Oedipus | Greek mythology | Britannica.com Greek mythology Antigone Oedipus, in Greek mythology , the king of Thebes who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother. Homer related that Oedipus’s wife and mother hanged herself when the truth of their relationship became known, though Oedipus apparently continued to rule at Thebes until his death. In the post-Homeric tradition, most familiar from Sophocles ’ Oedipus Rex (or Oedipus the King) and Oedipus at Colonus, there are notable differences in emphasis and detail. Oedipus and the Sphinx, interior of an Attic red-figured … Album/Oronoz/SuperStock According to one version of the story, Laius, king of Thebes, was warned by an oracle that his son would slay him. Accordingly, when his wife, Jocasta ( Iocaste ; in Homer, Epicaste), bore a son, he had the baby exposed (a form of infanticide ) on Cithaeron .

(Tradition has it that his name, which means “Swollen-Foot,” was a result of his feet having been pinned together, but modern scholars are skeptical of that etymology.) A shepherd took pity on the infant, who was adopted by King Polybus of Corinth and his wife and was brought up as their son. In early manhood Oedipus visited Delphi and upon learning that he was fated to kill his father and marry his mother, he resolved never to return to Corinth. The blind Oedipus asks Creon to banish him from Thebes. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Traveling toward Thebes, he encountered Laius, who provoked a quarrel in which Oedipus killed him. Continuing on his way, Oedipus found Thebes plagued by the Sphinx , who put a riddle to all passersby and destroyed those who could not answer. Oedipus solved the riddle, and the Sphinx killed herself. In reward, he received the throne of Thebes and the hand of the widowed queen, his mother, Jocasta. They had four children: Eteocles, Polyneices, Antigone , and Ismene.

Later, when the truth became known, Jocasta committed suicide, and Oedipus (according to another version), after blinding himself, went into exile, accompanied by Antigone and Ismene, leaving his brother-in-law Creon as regent. Oedipus died at Colonus near Athens , where he was swallowed into the earth and became a guardian hero of the land. Similar Topics Oedipus Oedipus See More Oedipus Pictures > Oedipus was a king in Greek mythology, ruling over the city of Thebes . He was the son of King Laius and Queen Jocasta . Not knowing, he married his mother and had four children with her, Polynices , Eteocles , Antigone , and Ismene . It all started when King Laius decided to consult the Oracle at Delphi to learn if he and his wife would ever have children. The prophecy given was that any son that was born out of their union would kill them. After a while, Jocasta got pregnant and eventually gave birth to a baby boy.

To avoid the prophecy, Laius told his servants to pierce the baby's ankles, so that he would not be able to crawl; that's how the baby got the name Oedipus , meaning swollen foot. Jocasta then gave the baby to one of their shepherds, telling him to leave the baby in the mountains to die. The shepherd, unable to do this, handed the baby over to another shepherd, who then brought it at the court of King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth . The royal couple, also childless, decided to adopt the poor baby and raise him as their own. When Oedipus grew up, he was told by someone that Polybus and Merope were not his real parents. Deciding to investigate this matter, Oedipus ended up in Delphi , to consult the Oracle. There, he was told that he would kill his father and marry his mother. Upon hearing this, Oedipus thought that the prophecy meant Polybus and Merope, and decided not to return to Corinth . Instead, he started walking towards the city of Thebes .

On his way there, he came across King Laius , his biological father, on a chariot, as he was on his way to the Oracle once again. Oedipus and Laius ' charioteer started quarreling over who had the right of way. The quarrel ended up with Oedipus killing the charioteer and his father, thus unknowingly fulfilling the first half of his prophecy. Later, he met a monster called Sphinx , who plagued the region of Thebes , destroying crops and killing travellers who did not answer its questions. The Sphinx asked Oedipus the same question it asked the rest; what walks on four feet in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three at night? No one had ever answered the question correctly before, and the Sphinx had killed and eaten all of them. Oedipus thought carefully and eventually gave the correct answer; man, who crawls on all fours as a baby; he walks on two legs as an adult; and needs a walking stick when old. The Sphinx , not bearing that its riddle had been answered correctly, killed itself by falling off the rock it was sitting on.

When Oedipus reached Thebes , he was accepted with honours by Creon , Jocasta 's brother and his uncle, who served as a temporary king after Laius ' death. Creon had said that anyone who would kill the Sphinx would become king and would marry Jocasta . Thus, the second part of the prophecy was fulfilled and Oedipus rose to the throne of Thebes , marrying his mother. Oedipus and Jocasta had four children, Eteocles , Polynices , Antigone and Ismene . Years later, pestilence was brought upon the city of Thebes , so Oedipus sent Creon to the Oracle at Delphi to get a consultation. Creon learned that it all happened because the killer of Laius had not been taken to justice. Oedipus cursed the killer of Laius , and asked the prophet Tiresias to find out who the killer was. Tiresias was forced to say that it was Oedipus who killed the former king, and that he also did not know who his true parents were.

Oedipus and Creon went into a heated argument, and Jocasta intervened and recounted the story of her son and how he had supposedly died. At that moment, a messenger from Corinth entered the court and informed everyone that Polybus had died. Oedipus was initially relieved, thinking Polybus was his real father and that the prophecy had failed to become true, but he said he would not attend the funeral, in order to avoid meeting his mother and maybe causing the second part of the prophecy to materialise. The messenger then explained to him that he was in fact adopted and that Polybus and Merope were not his biological parents. This was the revelation moment for everyone; Oedipus realised that he had in fact killed his father years ago, and that he had married his mother. Oedipus tried to find Jocasta who had fled moments earlier, only to find she hanged herself. He then took a brooch from her gown, and using the pin, he pricked his eyes and blinded himself. He fled the city, guided by his daughter Antigone , and reached the court of King Theseus of Athens , where they were both welcomed. He died there some time later.

After Oedipus ' death, his sons Polynices and Eteocles decided to share the throne, but when Eteocles refused to give the throne when his time was over, Polynices left Thebes and returned with an army. This caused the events of the story called Seven Against Thebes , which resulted in both brothers dying on the battlefield. Oedipus Is also called Oidipus, Oidipous. Oedipus - Ancient Greece Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Oedipus and Sphinx. 1808. Oil on canvas. Louvre, Paris, France. Oedipus Thanks to psychoanalysist Sigmund Freud, the story of Oedipus has become one of the most widely known in the modern world. However, because of Freud's 'Oedipus Complex', many modern readers focus on his apparent love of his mother and hatred for his father; this is not in fact in keeping with the Greek mythological tradition of Oedipus, the canonical version of which can be found in Sophocles ' trilogy: The Theban Plays.

