Dionysia In Sophokles Oidipous The King

Whilst often being regarded as the birthplace of contemporary theatre, Ancient Greece did not consciously create theatre or define it as such. Branded as agon, the theatre of the time encompassed the notion that religion and religious practice, as an intrinsic part of ancient Greek culture, is the fundamental motive and intention for performance. As a result of such, Greek theatre in the capital, Athens, was performed as a part of a celebration of the god Dionysus – a festival entitled the City Dionysia. At such festival, playwrights (or Greek poietes) would participate in ‘tragic contests’, with each tragedian presenting a tetralogy (three tragedies and one satyr play) each day (Rehm, 1992). Many of the extant plays from this historic time …show more content…
As a product of this recognition, Sophokles’ play has long caused deliberation regarding the extent in which Oidipous is liable for his own fall or whether it was predestined. Through analysis of the playtext, it is clear that to little extent was Oidipous responsible for his own downfall as his fate, predetermined by external circumstances, caused his inevitable …show more content…
As an ongoing point of discussion, it is clear that there is no one discernable truth regarding the extent in which Oidipous is responsible for his downfall. However, the notion of Oidipous’ fate being determined by external forces is overwhelmingly present throughout the play, indicating the extent to which Oidipous is responsible for his demise is minimal. This is exemplified within Oidipous the King through three significant external forces: the gods, Laios and Iokaste as Oidipous’ parents and the notion of Greek