INTROUCTON OF SOPHOCLES

Sophocles wrote over 120 plays during the course of his life, but only seven
have survived in a complete form: Ajax, Antigone, Women of Trachis, Oedipus
Rex, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus. For almost 50 years, Sophocles was the most
celebrated playwright in the dramatic competitions of the city-state of Athens that took place
during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia. He competed in 30 competitions,
won 24, and was never judged lower than second place. Aeschylus won 13 competitions, and
was sometimes defeated by Sophocles, while Euripides won four competitions. Among
Sophocles' earliest innovations was the addition of a third actor, which further reduced the role
of the chorus and created greater opportunity for character development and conflict between
characters. Aeschylus, who dominated Athenianplaywriting during Sophocles' early career,
followed suit and adopted the third character into his own work towards the end of his
life. Aristotle credits Sophocles with the introduction of skenographia, or scenery-painting. It
was not until after the death of the old master Aeschylus in 456 BC that Sophocles became the
pre-eminent playwright in Athens.
Thereafter, Sophocles emerged victorious in dramatic competitions at
18 Dionysia and 6 Lenaia festivals. In addition to innovations in dramatic structure, Sophocles'
work is also known for its deeper development of characters than earlier playwrights. His
reputation was such that foreign rulers invited him to attend their courts, although unlike
Aeschylus who died in Sicily, or Euripides who spent time in Macedon, Sophocles never
accepted any of these invitations. Aristotle used Sophocles' Oedipus Rex in his Poetics (c. 335
BC) as an example of the highest achievement in tragedy, which suggests the high esteem in
which his work was held by later Greeks. Only two of the seven surviving plays can be dated
securely: Philoctetes (409 BC) and Oedipus at Colonus.
Sophocles is a greatest master of irony of all times. in his plays irony has a
very pervasive and subtle roles all at all levels and at every stage. In no play is Sophocles
mastery over irony is shown to better advantage then in Oedipus Rex. In this play almost every
line that is spoken by Oedipus as well as many of the lines spoken by the other characters is
ironical. The zealous king strives to discovered the murderer of Laious, the previous king, by a
searching process every stage of which brings near the fact, unknown to him, that he is a
murderer of his own father and the husband of his mother. the efforts of Jocasta and the
messenger to console the king only make him the more miserable by making him realise that the
king and queen of Corinth, whom he left in order to escape the heinous crimes predicted by the
Oracle, were in reality his foster parents.