Birth and Early Life Oedipus was the child of Laius and Jocasta, the ruling couple of Thebes. Eager for future-knowledge, Laius journeyed to the oracle at Delphi who gave him the most unwelcome news that his newborn son would grow up to kill his father and marry his mother. Perturbed by this news, Laius gave his new son to a herdsman and ordered him to be killed. A spike was driven through baby Oedipus' ankles (causing his ankles to become inflamed and earn him his name, which literally translates as 'swollen-footed') and he was left on the side of Mt. Cithaeron to die. However, destiny cannot be avoided that easily and Oedipus survived, rescued by a peasant in the employ of king Polybus of Corinth. The peasant took the infant to his master, who adopted him gratefully since he and his wife Merope had been unable to conceive. Polybus and Merope raised Oedipus as their own, but one night at a public feast, a drunken man shouted at Oedipus that he had no idea who his father was.

Although his adoptive parents implored Oedipus to ignore the man's ravings, he could not put his mind to rest, and Oedipus resolved to travel to the Oracle at Delphi and ask her the identity of his parents. The Oracle, however, did not tell Oedipus who his parents were, rather revealing the disturbing prophecy that he would couple with his mother and kill his father. Resolving that this should never come to pass, Oedipus did not go back to Corinth, to those he believed to be his parents, but rather headed for Thebes. On his journey, Oedipus came to a crossroads and was faced with a carriage driving the opposite direction. The driver struck Oedipus to get him to move out of the way, but this enraged the young man, who proceeded to fight and kill the driver and the man he was transporting - King Laius. Having unwittingly fulfilled half of the prophecy, Oedipus carried on to Thebes.

The Sphinx The Sphinx, a terrible monster with the body of a lion, wings of an eagle and head of a woman had been sent by the gods to terrorise Thebes as punishment for Laius' misdeeds concerning the rape of a prince of a neighbouring kingdom. This fiend would ask any passing traveller her riddle, and if they were unable to answer correctly, she would devour them. Since no man had been able to guess the answer, Thebes was effectively cut off from the outside world. When Oedipus came to Thebes, the Sphinx asked him her riddle, which he was able to solve. The story goes that she went mad and threw herself off a cliff, thus freeing Thebes from her fearsome influence. The people of Thebes were so grateful to Oedipus that they proclaimed him their king, since Laius had been mysteriously killed on the road. They also suggested that he marry his widow, Jocasta, to solidify his position as ruler of the city. Thus the prophecy of the Delphic oracle came to pass.

The Sphinx as a creature can be seen as early as the mid-3rd millennium BC in Egypt and Mesopotamia, yet the Sphinx seems to have been, in these cultures, to be a religious figure rather than a monster as is the case in the Greek tradition. It has been theorised that the Sphinx is associated with Thebes due to a war between the Minyans and the Cadmeans and that the Sphinx was acting on behalf of the Minyans by preventing the Cadmeans from leaving Thebes. Although the riddle the Sphinx asked is not specified in any early Greek texts, late tradition states that the question she asked was: 'What has four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon and three legs in the evening?' When Oedipus gave her the answer 'man' (for as a baby, man crawls on all fours, as a grown man he walks erect on two legs and in old age he walks with the aid of a stick), she was bested and thus her reign of terror over Thebes was put to an end.

Oedipus the King Aristotle rates Sophocles ' tragedy, 'Oedipus the King' as the greatest ever composed, and it is this text which gives us the most detailed account of his fall from grace after his aforementioned coronation. Sophocles sets the scene many years after Oedipus came to Thebes, when he has been married to Jocasta for many years and sired four children, Antigone, Ismene, Polynices and Eteocles. A plague has struck Thebes and a Priest begs Oedipus, the most cunning and intelligent of all men, to find a solution. As it happens, Oedipus has already sent a messenger in the form of his brother-in-law, Creon, to the oracle at Delphi in order to find out how he might appease Apollo and stop the plague. Creon returns with the answer: the city itself is unclean as it harbours the killer of Laius, and he must be found and punished before the city can become cleansed. Oedipus swears to find and execute the murderer and brings down a curse on anyone who harbours him, cursing himself and his family in the process.

Oedipus calls Tiresias, the blind prophet, to help him in his quest, but when the old man refuses to reveal the painful truth to Oedipus, the king becomes angered, causing Tiresias to say that it is Oedipus himself who pollutes the city and is the murderer of Laius. Outraged, Oedipus rails against the prophet and accuses him of being in cahoots with Creon in an attempt to usurp his throne. Oedipus remains resolute that Tiresias is lying until a messenger informs him of Polybus' death and also of the fact that Oedipus was adopted. Against Jocasta's protestations, Oedipus sends for the man who "disposed" of Laius' son, who happens to also be the sole survivor of Oedipus' earlier attack on Laius' carriage. It comes out that Oedipus was the unknown man who killed Laius from the revelation that the old king was killed at the same crossroads Oedipus remembers from his fight.

In addition, it is revealed that Oedipus was the child Jocasta and Laius tried to expose to prevent the prophecy from coming to fruition. When Jocasta realises this to be the case, she runs inside and hangs herself. Oedipus himself takes a little longer to reach this conclusion, but when he does he follows his mother/bride inside, removes her dress pins and uses them to gouge out his eyes, in a gesture which many read psychosexually as Oedipus is violated by the phallic brooches as Jocasta had previously been violated by her own son. Oedipus emerges from the palace blinded and bloody, and is sent out of Thebes into exile by the man he had accused of plotting against him: Creon. The Aftermath The other plays of Sophocles in the Theban cycle, Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone, tell the story of what occurred after Oedipus' exile.

Oedipus at Colonus tells of how Oedipus became a wanderer, cared for by his daughter Antigone and how they came to be outside Athens where Theseus took pity on the pair and looked after them both until Oedipus' death. Antigone shows the happenings in Thebes after Oedipus' exile. Sophocles intimates that the kingship was left in the hands of both Polynices and Eteocles, each ruling alternate years. However, Creon had convinced Eteocles to hold on to power, causing Polynices to raise an army and march against Thebes. The two brothers met in combat and killed each other, leaving Creon as the ruler of Thebes (although it is unclear as to whether this was his original intention). Creon decreed that the traitor, Polynices, was to be dishonoured by being denied a proper burial and, thus, passage into the Underworld. Antigone takes it upon herself to inter her brother, but is caught and sentenced to death.

