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A review by paintedverse
The Theban Plays: Antigone, King Oidipous & Oidipous at Colonus by Sophocles, Ruby Blondell
4.0
Sadness seems to be a constant presence in my reading life these days. The didacticism and the role fate plays in Greek tragedies, I thought, were not my forte, but sylphs are the proof, how deeply I am in love with them now. The Theban Plays has been a great start for Greek tragedies. The helplessness and the doomed lives consistently made their presence felt.
The Theban Plays is essentially a collection of three plays by Sophocles: King Oedipus, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone (sequentially). When I started reading the plays, with the help of a background of Greek theatre that I had, I was transported to Sophocles' time. I was one of the audiences in Dionysia and by Jove, it was the best reading experience for me as far as reading a play is concerned. Perhaps this is the reason why a background study is so important. It adds on to our reading experience.
Coming back to the plays, in Greek tragedies, fate plays a very important role. If an oracle tells that a person is doomed, no power in the world can rescue that person from his (her) fate. Action or no action, fate ultimately prevails, and human beings have no say in it. Similar is the case with Oedipus. An oracle tells that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Hence begins a journey that most of us are quite aware of.
The Theban Plays is essentially a collection of three plays by Sophocles: King Oedipus, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone (sequentially). When I started reading the plays, with the help of a background of Greek theatre that I had, I was transported to Sophocles' time. I was one of the audiences in Dionysia and by Jove, it was the best reading experience for me as far as reading a play is concerned. Perhaps this is the reason why a background study is so important. It adds on to our reading experience.
Coming back to the plays, in Greek tragedies, fate plays a very important role. If an oracle tells that a person is doomed, no power in the world can rescue that person from his (her) fate. Action or no action, fate ultimately prevails, and human beings have no say in it. Similar is the case with Oedipus. An oracle tells that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Hence begins a journey that most of us are quite aware of.