Oedipus Plot Diagram
By: Ayla MacKinnon
Catastrophe
“God bless you for it, Creon and may God guard you better on your road that he did me!”
Oedipus asks Creon to banish him. Creon being the King agreed to his desire, for this Oedipus thanks Creon. Oedipus can spend the rest of his life outside Thebes reflecting on his sins.
Falling Action
1. “Shortest to hear and tell--our glorious queen Jocasta’s dead”
2. “He struck his eyeballs again and yet again with the brooches. And the bleeding eyeballs gushed”
1. Jocasta the beloved queen, and wife hung herself in her chambers after realizing that her husband is her son. She could not handle the pain of living with that dark secret.
2. Oedipus blinded himself with Jocasta’s brooches. This was a sign of weakness because he did not have the strength to take his own life like his wife did, but also a sign of his strength because now that he can’t see he is not blind. He is not blind to what he has done. He will have to live with his actions, live with only his inward gaze. This was a sense of justice, this was a way of punishing himself.
Anagnorisis
“Light of the sun, let me look upon you no more after today!”
Moment of recognition. Oedipus realizes that his wife is his mother, he killed his father and the prophecy has come true. Light symbolizes happiness and clarity. He does not feel as though he should be happy after what he has done.
Peripeteia -The Messenger
“Good news, lady. Good for your house and for your husband”
The messenger is bringing the news of his father’s death, which he perceives as good news. This is misleading because it actually is only bad news because the father that the messenger is talking about is not biological towards Oedipus therefore it has nothing to do with the riddle coming true.
Perpeteia -The Herdsman
“No— not such that I could quickly call to mind”
Peripeteia -Creon
The messenger lies to Oedipus when confronted about if he recognizes the messenger. He lied to his king for he knew exactly who the man was, since he was the one who he gave the king and queens child to so many years ago, that would be a face you would never forget.
“King Phoebus in plain words commanded us to drive out a pollution from our land, pollution grown ingrained within the land; drive it out, said the God, not cherish it “
This passage means that someone in the land has a crime that they haven’t been punished for therefore everyone is suffering. This is ironic because the person that Creon is talking about is the King himself, the person that he is now informing about the troubles of their kingdom. The word “us” implies both creon and Oedipus to work together to solve the riddle, which is misleading because in the future Oedipus banishes Creon. This line foreshadows that the play will be about finding this criminal.
Peripeteia -Teiresias
“In name he is a stranger among citizens but soon he will be shown to be a citizen true native Theban, and he’ll have no joy.”
Exposition
Teiresias is talking to Oedipus giving him a piece of the riddle to solve. This line foreshadows that Oedipus will crack the riddle before the end of the day. The riddle of who is biological parents are.
“I did not think it fit that I should hear of this from a messenger but came myself—I Oedipus whom all men call the great”
This line introduces the plays tragic hero’s characteristics. By Oedipus referring to himself as the man whom all call Great that introduces his ego and pride, holds himself in high regards and think himself as a great ruler to his people.