mother "where will I find the wife who is no wife? he cried, "the womb twice plowed, twice harvested of me at first, then later of my children?" Suicide of Jocasta, self-blinding of Oedipus "he ripped the golden pins from off her robe, raised them on high, and plunged them in his eyes" anagnorisis = recognition of Oedipus' true identity peripeteia = "turning around" = reversal of fortune The next generation of Theban Conflict Tragedies of The Seven Against Thebes pp.470-6 Eteocles vs. Polynices (sons of Oedipus, cursed) 'by your own brother's hand your doom will come, his from him whom he banished This is my curse. To bring it all to pass I invoke Hell's awful dark to call you home. I summon the Furies, worshiped in this spot, and with them Warfare, who stirred up your hate. Now you have heard me, go. Tell all the Thebans, tell all your loyal allies, "this is the legacy that Oedipus is leaving to his sons." Eteocles won’t share kingship, expels Polynices from Thebes Polynices returns with army led by seven foreign heroes The prophet Amphiaraus was reluctant to join on Polynices' side, but his wife Eriphyle made him go because she had been bribed by the gift of Harmonia's necklace/ Both Polynices and Eteocles killed each other in single combat Sophocles, Antigone p.476-8 Oedipus’ daughter Antigone imprisoned as she seeks to bury ‘traitor’ brother (family v state), King Creon forbids the honor of burial; Antigone insists that the traditions of burial take precedence over his rule. -- Did you know that my decreed forbad the deed? --Like everyone else, I knew. ,,, --But still you dared to flout the city's law? --I did indeed. That law was not prescribed by Zeus, nor are such rules laid down for us by Justice, who works with even those dark gods below. I cannot think your law could have such force that you, mere man, could negate the unwritten inviolable statutes of the gods. Creon: This woman knew quite well what she was doing then, when she broke the law's express command. .... Antigone: The citizens of Thebes would all support me if fear did not put fetters on their tongues. But tyrants, who enjoy so many blessings can do or say whatever they may please. Imprisoned by Creon, Antigone commits suicide Scroll down for sample questions Sample questions 1. Europa was carried off by a. Zeus disguised as a shower of gold b. Zeus disguised as Diana c. Zeus disguised as a swan d. Zeus disguised as a bull e. Apollo disguised as a maiden 2. Which of the following was the first founder of Thebes a. Apollo b. Athenac. Cadmus d. Laius e. Oedipus 3. According to myth, the five leading families of Thebes were descended from a. Niobe b. Europac. Dirce d. 'The Sparti' born from a dragon's teethe. 'The Ova', born from swan's eggs 4. Amphion was known for being especially talented because a. he visited the underworld and returned safely b. he was a skilled engineer and architect c. he was a successful healer d. the sound of his lyre drew stones to form the walls of Thebes e. he could find lost children 5. Laius was cursed because a. during his exile he abused the hospitality of Pelopsb. he said he was a better father than Zeus c. he carried out a deceptive sacrifice to the gods d. he refused Hera's advances e. he boasted that he was better at prophecy than Apollo 6. Where did Oedipus kill his father? a. Corinth b. in Apollo's temple at Delphi c. in the palace at Thebes d. on the road from Delphi to Thebes e. on the Acropolis at Athens 7. The two sons of Oedipus who killed each other in battle were a. Antigone and Ismene b. Cadmus and Harmonia c. Amphion and Zethus d. Eteocles and Polynicese. Creon and Haemon 8. Which hero at first did not want to go along with the expedition of the Seven Against Thebes? a. Polynices b. Eteocles c. Tydeus d. Eriphyle e. Amphiaraus 9. What bribe influenced the wife of the hero mentioned in the previous question to convince her husband to join the expedition of the Seven Against Thebes? a. the Golden Fleece b. the gorgon's head c. winged sandals d. the necklace of Harmonia e. the brooch (pin) of Jocasta 10. Who is known as a second founder of Thebes? a. Pentheus b. Actaeon c. Agave d. Amphion e. Laius 11. What mythological figure was famous for introducing the alphabet into Greek culture? a. Cadmus b. Athena c. Odysseus d. Achilles e. Jason 12. "This woman knew quite well what she was doing then, when she broke the law's express command." What did the woman do? a. had sex outside of marriage b. poisoned her husband c. made arrangements to bury her brother d. abandoned her infant child e. polluted the spring of Artemis 13. Antigone is best known for a. defying Creon's order and performing funeral rites for her brother Polynices b. disguising herself as a man and joining the expedition of the Seven Against Thebes c. attacking Oedipus with her pin d. solving the riddle of the Sphinx e. inventing the alphabet 14. 'by your own brother's hand your doom will come, his from him whom he banished This is my curse." Who is speaking? a. the sphinx b. Dionysus c. the Cretan bull d. Heracles e. Oedipus 15. The riddle "What is it that has only one name that is four-footed, two-footed and three-footed?" was asked of the Thebans by a. Oedipus b. the Sphinx c. Dirce d. Jocasta e. Dionysus 16. Which of the following is not one of the children of Oedipus? a. Antigone b. Polynicesc. Jocasta d. Eteocles e. Ismene 17. The twin sons of Antiope who returned to avenge their mother were a. Polynices and Eteocles b. Romulus and Remus c. Amphion and Zethus d. Atreus and Thyestes e. Castor and Pollux 18.
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