Tiresias later informs Creon of the gods' disapproval of this and so the new king rushes to the cave where Antigone had been left to starve. It is, however, too late and it transpires that Antigone has once again taken matters into her own hands and has hung herself, causing Haemon (her betrothed and Creon's son) to kill himself also. The final blow to Creon, upon hearing of this news, his wife Eurydice takes her own life by hanging, leaving Creon desperate and alone, but still the sole ruler of Thebes. Other versions of the Oedipus Myth Although the quintessential version of the story of Oedipus is that given by Sophocles , the unfortunate king of Thebes is mentioned by other Classical authors. For example, Aeschylus wrote a trilogy concerning Oedipus (this is hardly surprising as it is believed that tragedy had a very limited number of mythological families of which to tell). The third play in the trilogy survives, 'Seven Against Thebes', and tells much the same story as Antigone, with the two sons of Oedipus at battle over the throne of Cadmus.

Ovid also mentions Oedipus, but only in reference to him being the man who defeated the Sphinx, with no mention of his later misfortune, thus is can be speculated that Oedipus' patricide and incest were not as central to the ancients as they are to us today. This theory, however, is discredited when examining book XI of Homer's Odyssey, which references Epicaste (an alternate name for Jocasta) as the woman who, unbeknownst to either of them, married her son Oedipus (although Homer claims that Oedipus went on ruling Thebes). Oedipus' Fate and Responsibility There has been much debate concerning the responsibility of Oedipus and the "fairness" of his punishment. In Greek tragedy and myth in general, it is the norm that someone will suffer some terrible fate as punishment for wrongdoing or some sacrilege. However, it seems as though Oedipus himself has done nothing to warrant the punishment of his awful fate. In fact, the citizens of Thebes in Sophocles ' Oedipus the King revere him as the most intelligent of men and as a good ruler, even referring to him as a father.

As a result, this story has often been read as a comment on the indiscriminate nature of fate, and that even the best of men can be cursed with an unfair fate, which even the gods are unable to divert. This suggestion would imply that Oedipus himself is not to blame for his actions, and thus deserves no punishment for them. An alternative explanation has already been given above, that it was not Oedipus himself who was cursed, but rather the entire line of Laius as payment for his rape of a young prince. Still others suggest that Oedipus is allotted his fate as a pre-emptive penalty for the crimes proscribed in the prophecy, implying that Oedipus would have committed these atrocities whether they were fated or not, and thus the realisation he has committed them is fitting punishment for him. Whichever explanation one finds most convincing, it can be agreed that Oedipus is not being punished for a simple, tangible crime as is the case with many tragic heroes of Greek myth. Oedipus the Scapegoat It has been suggested that the myth of Oedipus is a metaphor for the ancient scapegoat ritual.

The scapegoat ritual was practiced when a community was in a state of emergency e.g. in the grip of a plague or famine, and it involved expelling a pharmakos (human scapegoat) from the town. The pharmakos was often a person of little consequence, such as a criminal or a cripple. The pharmakos would be led like a sacrificial animal to a sacred precinct and either killed or beaten (sources disagree on this point) and then ejected from the city, taking with it the evils and sins of the community and, thus, purifying the town. The Oedipus story parallels this practice quite closely, as Oedipus (technically a cripple) would normally be of little consequence to the city of Thebes. Furthermore, he is physically harmed, albeit by himself, and exiled from the city. It has been said (in Sophocles ' version of the story) that when Laius' killer has been removed from Thebes the plague will abate, thus implying that Oedipus is taking with him the sins of the community, filling the role of the pharmakos and ending the crisis in the town.

Bibliography Edmunds, Lowell (1981). The Sphinx in the Oedipus Legend. Konigstein im Taunus: Hain. ISBN 3-445-02184-8. Sophocles (trans. R. Fagles), The Theban Plays, Penguin Books, 1984 Oedipus * People, Places, & Things * Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant Oedipus The unfortunate king of the city of Thebes who inadvertently killed his father and married his mother. Oedipus is one of the most well known names in Greek mythology; we hear his name today associated with a mental disorder which denotes the unhealthy attraction of a son to his mother and is called the Oedipus Complex.

The story of Oedipus begins with Oedipus’ father, Laius ; when Laius was a young man he fled his home in the city of Thebes and took refuge with king Pelops ; for unknown reasons, Laius kidnapped Pelops’ son; to be welcomed as a guest and then to violate that trust was one of the most serious crimes an ancient Greek could commit; as punishment for this crime, Apollon foretold that Laius would have a son that would kill him. Laius was as arrogant as an adult as he was impulsive as a young man, so when he and his wife, Iokaste (Jocasta), had a son, they made one of their servants take the infant to Mount Kithaeron (Cithaeron), pierce and bind his ankles, and leave him for the beasts and elements to devour; they clearly wanted to defy the prophecy of Apollon.

The servant they chose to murder the boy could not carry out the murderous act and gave the child to a shepherd from a neighboring province; the child was finally presented to the king of the city of Korinth (Corinth) where he was named Oedipus and raised as part of the royal household; the name Oedipus means “swollen foot” and was derived from the injury to the boy’s ankles. The king and queen of Korinth, Polybos and Merope raised Oedipus as their son but when he became an adult he was told by the oracle at Delphi that he would be the murderer of his father; Oedipus loved Polybos, who he assumed to be his natural father, and fled Korinth so that the prophecy could not be fulfilled. While traveling, Oedipus encountered a nobleman and his guards; a confrontation ensued and Oedipus killed the nobleman, who was his true father, king Laius, and all but one of the guards; Oedipus apparently did not place any divine significance to the encounter and resumed his journey.

When he was near Thebes, Oedipus was stopped by the monster known as the Sphinx who demanded the answer to a riddle before he could pass; the Sphinx guarded the road into Thebes and was a curse to all travelers because if they could not answer her riddles, she killed them; no one had ever survived an encounter with the Sphinx until Oedipus arrived. The riddle which Oedipus correctly answered was briefly referred to by Hesiod in Works of Days (line 533) and was presumably: What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon and three legs in the evening; the answer is Man, i.e. he crawls on all-fours as an infant, walks on his two legs in his prime and walks with a cane in old age; when Oedipus correctly answered her riddle the Sphinx killed herself thus lifting the curse from Thebes. Oedipus was welcomed at Thebes as a hero and, since king Laius was dead, he was asked to become the new king and marry Laius’ widow, Iokaste; they lived for many years in peaceful prosperity and had four children, two boys and two girls.

When the children became young adults, a plague enveloped the land around Thebes; Oedipus sent his brother-in-law, Kreon (Creon) as an envoy to the oracle at Delphi hoping to find a remedy for the blight that threatened the countryside; when Kreon returned, he told Oedipus that the oracle had told him that until the people of Thebes exposed and exiled the murderer of king Laius, the plague would continue. Oedipus desperately begged the citizens of Thebes to come forward with any information which might expose the murderer of Laius; the blind prophet, Teiresias , reluctantly told Oedipus that he, Oedipus, was cursed by the Immortals and that he was the cause of all their sorrows; Oedipus flew into a rage against Kreon and Teiresias but before he could vent his anger a messenger arrived from Korinth to inform him that his assumed father, Polybos, was dead; Oedipus was momentarily relieved because the prophecy of Apollon had not been fulfilled, he had not murdered his father.

