Oedipus Rex is the first of Sophocles’ Theban plays and is regarded by many as the masterpiece of Greek tragedy. Based on the myth of Oedipus, the audience would have been aware of the history that precedes the opening of the play. Oedipus left his home in Corinth to avoid a terrible prophecy that he would kill his father marry and his mother. He defeated the riddling Sphinx, lifting a curse on Thebes, and was rewarded with the kingship and the hand of the widowed Jocasta. A plague is now afflicting the city.  The oracle at Delphi instructs Oedipus to search for the killer of Laius. Oedipus consults the blind seer Tiresias, who reluctantly tells him that the perpetrator is none other than Oedipus himself. Disbelief and accusations follow, Jocasta intervenes and Oedipus starts to learn more about Laius’ death and his real parentage.  As the unfortunate truth of the prophecy is eventually revealed, Jocasta hangs herself and the horrified Oedipus gouges out his own eyes and seeks exile.  Answers to the eternal questions of “Who am I?” and “What have I done?” could not be more difficult to accept or more shattering.

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