Sophocles · c. 496-406 BC
Oedipus Tyrannus
Οἰδίπους ΤύραννοςRead our guide to Oedipus Tyrannus
Oedipus Tyrannus (Oedipus the King) was probably first staged in the 420s BC. A plague has fallen on Thebes, and King Oedipus, who once saved the city from the Sphinx, swears to find the killer of the previous king, Laius, and so discovers who he himself is. The sections follow the play's own units (prologue, parodos, episodes, choral songs and exodos) and keep the standard line numbers of the Greek text.
Contents · 22 passages
- 1–77Prologue: the Priest asks Oedipus to save Thebes682 words
- 78–150Prologue (cont.): Creon brings the oracle of Apollo712 words
- 151–215Parodos: the Chorus of Theban elders pray against the plague457 words
- 216–299First episode: Oedipus' proclamation and curse851 words
- 300–403First episode (cont.): Oedipus and Teiresias quarrel1070 words
- 404–462First episode (cont.): Teiresias foretells Oedipus' fate610 words
- 463–511First stasimon: the Chorus are shaken by the seer's words307 words
- 513–582Second episode: Creon and Oedipus702 words
- 583–633Second episode (cont.): Creon's defence524 words
- 634–697Second episode (cont.): Iocasta stops the quarrel558 words
- 698–770Third episode: Iocasta and the death of Laius717 words
- 771–862Third episode (cont.): Oedipus tells of Corinth and the crossroads881 words
- 863–910Second stasimon: the laws of heaven306 words
- 911–998Fourth episode: the Corinthian messenger848 words
- 999–1075Fourth episode (cont.): the messenger reveals that Oedipus was found as a child825 words
- 1076–1131Third stasimon; the herdsman is brought in463 words
- 1132–1185Fifth episode: the herdsman's confession573 words
- 1186–1296Fourth stasimon; the Second Messenger reports the blinding967 words
- 1297–1368Exodos: the blind Oedipus laments508 words
- 1369–1415Exodos (cont.): Oedipus' speech449 words
- 1416–1477Exodos (cont.): Creon takes charge621 words
- 1478–1530Exodos (cont.): Oedipus and his daughters; the end554 words
More by Sophocles
English translation by Richard C. Jebb (modernised by Perseus) (1887). Original text: Greek text: Francis Storr (ed. and trans.), Sophocles, Loeb Classical Library, London: William Heinemann, 1912, as digitised by Perseus. English: Richard C. Jebb, Sophocles: The Plays and Fragments, The Oedipus Tyrannus, Cambridge University Press, 1887 (Perseus's modernised version of Jebb's prose translation).
Greek text and translation from the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Perseus Digital Library); translation public domain. Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.
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