The only bodyguard to survive the attack on Laius, now an old man, was brought forward and when he related the circumstances of Laius’ death, Oedipus realized that the nobleman he had killed on the road those many years ago must have been Laius; the messenger from Korinth also happened to be the same man who had taken the infant from Laius’ servant on Mount Kithaeron and given it to Polybos. Iokaste confessed that she and Laius had plotted to murder their son but that she had no idea that the child had survived; with the entire story now exposed, Oedipus and Iokaste fully realized the utter hopelessness of their position; they had been manipulated by the machinations of the Immortals and there was no escape from the prophecies of Apollon; Iokaste retreated into the palace and hanged herself; Oedipus blinded himself and left Thebes as an exile; Oedipus’ oldest son, Eteokles (Eteocles) took the throne of Thebes and exiled his younger brother, Polynikes (Polynices).

Polynikes went to Argos and plotted revenge against his brother; one of Oedipus’ daughters, Antigone , accompanied him into exile but his other daughter, Ismene , stayed in Thebes; after years of wandering, Oedipus and Antigone came to the town of Kolonus (Colonus) near Athens ; they took refuge in a sanctuary of the Eumenides (the Furies) and were confronted by a group of elders from nearby Athens; Oedipus refused to leave the forbidden sanctuary and begged for an audience with the king of Athens, Theseus ; everyone in Greece had heard of the infamy of Oedipus but Theseus took pity on him and promised to protect him from all harm.

At this time, Ismene found her father and sister in the sanctuary and warned them that Kreon was plotting against Oedipus and that her brothers were insane with ambition; Oedipus was unmoved by the news of his troubled kingdom because of a premonition of his impending death; he sent Ismene to the nearby spring to fetch water so that he might cleanse himself and show proper respect for the goddesses of the sanctuary where he was determined to stay until his appointed hour with death. While Theseus was busy at the altar of Poseidon (lord of the Sea), Kreon appeared in the sanctuary and kidnapped Antigone; he said that Ismene was already his prisoner and that if Oedipus did not accompany him back to the border of Thebes, the girls would not be allowed to see him again; Oedipus could not return to Thebes because of his banishment but Kreon insisted that Oedipus would be a symbol of his (Kreon’s) right to the throne; Oedipus denounced Kreon and cursed him for his outrageous behavior.

The cries of outrage from the Athenian elders did not stop Kreon but Theseus heard the commotion and sent soldiers to retrieve Ismene and Antigone; Kreon was unrepentant for his rashness but did not resist the authority of Theseus; at this time Polynikes entered the sanctuary and begged his father to give his blessing for his impending attack on Thebes; Oedipus did not give his blessing but instead cursed Polynikes and his brother, Eteokles, to an ignoble death. Polynikes and Eteokles, unlike their sisters, had turned their backs on Oedipus while he had been in exile and so Oedipus had no sympathy for the ungrateful and self-serving behavior of his sons; the sound of thunder in the sanctuary of the Erinys was proof positive to the Athenian elders and Theseus that Oedipus was blessed by the Immortals and that he was to be treated with respect; they concluded that no man could be blamed for fulfilling the will and prophecies of Zeus or Apollon.

Oedipus promised Theseus that if he was allowed to die in peace that Theseus and his heirs would remain the unchallenged rulers of Athens for all time; Theseus and Oedipus went into the nearby forest and, with no other witnesses, Oedipus was taken into the Underworld . How to Cite this Page Cut and paste the following text for use in a paper or electronic document report. Stewart, Michael. "People, Places & Things: Oedipus", Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant. Cut and paste the following html for use in a web report. Stewart, Michael. &quot;People, Places &amp; Things: Oedipus&quot;, <i>Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant</i>. Cut and paste the following html for use in a web report. This format will link back to this page, which may be useful but may not be required. Stewart, Michael. &quot;People, Places &amp; Things: Oedipus&quot;, <i>Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant</i>.

<a href=""> Antigone (Greek mythology) - Credo Reference Topic Page: Antigone (Greek mythology) Definition: Antigone from The Columbia Encyclopedia (ăntĭg'ənē), in Greek mythology, daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta. In Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus, she and her sister Ismene follow their father into exile at Colonus. When her brothers Eteocles and Polynices killed each other in the war of the Seven against Thebes, Creon, King of Thebes, forbade the burial of the rebel Polynices. Antigone defied him and performed the funeral service. She hanged herself in the cave where Creon ordered her buried alive. In addition to Sophocles' Antigone, plays and operas that rework her legend have been written by Anouilh, Brecht, Cocteau, Honegger, and Orff. Summary Article: ANTIGONE from Gods, Goddesses, and Mythology Antigone was one of four children born from the incestuous relationship between Oedipus, king of Thebes, and his mother, Jocasta.

In Greek myth and drama, Antigone's chief virtue was loyalty: she guided her father after he blinded and exiled himself; and, in burying her brother Polyneices, she chose family duty and the laws of the gods over the laws of the state. When King Oedipus went into exile, Antigone accompanied him to Colonus in Attica. Her two brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, stayed behind in Thebes under the regency of their uncle, Creon. When Oedipus died, Antigone returned to Thebes to live with her brothers and uncle, as well as her sister Ismene. By then, the brothers had come of age and vied for the throne of Thebes. They decided to take turns ruling the city: one year Eteocles would rule, the next year Polyneices, and so on. At the end of the first year, however, Eteocles made no show of yielding the kingdom to his brother. Polyneices was forced into exile and took refuge with Adrastus, king of Argos, whose daughter Argeia he married.

Adrastus helped Polyneices assemble a huge army with seven leaders to attack Thebes—the army became known as the Seven Against Thebes. Deaths in the family The Seven failed dismally, but not before the two sons of Oedipus faced one another in battle and killed each other. As a consequence Creon, their uncle, became king. He gave an ornate funeral for Eteocles, but forbade the burial of Polyneices, whom he felt had betrayed his people by fighting against his own city. This was a very grave punishment: the ancient Greeks believed that without burial, a human soul could not enter the underworld and instead would flutter ceaselessly above the earth. Antigone could not accept Creon's treatment of her brother, and with a handful of dirt she gave him a symbolic burial. She asked Ismene to help her, but her sister was too afraid. Antigone's action was a direct violation of the king's orders, and Creon sentenced her to death. He locked her up in a tomb chamber and had its entrance sealed. The old prophet Tiresias, however, warned the king that he would be cursed for killing Antigone. Eventually, Creon changed his mind.