Many aspects of the Modern construction of tragedy owe their origin to

Sophocles. it was he who made one important character the central figure and the focus of
attention in every tragedy as Aristotle said it was Sophocles who constructed his plots in such a
way as to make reversal and recognition their integral part. The characteristic inspired by the
tragedy is of Sophocles is that of respect for human life and value and pity for those who fall a
victim to their errors or the misfortune. The balance between character and it is very well
maintained by Sophocles.
INTRODUCTION OF PLAY
Oedipus Rex is the story of a nobleman who seeks knowledge that in the
end destroys him. His greatness is measured in part by the fact that the gods have prophesied his
fate: the gods do not take interest in insignificant men. Before the action of the play begins,
Oedipus has set out to discover whether he is truly the son of Polybus and Merope, the king and
queen who have brought him up. He learns from the oracle of Apollo at Delphi, the most
powerful interpreter of the voice and the will of the gods, that he will kill his father and marry his
mother. His response is overwhelmingly human: he has seen his moira, his fate, and he can't
accept it. His reaction is to do everything he can, including leaving his homeland as quickly as
possible, to avoid the possibility of killing Polybus and marrying Merope.
The Greek audience would have known that Oedipus was a descendant
of Kadmos, founder of Thebes, who had shown the dragon teeth that produced the Spartoi (the
sown men). Legend determined that the Kingship of Thebes would be in dispute, with fraternal
rivalry resembling that of the Spartoi, who fought and killed each other. This bloody legacy
follows Oedipus, but it also reaches into all the plays of the trilogy. For example, in Antigone, we
learn that Antigone's brothers Polyneices and Eteocles killed each other in the shadow of the city
walls. Thus, the fate Oedipus attempts to avoid actually dooms most of the characters in the true
plays, including his true father, Laios, and his daughter Antigone.
Sophocles develops the drama in terms of Irony: the disjunction between
what seems to be true and what is true. Knowing the outcome of the action, the audience savors
the ironic moments from the beginning of the play to the end. Oedipus flees his homeland, to
avoid fulfilling the prophecy, only to run headlong into the fate foretold by the Oracle. He
unwittingly returns to his original home, Thebes, and to his parents, murdering Laios, his true
father, at a crossroads on the way and marrying lokaste, his true mother, and becoming king of
Thebes. The blind seer Teiresias warns Oedipus not to pursue the truth, but, in human fashion,
Oedipus refuses to heed Teiresias's warnings. When the complete truth becomes clear to
Oedipus, he physically blinds Teiresias, Oedipus must now look inward for the truth, without the
distractions of surface experiences.
The belief that the moral health of the ruler directly affected the security
of the polis was widespread in Athenian Greece. Indeed, the Athenians regarded their state as
fragile like a human being whose health, physical and moral, could change suddenly. Because
the Greeks were concerned for the well-being of their state, the polis often figures in the
tragedies. The Sophoclean Oedipus trilogy is usually called the Theban plays, a terminology that
reminds us that the story of Oedipus can be read as the story of an individual or as the story of a
state.
Oedipus Rex examines the tension between and interdependence of the
individual and the state. The agricultural and ritual basis of the Dionysian festivals, in which
Greek drama developed, underscores the importance the Greeks attached to the individual's
dependence on the state that feeds him and on the proper ways of doing things. This could be
planting and harvesting or worshipping the gods or living as part of a political entity. The
underlying conflict in the play is political. The political relationship of human beings to the gods,
the arbiters of their fate, is dramatized in Oedipus's relationship with the seer Teiresias. If he had
his way, Oedipus might disregard Teiresias entirely. But Oedipus can't command everything,
even as ruler. His incomplete knowledge, despite his wisdom, is indicative of the limitations of
every individual.
The contrast of Oedipus and Creon, lokaste's brother, is one of political
style. Oedipus is a fully developed character who reveals himself as sympathetic but willful. He
acts on his misunderstanding of the prophecy without re-consulting the oracle. He marries
lokaste and blinds himself without re-consulting the oracle. Creon, who is much less
complicated, never acts without consulting the oracle and thoughtfully reflecting on the Oracle's
message. Oedipus sometimes behaves tyrannically, and he appears eager for power. Creon takes
power only when forced to do so. The depth of Sophocles’ character development was
unmatched, except by his contemporary Euripides, for almost two thousand years. Sophocles’
drama is one of psychological development. His audiences saw Oedipus as a model for human
greatness, but also as a model for the human capacity to fall from a great height. The play is
about the limits of human knowledge; it is also about the limits and the frailty of human
happiness.

ARISTOTLE CONCEPT OF TRAGEDY

THE DEFINITION OF TRAGEDY

Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain

magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament, the several kinds being
found in separate parts of the play; in the form of action, not of narrative; through pity and fear
effecting the proper purgation of these emotions. 

The aim of tragedy, Aristotle writes, is to bring about a "catharsis" of the spectators — to arouse
in them sensations of pity and fear, and to purge them of these emotions so that they leave the
theater feeling cleansed and uplifted, with a heightened understanding of the ways of gods and
men. Tragedy is an imitation, not of men, but of action and life, of happiness and misery. And
life consists of action, and its end is a mode of activity, not a quality. 

According to Aristotle, tragedy has six main elements: plot, character, diction, thought, spectacle
(scenic effect), and song (music)
Aristotle presents these components in order of importance, expanding a little on the significance
of each to the tragedy as a whole.

Plot
Emphasizing that tragedy is first and foremost the representation of actions, and not of
characters, Aristotle makes the remark that many contemporary tragedies do not succeed in their
characterizations, but are still tragedies. The tragic effect comes from the plot, and especially
from the peripeteia–the reversal of the situation in which the characters find themselves– as well
as from scenes of recognition.

