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Quiz in Oedipus the King

Quiz Examples in Oedipus the King:

Oedipus the King

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"CHORUS..."   (Oedipus the King)

What function does this choral ode perform?

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"In a car drawn by colts--as in thy tale-- The man in front and the old man himself Threatened to thrust me rudely from the path, Then jostled by the charioteer in wrath I struck him, and the old man, seeing this, Watched till I passed and from his car brought down Full on my head the double-pointed goad. Yet was I quits with him and more; one stroke Of my good staff sufficed to fling him clean Out of the chariot seat and laid him prone. And so I slew them every one...."   (Oedipus the King)

What trait does Oedipus demonstrate during this incident that he also showed with Teiresias and Creon?

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"CHORUS (Ant. 2) King, I say it once again, Witless were I proved, insane, If I lightly put away Thee my country's prop and stay, Pilot who, in danger sought, To a quiet haven brought Our distracted State; and now Who can guide us right but thou?..."   (Oedipus the King)

How has Oedipus changed since the beginning of the play?

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"CREON Thy Thebans? am not I a Theban too?..."   (Oedipus the King)

What is Creon implying here?

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"where Hath this been proven? Or how without sign assured, can I blame Him who saved our State when the winged songstress came, Tested and tried in the light of us all, like gold assayed? How can I now assent when a crime is on Oedipus laid?..."   (Oedipus the King)

How does the Chorus respond to the confrontation between Oedipus and Teiresias?

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"For blind of seeing, clad in beggar's weeds, For purple robes, and leaning on his staff, To a strange land he soon shall grope his way. And of the children, inmates of his home, He shall be proved the brother and the sire, Of her who bare him son and husband both, Co-partner, and assassin of his sire...."   (Oedipus the King)

What literary technique is employed in this passage?

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"To twit me with my blindness--thou hast eyes, Yet see'st not in what misery thou art fallen, Nor where thou dwellest nor with whom for mate. Dost know thy lineage? Nay, thou know'st it not, And all unwitting art a double foe To thine own kin, the living and the dead;..."   (Oedipus the King)

According to Teiresias, in what ways is Oedipus blind?

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"Wherein thou wast found lacking; neither birds Nor sign from heaven helped thee, but I came, The simple Oedipus; I stopped her mouth By mother wit, untaught of auguries...."   (Oedipus the King)

What does this statement reveal about Oedipus's character?

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"OEDIPUS Offspring of endless Night, thou hast no power O'er me or any man who sees the sun...."   (Oedipus the King)

Which of the play's themes are evoked in this passage?

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"OEDIPUS Teiresias, seer who comprehendest all, Lore of the wise and hidden mysteries, High things of heaven and low things of the earth, Thou knowest, though thy blinded eyes see naught, What plague infects our city; and we turn To thee, O seer, our one defense and shield...."   (Oedipus the King)

How does Tiresias seem to occupy a place between mortals and gods?

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"I summon him to make clean shrift to me. And if he shrinks, let him reflect that thus Confessing he shall 'scape the capital charge; For the worst penalty that shall befall him Is banishment--unscathed he shall depart...."   (Oedipus the King)

What does Oedipus first do to find out who killed King Laius?

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"therefore I His blood-avenger will maintain his cause As though he were my sire..."   (Oedipus the King)

Why is this an example of dramatic irony?

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"OEDIPUS Well, I will start afresh and once again Make dark things clear...."   (Oedipus the King)

How is Oedipus's saying he will search for Laius's killer an example of dramatic irony?

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"CREON The riddling Sphinx compelled us to let slide The dim past and attend to instant needs...."   (Oedipus the King)

Why did the Thebans fail to find the murderer of King Laius immediately after he was killed?

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"CREON He fell; and now the god's command is plain: Punish his takers-off, whoe'er they be...."   (Oedipus the King)

What did the oracle say they must do in order to lift the plague?

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"Now, in what a sea of troubles sunk and overwhelmed he lies! Therefore wait to see life's ending ere thou count one mortal blest; Wait till free from pain and sorrow he has gained his final rest...."   (Oedipus the King)

What theme does the Chorus's final ode express?

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"What's done was well done. Thou canst never shake My firm belief. A truce to argument. For, had I sight, I know not with what eyes I could have met my father in the shades, Or my poor mother, since against the twain I sinned, a sin no gallows could atone...."   (Oedipus the King)

How does Oedipus answer the Chorus when asked if death would not have been preferable to his current state?

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"Such was the burden of his moan, whereto, Not once but oft, he struck with his hand uplift His eyes, and at each stroke the ensanguined orbs Bedewed his beard, not oozing drop by drop, But one black gory downpour, thick as hail...."   (Oedipus the King)

How does the language used to describe Oedipus blinding himself contribute to the catharsis of the audience?

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"Let the storm burst, my fixed resolve still holds, To learn my lineage, be it ne'er so low. It may be she with all a woman's pride Thinks scorn of my base parentage...."   (Oedipus the King)

Why doesn't Oedipus follow Jocasta to comfort her in her grief?

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"Did they not point at me as doomed to slay My father? but he's dead and in his grave And here am I who ne'er unsheathed a sword;..."   (Oedipus the King)

Why does Oedipus consider the Messenger's announcement important?

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"O Zeus, reveal thy might, King, if thou'rt named aright Omnipotent, all-seeing, as of old; For Laius is forgot; His weird, men heed it not; Apollo is forsook and faith grows cold...."   (Oedipus the King)

What does this stanza reveal about Theban culture at the time?

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"Of insolence is bred The tyrant; insolence full blown, With empty riches surfeited, Scales the precipitous height and grasps the throne. Then topples o'er and lies in ruin prone; No foothold on that dizzy steep...."   (Oedipus the King)

How does the Chorus view insolence, or pride?

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"To follow still those laws ordained on high Whose birthplace is the bright ethereal sky No mortal birth they own, Olympus their progenitor alone:..."   (Oedipus the King)

What is the Chorus's attitude toward fate?

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"So much for divination. Henceforth I Will look for signs neither to right nor left...."   (Oedipus the King)

What does Jocasta's response to Oedipus reveal about her?

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"But if he says one lonely wayfarer, The last link wanting to my guilt is forged...."   (Oedipus the King)

Why does Oedipus need to speak with the Herdsman?

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"Methought I heard thee say that Laius Was murdered at the meeting of three roads. ..."   (Oedipus the King)

Why does Oedipus find this detail in Jocasta's story important?

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"I know not, and not knowing hold my tongue. ..."   (Oedipus the King)

What does Creon imply here?

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"In reading riddles who so skilled as thou? ..."   (Oedipus the King)

How is Teiresias's reply to Oedipus an example of sarcasm?

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"Think'st thou for aye unscathed to wag thy tongue? ..."   (Oedipus the King)

How does Oedipus respond to Teiresias's revelation?

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