He allowed a proper burial for Polyneices and opened the entrance to Antigone's tomb, but it was too late: to avoid death by starvation, Antigone had hanged herself. Creon's son Haemon, who was engaged to marry Antigone, killed himself over his beloved's dead body. His death led Creon's wife, Eurydice, to commit suicide, too. Only Creon himself was left to live out the curse that Tiresias had prophesied. Antigone in literature and art The most famous version of Antigone's story is the play Antigone by Greek dramatist Sophocles (c. 496–406 BCE). Sophocles' tragedy demonstrates Antigone's qualities of piety and heroism. In burying her brother, she follows the laws of the gods in direct violation of the command of the king. She is aware that there will be serious consequences, but in her mind she has no other option but to act. For her, religious beliefs and family duty take precedence over the laws of the city; the burial of her brother is more important than her uncle's command. She does what is right in spite of the consequences to herself.

Antigone features in two other tragedies by Sophocles. In Oedipus the King, she and her sister Ismene appear at the end of the play to be with their father, who has torn out his eyes after learning that he has unwittingly killed his father Laius, and married his own mother. In the sequel to this play, Oedipus at Colonus Antigone is portrayed as a faithful daughter who guides her blind father from place to place during his exile. Antigone has continued to be an important character in more modern times. Inspired by Sophocles' Antigone, German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831) wrote several treatises about ethics, the individual, and the state. The first modern production of Antigone was performed with music by German composer Felix Mendelssohn in Potsdam, Germany, in 1841—a production that marked the beginning of the revival of Greek plays in western Europe. Among the many interpretations of the Antigone theme, there is one that deserves special mention.

In 1944, during the German occupation of France in World War II, French dramatist Jean Anouilh (1910–1987) wrote another play called Antigone. Anouilh's drama portrays Creon as a reasonable ruler, while Antigone is hysterical and unwilling to compromise. Yet despite these qualities, Antigone's attitude is very understandable: her brothers have killed one another, Creon has first refused to honor one of his nephews, and then sentenced one of his nieces to death. Under such circumstances, there is no place for reason. The play suggests that Antigone's rebellion against her uncle and life itself is the only choice left to her. The tragic end to the drama comes when Creon realizes that, despite all his power, he cannot stop his niece, son, and wife from destroying themselves. See also: DEATH AND THE AFTERLIFE; HADES; OEDIPUS. Further reading Graves, Robert. The Greek Myths. New York: Penguin, 2003. Sophocles, and Ruth Fainlight and Robert J. Littman, trans. The Theban Plays.

Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009. Citation Oedipus - Greek Mythology - Ancinet-Mythology.com Oedipus | Greek Mythology Oedipus was the son of the King Laius and the Queen Jocasta of Thebes. A curse on the Laius fortold that any son born of Jocasta would kill him. When Jocasta did bear a son, the child's feet were pierced and he was left do bleed to death. However, a shepherd found Oedipus and took him to King Polybus of Corinth, who adopted Oedipus. He named the child Oedipus, which means "swelled foot". When Oedipus grew older, he sought advice from an oracle. The oracle told him that he was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Fearing that he would harm Polybus, Oedipus fled the kingdom. As he left, he found Laius travelling. The charioteer treated him rudely, so Oedipus killed him and his entire party.

Oedipus arrived in Thebes he found the people troubled with Laius' death, and plagued by a monster, the Sphinx. Oedipus managed to outwit the Sphinx and kill it. Fullfilling his destiny, Oedipus then took the thrown of Thebes, marrying his mother, Jocasta. Sophocles retold this famous myth in his tragic play, Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King) you can read a full text of his play here: Oedipus Rex . Ismene * People, Places, & Things * Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant Ismene Ismene was one of the unfortunate daughters of king Oedipus of the city of Thebes . Ismene’s lineage is difficult to explain in ordinary terms because her father was also her brother.

Her grandfather, Laius , was the king of Thebes and was married to Iokaste (Jocasta); because of offenses he had committed in his youth, Laius was told by the oracle at Delphi that his son would kill him and marry his wife; when Laius and Iokaste had a son they plotted to kill the child but, through a series of divinely directed events, their infant son, Oedipus, escaped death and was raised in Korinth (Corinth) as the son of king, Polybos . When Oedipus grew to manhood the oracle at Delphi told him that he was destined to kill his father so he left Korinth and returned to Thebes without realizing that Thebes, not Korinth, was the home of his true mother and father; on the way to Thebes, Oedipus met Laius on the road and, after an altercation, killed him; Oedipus also encountered the Sphinx on the road to Thebes and after answering her riddle, she killed herself.

When Oedipus arrived in Thebes he was hailed as a hero for outwitting the Sphinx; he became the king of Thebes and, since Iokaste was now a widow, married her without realizing that she was his mother. Oedipus and Iokaste had four children: Antigone , Ismene, Eteokles (Eteocles) and Polynikes (Polynices); when the children were young adults, Oedipus realized what had happened and that he had, true to the prophecy, killed his father and was now married to his mother; Iokaste killed herself in shame; Oedipus blinded himself and went into a self-imposed exile. Ismene stayed in Thebes but Antigone went with her father as his guide and companion; Eteokles, as the eldest son, became the king of Thebes and exiled his brother, Polynikes.

After many years of wandering, Oedipus took refuge in the sanctuary of the Eumenides (the Furies) near the town of Kolonus (Colonus); Ismene found Oedipus and Antigone in the sanctuary and tried to warn him that Iokasta’s brother, Kreon (Creon), and Polynikes were both seeking his support in the coming confrontation between Eteokles and Polynikes; Kreon appeared in the sanctuary and kidnapped Ismene and Antigone in order to bring pressure on Oedipus to return to Thebes but the king of Athens , Theseus , rescued the young women before Kreon could make his escape. Soon afterwards, Oedipus died at Kolonus; Polynikes went to Thebes with his armies to depose Eteokles but both brothers were killed in the fray; Kreon decreed that Eteokles would have a proper burial because he had died defending Thebes but Polynikes’ body would be left to the dogs and vultures because he had died in disgrace by attacking his homeland and trying to depose the rightful king.

Antigone sought the help of Ismene so that Polynikes could be buried properly but Ismene would not be a part of any plan that might antagonize Kreon; without Ismene’s help, Antigone defied Kreon and gave her brother a proper burial. The age of Antigone and Ismene is a matter of debate; their ages are not clearly given but many scholars believe that Ismene was the eldest simply because her actions were more mature and reserved. For the complete telling of this story, read The Theban Plays by Sophokles (Sophocles); you can find these plays at your local library or you can order them through the Book Shop on this site which is linked to Amazon.com. How to Cite this Page Cut and paste the following text for use in a paper or electronic document report. Stewart, Michael. "People, Places & Things: Ismene", Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant. Cut and paste the following html for use in a web report. Stewart, Michael.