Character
Character is second in importance after plot; tragedies depict characters as they relate to the
action which is the main object of representation. Characters represent their moral qualities
throught the speeches assigned to them by the dramatist.

Thought 

Thought comprises both the rational processes through which characters come to decisions, as
represented in the dramaMedia

Diction
the way language is used to convey the representation.

Song
The lines assigned to the chorus in a tragedy are usually conveyed in song accompanied by
rhythmical movement.

Spectacle
Aristotle lists spectacle last in order of importance, pointing out that the power of tragedy is not
fully dependent upon its performance and that the art of the spectacle really belongs to the set
designer and not to the poet

IDEAL TRAGIC HERO

According to Aristotle the ideal tragic Hero must possess the following
characteristics.
The hero should be a good man but with the ordinary human weakness of failure
misfortunes or by his own actions his fate was at the stage of downfall his self confidence brings
him towards on fall.
Ideal tragic Hero must have hamartia wrong concerned the personal error in a
protagonist in his personal life it is based on miscalculating error of judgement.
Tragic Hero must be a person who enjoys prosperity fame and name must to a
highly placed person in a society so that person become victim on the basis of tragedy Aristotle
is saying that the hero must from the higher class he always have a great family and great
background so it is a concept of Greek tragedy. He should be from a prestigious family.
UNITIES IN TRAGIC PLAY OR DRAMA
Unities, in drama, the three principles derived by French classicists
from Aristotle’s Poetics; they require a play to have a single action represented as occurring in a
single place and within the course of a day. These principles were called, respectively, unity of
action, unity of place, and unity of time.

