Oedipus Essay

               Oedipus Rex is a challenging read. The language is dense and antiquated, and it can be very difficult to understand without historical context. Many students find themselves struggling to glean meaning from the play, and without a highly competent teacher they quickly become disinterested. However, it provides a wonderful window into the culture and values of ancient Greece. By unravelling the text in a discussion the many layers of social context that made the story so powerful to its original audience become apparent.

               When I translated a section of the play into modern English, I was forced to think about what was being said on a deeper level. While what me and my group produced was far from serious, I would like to think that we managed to reinterpret the text well.  I liked listening to other groups perform their interpretations and hearing the creative things they came up with. Hearing the meaning of the lines translated into language I am more familiar and comfortable with made Oedipus easier to understand. However, many of the deeper meanings in the original text require in-depth study to truly understand, so it is very possible that there is a lot to be missed in reading it this way. The rewriting functions well as an introduction to the story of Oedipus, but more serious analysis may be more useful.

               The opera we watched was a visual feast. The images of the stricken citizens of Thebes were quite disturbing, and drove home the tension of the play in a way that guided reading could not. The makeup and effects gave the show a surreal and disturbing atmosphere. Only when seeing it performed in such a spectacular manner did it become apparent how twisted the story of Oedipus is. It was somewhat disappointing that we only saw a shortened version, as the rapid jumps through the story made it seem disjointed.