&quot;People, Places &amp; Things: Ismene&quot;, <i>Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant</i>. Cut and paste the following html for use in a web report. This format will link back to this page, which may be useful but may not be required. Stewart, Michael. &quot;People, Places &amp; Things: Ismene&quot;, <i>Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant</i>. <a href=""> Oedipus | Article about Oedipus by The Free Dictionary Oedipus | Article about Oedipus by The Free Dictionary Related to Oedipus: Oedipus Rex Oedipus (ĕd`ĭpəs, ē`dĭ–), in Greek legend, son of Laius, king of Thebes, and his wife, Jocasta. Laius had been warned by an oracle that he was fated to be killed by his own son; he therefore abandoned Oedipus on a mountainside.

The baby was rescued, however, by a shepherd and brought to the king of Corinth, who adopted him. When Oedipus was grown, he learned from the Delphic oracle that he would kill his father and marry his mother. He fled Corinth to escape this fate, believing his foster parents to be his real parents. At a crossroad he encountered Laius, quarreled with him, and killed him. He continued on to Thebes, where the sphinx sphinx , mythical beast of ancient Egypt, frequently symbolizing the pharaoh as an incarnation of the sun god Ra. The sphinx was represented in sculpture usually in a recumbent position with the head of a man and the body of a lion, although some were constructed with rams' ..... Click the link for more information. was killing all who could not solve her riddle. Oedipus answered it correctly and so won the widowed queen's hand. The prophecy was thus fulfilled. Two sons, Polynices and Eteocles, and two daughters, Antigone and Ismene, were born to the unwittingly incestuous pair.

When a plague descended on Thebes, an oracle declared that the only way to rid the land of its pollution was to expel the murderer of Laius. Through a series of painful revelations, brilliantly dramatized by Sophocles in Oedipus Rex, the king learned the truth and in an agony of horror blinded himself. According to Homer, Oedipus continued to reign over Thebes until he was killed in battle; but the more common version is that he was exiled by Creon, Jocasta's brother, and his sons battled for the throne (see Seven against Thebes Seven against Thebes, in Greek legend, seven heroes—Polynices, Adrastus, Amphiaraüs, Hippomedon, Capaneus, Tydeus, and Parthenopaeus—who made war on Eteocles, king of Thebes. ..... Click the link for more information. ). In Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus, Oedipus is guided in his later wanderings by his faithful daughter, Antigone. Oedipus Mythology - Ancient Greek Gods and Myths.

Mythology Principal Gods click for main characteristics Mythical Characters Zeus Homer the name traditionally assigned to the reputed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, the two major epics of Greek antiquity. Nothing is known about Homer as an individual. In fact, the question of whether a single person can be said to be responsible for the creation of the two epics is still controversial. However, linguistic and historical evidence allows the assumption that the poems were composed in the Greek settlements on the west coast of Asia Minor sometime in the 9th century BC. Electra was the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, the king and queen of Mycenae. When Electra's father returned from the Trojan war, her mother, Clytemnestra and her lover, Aegisthus killed him. They also killed Cassandra, a concubine of Agamemnon from the Trojan war... more » Antigone In ancient Greece, Antigone is mostly related to the myth that was told by the Ancient Greek playwright Sophocles, although there is reference to a different Antigone in the ancient Greek World. Antigone was the daughter of King Oedipus of Thebes and Jocasta.

The story says, Oedipus, the son of Laius and Jocasta killed his father Laius and became the king of Thebes. Oedipus unknowingly married his own mother Jocasta and had children by her. Thus, Antigone was the daughter and the sister of Oedipus... more » JASON's story is an ancient Greek myth, folk tale that is passed from generations to generations. About a hero who traveled on a voyage in search of the Golden Fleece, so that he could help his father get his kingdom back from King Pelias. Jason's father was Aeson, the King of Lolcus and mother Alcimede. Aeson stepbrother Pelias was eager for the throne of Lolcus, so in a battle, he removed Aeson from power and made himself the King. Aeson and Pelias shared a common mother, Tyro. She was the daughter of Salmoneus and sea god Poseidon. Pelias, to make sure that no one from Aeson's family could challenge him, killed his family. But Alcimede saved their baby, Jason.

To save him Alcimede gave away her baby son to Chiron, who became his guardian. But Pelias was obsessed with his throne and he consulted an oracle that told him that a man wearing one sandal would be the reason for his end... more » Chaos - in one ancient Greek myth of creation, the dark, silent abyss from which all things came into existence. According to the Theogony of Hesiod, Chaos generated the solid mass of Earth, from which arose the starry, cloud-filled Heaven. Mother Earth and Father Heaven, personified respectively as Gaea and her offspring Uranus, were the parents of the Titans. In a later theory, Chaos is the formless matter from which the cosmos, or harmonious order, was created. Gaea - She was the mother and wife of Father Heaven, Uranus. They were the parents of the first creatures, the Titans, the Cyclopes, and the Giants - the Hecatoncheires (Hundred - Headed Ones). Uranus hated the monsters, and, even though they were his children, locked them in a secret place in the earth. Gaea was enraged at this favoritism and persuaded their son Cronos to overthrow his father.

He emasculated Uranus, and from his blood Gaea brought forth the Giants, and the three avenging goddesses the Erinyes. Her last and most terrifying offspring was Typhon, a 100-headed monster, who, although conquered by the god Zeus, was believed to spew forth the molten lava flows of Mount Etna. Tartarus - The lowest region of the underworld. Hesiod claimed that a brazen anvil would take none days and nights to fall from heaven to earth, and nine days and nights to fall from earth to Tartarus. Tartarus rose out of Chaos and was the destination of wicked souls. Uranus banished his children the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires to Tartarus, as Zeus also did to the Titans. Other famous inhabitants of Tartarus include Sisyphus, Ixion, Tantalus, Salmoneus, Tityus, Ophion, and the daughters of Danaus. Eros - The god of love. He was thought of as a handsome and intense young man, attended by Pothos ("longing") or Himeros ("desire").

Later mythology made him the constant attendant of his mother, Aphrodite, goddess of love. Erebus - Personification of the darkness of the Underworld and the offspring of Chaos. . In later myth, Erebus was the dark region beneath the earth through which the shades must pass to the realm of Hades below. He is often used metaphorically for Hades itself. Uranus - Gaea - The personification of the sky; the god of the heavens and husband of Gaea, the goddess of the earth. . Their children are the Hecatonchires, the Cyclopes and the Titans. Pontus - The sea god. Cyclopes - Three sons: Arges, Brontes, and Steropes of Uranus and Gaea. The Cyclops were giant beings with a single, round eye in the middle of their foreheads.They helped Zeus defeat their brother, Cronus, by forging lightning bolts. They also made Poseidon's trident and Hades invisibility cap. Hecatonchires - Three sons of Uranus and Gaia. There were three of them: Briareus also called Aegaeon, Cottus, and Gyges also called Gyes.