ODEIPUS REX AS A TRAGIC PLAY

In his famous "Poetics," the philosopher Aristotle laid the foundations for
literary criticism of Greek tragedy. His famous connection between "pity and fear" and
"catharsis" developed into one of Western philosophy's greatest questions: why is it that people
are drawn to watching tragic heroes suffer horrible fates? Aristotle's ideas revolve around three
crucial effects: First, the audience develops an emotional attachment to the tragic hero; second,
the audience fears what may befall the hero; and finally (after misfortune strikes) the audience
pities the suffering hero. Through these attachments the individual members of the audience go
through a catharsis, a term which Aristotle borrowed from the medical writers of his day, which
means a "refining" the viewer of a tragedy refines his or her sense of difficult ethical issues
through a vicarious experious of such thorny problems. Clearly, for Aristotle's theory to work,
the tragic hero must be a complex and well-constructed character, as in Sophocles' Oedipus the
King. As a tragic hero, Oedipus elicits the three needed responses from the audience far better
than most; indeed, Aristotle and subsequent critics have labeled Oedipus the ideal tragic hero. A
careful examination of Oedipus and how he meets and exceeds the parameters of the tragic hero
reveals that he legitimately deserves this title.
   Oedipus' nobility and virtue provide his first key to success as a tragic hero.
Following Aristotle, the audience must respect the tragic hero as a "larger and better" version of
themselves. The dynamic nature of Oedipus' nobility earns him this respect. First, as any Greek
audience member would know, Oedipus is actually the son of Laius and Jocasta, the King and
Queen of Thebes. Thus, he is a noble in the simplest sense; that is, his parents were themselves
royalty. Second, Oedipus himself believes he is the son of Polybus and Merope, the King and
Queen of Corinth. Again, Oedipus attains a second kind of nobility, albeit a false one. Finally,
Oedipus earns royal respect at Thebes when he solves the riddle of the Sphinx. As a gift for
freeing the city, Creon gives Oedipus dominion over the city. Thus, Oedipus' nobility derives
from many and diverse sources, and the audience develops a great respect and emotional
attachment to him.
   The complex nature of Oedipus' "hamartia," is also important. The Greek
term "hamartia," typically translated as "tragic flaw," actually is closer in meaning to a
"mistake" or an "error," "failing," rather than an innate flaw. In Aristotle's understanding, all
tragic heroes have a "hamartia," but this is not inherent in their characters, for then the audience
would lose respect for them and be unable to pity them; likewise, if the hero's failing were
entirely accidental and involuntary, the audience would not fear for the hero. Instead, the
character's flaw must result from something that is also a central part of their virtue, which goes
somewhat arwry, usually due to a lack of knowledge. By defining the notion this way, Aristotle
indicates that a truly tragic hero must have a failing that is neither idiosyncratic nor arbitrary,
but is somehow more deeply imbedded -- a kind of human failing and human weakness.
Oedipus fits this precisely, for his basic flaw is his lack of knowledge about his own identity.
Moreover, no amount of foresight or preemptive action could remedy Oedipus' hamartia; unlike
other tragic heroes, Oedipus bears no responsibility for his flaw. The audience fears for Oedipus
because nothing he does can change the tragedy's outcome.
   Finally, Oedipus' downfall elicits a great sense of pity from the audience.
First, by blinding himself, as opposed to committing suicide, Oedipus achieves a kind of
surrogate death that intensifies his suffering. He comments on the darkness - not just the literal
inability to see, but also religious and intellectual darkness - that he faces after becoming blind.
In effect, Oedipus is dead, for he receives none of the benefits of the living; at the same time, he
is not dead by definition, and so his suffering cannot end. Oedipus receives the worst of both
worlds between life and death, and he elicits greater pity from the audience. Second, Oedipus
himself and the Chorus both note that Oedipus will continue after the tragedy's conclusion.
Unlike, for example Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, and Orestes (the heroes in the Orestia trilogy),
Oedipus' suffering does not end with the play; even so, the conclusion also presents a sense of
closure to the play. This odd amalgam of continued suffering and closure make the audience
feel as if Oedipus' suffering is his proper and natural state. Clearly, Oedipus' unique downfall
demands greater pity from the audience.
   Oedipus fulfills the three parameters that define the tragic hero. His
dynamic and multifaceted character emotionally bonds the audience; his tragic flaw forces the
audience to fear for him, without losing any respect; and his horrific punishment elicits a great
sense of pity from the audience. Though Sophocles crafted Oedipus long before Aristotle
developed his ideas, Oedipus fits Aristotle's definition with startling accuracy. He is the tragic
hero par excellence and richly deserves the title as "the ideal tragic hero."
Oedipus the King is an excellent example of Aristotle's theory of tragedy.
The play has the perfect Aristotelian tragic plot consisting of paripeteia, anagnorisis and
catastrophe; it has the perfect tragic character that suffers from happiness to misery due to
hamartia (tragic flaw) and the play evokes pity and fear that produces the tragic effect, catharsis
(a purging of emotion). 
Oedipus the King has the ingredients necessary for the plot of a good
tragedy, including the peripeteia. According to Aristotle, a peripeteia is necessary for a good
plot. Peripeteia is "a reversal in his fortune from happiness to disaster" (Abrams 322). Oedipus's
reversal of fortune occurs when he realizes that he is the son of Laius and Jocasta. The
messenger comes to Oedipus assuming that he will relieve the King of the fear that he will kill
his own father as predicted by the Oracle. But by revealing the secret that Oedipus is not who he
thinks he is and he was found and he was given to his father Polybus, the messenger does the
opposite. The messenger makes Oedipus more fearful instead and he reverses Oedipus' life. The
Chorus says, "You are my great example, you, your life your destiny, Oedipus, man of misery - I
count no man blest" The Chorus states that its idea of human happiness is now destroyed by
Oedipus's reversal of fortune. 
According to Aristotle, anagnorisis is another important aspect of the plot of
a tragedy. Anagnorisis is "the discovery of facts hitherto unknown to the hero" (Abrams 322). In
Oedipus the Knig the anagnorisis came in pieces for Oedipus. It begins when Oedipus recognizes
the area, and finds out the truth is almost over at this point. All the tension and mystery is gone.
Oedipus reveals the truth and now the feeling of anxiety is replaced by grief and sorrow. This
release of tension causes an overwhelming emotion, a relief of emotion that marks the catharsis. 