They were gigantic and had fifty heads and one hundred arms each of great strength. They had 100 hands and helped Zeus in his war against the Titans. Cronus - Rhea - Cronus was a ruler of the universe during the Golden Age. He was one of the 12 Titans and the youngest son of Uranus and Gaea, Cronus and his sister-queen, Rhea, became the parents of 6 of the 12 gods and goddesses known as the Olympians. Cronus had been warned that he would be overthrown by one of his own children. To prevent this, he swallowed his first five children as soon as they were born. Rhea did not like this. She substituted a stone wrapped in swaddling clothes for their sixth child, Zeus. He was hidden in Crete, and when he was older, he returned and forced Cronos to disgorge all the other children, who had grown inside of him. Zeus and his siblings fought a war against Cronos and the Titans. Zeus won, and the Titans were confined in Tartarus, a cave in the deepest part of the underworld.

Coeus - Phoebe - Coeus was a titan of Intelligence, the father of Leto, husband of Phoebe. Oceanus - Tethys - The personification of the vast ocean. Together with his wife Tethys, they produced the rivers and six thousand offsprings called the Oceanids. He ruled over Ocean, a great river encircling the earth, which was believed to be a flat circle. The nymphs of this great river, the Oceanids, were their daughters, and the gods of all the streams on earth were their sons. Hestia - Virgin goddess of the hearth. She was the symbol of the house, around which a new born child was carried before it was received into the family. Although she appears in very few myths, most cities had a common hearth where her sacred fire burned. I Hades - He was made lord of the underworld, ruling over the dead. He is a greedy god who is greatly concerned with increasing his subjects. Those whose calling increase the number of dead were seen favorably by him. He was also the god of wealth, due to the precious metals mined from the earth. His wife was Persephone whom Hades abducted.

The underworld itself was often called Hades. It was divided into two regions: Erebus, where the dead pass as soon as they die, and Tartarus, the deeper region, where the Titans had been imprisoned. It was a dim and unhappy place, inhabited by vague forms and shadows and guarded by Cerberus, the three-headed, dragon-tailed dog. Sinister rivers separated the underworld from the world above, and the aged boatman Charon ferried the souls of the dead across these waters. Poseidon - God of the sea. His weapon was a trident, which could shake the earth, and shatter any object. He was second only to Zeus in power amongst the gods. Under the ocean, he had a marvelous golden palace. Poseidon was the husband of Amphitrite, one of the Nereids, by whom he had a son, Triton. Poseidon had numerous other love affairs. At one point he desired Demeter. To put him off Demeter asked him to make the most beautiful animal that the world had ever seen. To impress her Poseidon created the first horse. In some accounts his first attempts were unsucessful and created a varity of other animals in his quest.

By the time the horse was created his passion for Demeter had cooled. Zeus - Hera - The god of the sky and ruler of the gods of Mount Olympus. He displaced his father and assumed the leadership of the gods of Olympus. Zeus was considered the father of the gods and of mortals. He did not create either gods or mortals; he was their father in the sense of being the protector and ruler both of the Olympian family and of the human race. His weapon was a thunderbolt. His breastplate was the aegis, his bird the eagle, his tree the oak. He was married to Hera but, is famous for his many affairs, which resulted in many known children and probably many more that were not known to be his. Athena was his favorite child. He bore her alone from his head. One of the greatest feasts for Zeus was the Olympic games. They were taking place every four years in Olympia. Even if there was a war between the city-states of Greece they were stopping the war to take part on that games. Hera's marriage was founded in strife with Zeus and continued in strife. Writers represented Hera as constantly being jealous of Zeus's various amorous affairs.

She punished her rivals and their children, among both goddesses and mortals, with implacable fury. The peacock (the symbol of pride; her wagon was pulled by peacocks) and the cow (she was also known as Bopis, meaning "cow-eyed", which was later translated as "with big eyes") were her sacred animals. Her favorite city was Argos. Demeter - Zeus - Goddess of corn and the harvest. She taught mankind the art of sowing and ploughing so they could end their nomadic existence. She was of a severe, a beauty scarcely relieved by her hair. which was as fair as ripened grain. Poseidon coveted her, but Demeter refused herself to him. To escape him she fled to Arkadia where, assuming the shape of a mare, she mingled with the herds of King Oncus. Poseidon, however, succeeded in finding her, changed himself into a stallion and made her the mother of the horse Arion. When her daughter Persephone was abducted by Hades, god of the underworld, Demeter's grief was so great that she neglected the land; no plants grew, and famine devastated the earth.

Dismayed at this situation, Zeus, demanded that his brother Hades return Persephone to her mother. Hades agreed, but before he released the girl, he made her eat some pomegranate seeds that would force her to return to him for four months each year. In her joy at being reunited with her daughter, Demeter caused the earth to bring forth bright spring flowers and abundant fruit and grain for the harvest. However, her sorrow returned each autumn when Persephone had to return to the underworld. The desolation of the winter season and the death of vegetation were regarded as the yearly manifestation of Demeter's grief when her daughter was taken from her. Demeter and Persephone were worshipped in the rites of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Persephone - Persephone was the Queen of the Underworld and the daughter of Demeter. Persephone is the goddess of the underworld in Greek mythology. She is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, goddess of the harvest. Persephone was such a beautiful girl that everyone loved her, even Hades wanted her for himself. Although Zeus gave his consent, Demeter was unwilling.

Hades, therefore, seized the maiden as she was gathering flowers and carried her off to his realm. Persephone was a personification of the revival of nature in spring. Her attributes in iconography can include a torch, a crown, a sceptre, and stalks of grain. Leto - Zeus - The mother of Artemis, goddess of the bow and of hunting. She was loved by the god Zeus, who, fearing the jealousy of his wife, Hera, banished Leto when she was about to bear his child. All countries and islands were also afraid of Hera's wrath and refused the desperate Leto a home where her child could be born. Finally, in her wanderings, she set foot on a small island floating in the Aegean Sea, which was called Delos. Iapetus - The son Uranus and Gaea. Iapetus' wife was Clymene. Athena - or Pallas-Athene, is one of the most important goddesses in Greek mythology. Goddess of wisdom, war, the arts, industry, justice and skill. Athena sprang full-grown and armoured from the forehead of the god Zeus and was his favourite child.