Oedipus the King by Sophocles has the ingredients necessary for a good
Aristotelian tragedy. The play has the essential parts that form the plot, consisting of the
peripeteia, anagnorisis and a catastrophe; which are all necessary for a good tragedy according to
the Aristotelian notion. Oedipus is the perfect tragic protagonist, for his happiness changes to
misery due to hamartia (an error). Oedipus also evokes both pity and fear in its audience, causing
the audience to experience catharsis or a purging of emotion, which is the true test for any
tragedy according to Aristotle. 

OEDIPUS AS A DRAMATIC IRONY

In the play "Oedipus the King" by Sophocles, the author presents us with
several instances of dramatic irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the meaning of the situation is
understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play. Dramatic irony plays an
important part in "Oedipus the King", because it is used to describe Oedipus' character as
arrogant and blind toward the truth. The audience is expected to understand Oedipus' history well
before he does.
There are many other instances of dramatic irony in the play. In the very first
scene (the prologue), Oedipus praises himself as a great and famous king, and he says that "once
more I must bring what is dark to light". But for a spectator who knows the myth of Oedipus in
advance, Oedipus’s confidence and self-appreciation itself is ironic. When he adds that he will
act on his own interest "and not as though it were for some distant friend/ but for my own sake,
to be rid of evil Oedipus speech demanding the people to reveal the murderer in the initial part of
the play is an important instance of dramatic irony. He was looking for the killer of the king
Laius-his father. The irony here is that he is looking for himself because he is the murder of his
father. Oedipus knows that he killed someone, but what he does not know is that it was Laius,
the one he murder. Oedipus wants to punish the person who killed Laius, but we, the audience
know that Oedipus was the one who killed Laius. Also Oedipus married Jocasta without
knowing that she is his mother. We, the audience knew that he was Jocasta's son, but he was
unaware of that. 

“A number of curses upon his own head! The curse is painfully ironic:
 I pray to God -
 I pray that that man's life be consumed in evil and wretchedness.
 And as for me, this curse applies no less If it should turn out that the culprit is my guest here...”

In the first three episodes, Oedipus uses a lot of dramatic irony in his
speeches. The behavior of Oedipus is ironic, because he is not capable to grasp the truth that is
being unrevealed before his eyes. Oedipus is blinded by his ignorance. He is a very confident
man and powerful in the way he acts and talks. Oedipus is so blind to himself, that instead of
relying on the oracles, he counts on his own knowledge to find out the truth. Oedipus is destined
from birth to someday marry his mother and to murder his father. 
Oedipus is pitiably ignorant that the curses are going to fall upon himself. Oedipus's failure to
understand Teiresias and also the reluctance of the old shepherd are ironic too. Oedipus's flight
from Corinth is the most fatal irony in the life of Oedipus. He is in a lifelong project of escaping
the horrible fate, but fate has disposed his plan and his life. These ironic instances evoke pity in
the heart of the spectators, yet they can do nothing but pity the poor man who has nevertheless
tried his best. What we can say to console ourselves is that 'doing the best is life itself’. Oedipus
believes that he is the wisest of all Thebans: he has solved the riddle of the sphinx, and is now
ruling them. Everyone praises him, and so does he! But what he does is to bring to himself the
realization of the utter darkness he was in. He accuses Teiresias of lying and scolds him: "you
sightless, witless, senseless, mad and old man!" But Oedipus proves himself to be the most blind
in his belief and actions. He has been ignoring the inward eye in his trust and confidence of the
outward eye. That is perhaps why he destroys the outward eyes at the end of the play.
The curse does indeed come true when in the end of the play Oedipus and his family are doomed
to a life of pain and suffering. Another important instance of dramatic irony is a little later in this
same section when the old soothsayer visits the king. When Oedipus beings to ridicules
Teiresias' blindness, he is turn predicts and unusual circumstance. The angry prophet warns that
while Oedipus can see, he is actually 'blind' (that means he will be denied the truth) whereas
when he will turn blind (i.e. lose his eyesight) only then will he be able to see (or realize) the
truth. It is also ironic that old Teiresias who has no eyesight can perceive reality accurately.