She was fierce and brave in battle but, only fights to protect the state and home from outside enemies. She was the goddess of the city, handicrafts, and agriculture. She invented the bridle, which permitted man to tame horses, the trumpet, the flute, the pot, the rake, the plow, the yoke, the ship, and the chariot. Her attributes in iconography include the aegis (a fringed cloak, sometimes decorated with a Gorgon's head), the helmet, and the spear. Ares - God of war. He was very aggressive. He was unpopular with both gods and humans. Ares was not invincible, even against mortals. He personified the brutal nature of war. He was immortal but whenever he would get hurt he would run back to his father, Zeus and was healed. Ares was mainly worshipped in Thracia. Hebe - The goddess of youth. She, along with Ganymede were the cupbearers to the gods, serving them their nectar and ambrosia. She also prepared Ares' bath, and helped Hera to her chariot. Hebe was Hercules' wife. Hephaestus - God of fire and metalwork.

He was born lame and weak, and shortly after his birth, he was cast out of Olympus. In most legends, however, he was soon honoured again on Olympus and was married to Aphrodite, goddess of love, or to Aglaia, one of the three Graces. His workshop was believed to lie under Mount Etna, a volcano in Sicily. He made many wonderful artifacts for the gods, including the twelve golden thrones of the Olympians, their weapons and treasures. Apollo - Apollo was primarily a god of prophecy. He sometimes gave the gift of prophecy to mortals whom he loved, such as the Trojan princess Cassandra. As a prophet and magician, he is the patron of medicine and healing. He was a gifted musician, who delighted the gods with his performance on the lyre. He was also a master archer and a fleet-footed athlete, credited with having been the first victor in the Olympic games. His twin sister was Artemis. He was famous for his oracle at Delphi. People traveled to it from all over the Greek world to divine the future. He was also the god of agriculture and cattle, and of light and truth.

Artemis - Artemis was the goddess of the hunt and animals, as well as of childbirth. Her twin brother was Apollo. As the moon goddess, she was sometimes identified with the goddesses Selene and Hecate.Her attributes are the bow and arrow, while dogs, deer and goose are her sacred animals. Her most elaborate temple was in Ephesis. Atlas - Son of the Titan Iapetus and the nymph Clymene, and brother of Prometheus. Atlas fought with the Titans in the war against the deities of Mount Olympus. Atlas stormed the heavens and Zeus punished him for this deed by condemning him to forever bear the earth and the heavens upon his shoulders. He was the father of the Hesperides, the nymphs who guarded the tree of golden apples, and Heracles (Hercules). Prometheus - Prometheus was the wisest Titan, known as the friend and benefactor of humanity.He stole the sacred fire from Zeus and the gods. He also tricked the gods so that they should get the worst parts of any animal sacrificed to them, and human beings the best. Zeus commanded that Prometheus be chained for eternity in the Caucasus.

There, an eagle would eat at his liver and each day, the liver would be renewed. So the punishment was endless, until Heracles finally killed the bird. Epimetheus - Epimetheus was a Titan, whose name meant "afterthought". In some accounts, he was delegated, along with his brother Prometheus by Zeus to create mankind. He foolishly ignored his brother Prometheus' warnings to beware of any gifts from Zeus. He accepted Pandora as his wife, thereby bringing ills and sorrows to the world. Maia - Zeus - Maia was a daughter of Atlas. She was one of Zeus' lovers. She, along with Zeus was the mother of Hermes. Dione - Zeus - The goddess or Titaness Dione became by Zeus the mother of Aphrodite. Hermes - Hermes' main role was as a messenger. As the special servant and courier of Zeus, Hermes had winged sandals and a winged hat and bore a golden caduceus, or magic wand, entwined with snakes and surmounted by wings. He conducted the souls of the dead to the underworld and was believed to possess magical powers over sleep and dreams. Five minutes after he was born, he stole a herd of cows from Apollo.

He invented the lyre from a cow's internal fibers. After Apollo learned what happened, he knew that his half-brother should he one of the pantheon. Hermes was the patron of trickster and thieves because of his actions early in life. His attributes in iconography include the kerykeion (messenger's staff), winged boots, and petassos (cap). Aphrodite - The goddess of love and beauty. Aphrodite loved and was loved by many gods and mortals. Among her mortal lovers, the most famous was perhaps Adonis. Some of her sons are Eros, Anteros, Hymenaios and Aeneas (with her Trojan lover Anchises). Perhaps the most famous legend about Aphrodite concerns the cause of the Trojan War. She was the wife of Hephaestus. The myrtle was her tree. The dove, the swan, and the sparrow were her birds. Zeus - Before the pantheon of Greek gods we are familiar with ruled atop Olympus, an earlier generation of deities, known as Titans, held power. The ruler of these divine beings was Cronus, son of Gaia (Mother Earth).

Cronus' mother had informed him that he would be usurped by one of his offspring who would be tremendously powerful. Therefore, whenever Cronus' wife Rhea bore a child he would swallow the newborn god to prevent them from overturning his power... more » Oedipus facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Oedipus Oedipus Oedipus was a tragic hero of Greek mythology, a king doomed to a dire fate because he unknowingly killed his father and married his mother. His story is the tale of someone who, because he did not know his true identity, followed the wrong path in life. Once he had set foot on that path, his best qualities could not save him from the results of actions that violated the laws of gods and men. Oedipus represents two enduring themes of Greek myth and drama: the flawed nature of humanity and an individual's powerlessness against the course of destiny in a harsh universe. The Myth. The story begins with a son born to King Laius and Queen Jocasta of Thebes*. The oracle at Delphi * told them that their child would grow up to murder Laius and marry Jocasta.

Horrified, the king fastened the infant's feet together with a large pin and left him on a mountainside to die. However, shepherds found the baby—who became known as Oedipus, or "swollen foot"—and took him to the city of Corinth. There King Polybus and Queen Merope adopted him and raised him to think that he was their own son. When Oedipus was grown, however, someone told him that he was not the son of Polybus. Oedipus went to Delphi to ask the oracle about his parentage. The answer he received was, "You are the man fated to murder his father and marry his mother." Like Laius and Jocasta, Oedipus was determined to avoid the destiny predicted for him. Believing that the oracle had said he was fated to kill Polybus and marry Merope, he vowed never to return to Corinth. Instead, he headed toward Thebes.

oracle priest or priestess or other creature through whom a god is believed to speak; also the location (such as a shrine) where such words are spoken destiny future or fate of an individual or thing Along the way, Oedipus came to a narrow road between cliffs. There he met an older man in a chariot coming the other way. The two quarreled over who should give way, and Oedipus killed the stranger and went on to Thebes. He found the city in great distress. He learned that a monster called the Sphinx was terrorizing the Thebans by devouring them when they failed to answer its riddle and that King Laius had been murdered on his way to seek help from the Delphic oracle.

The riddle of the Sphinx was "What walks on four legs in the morning, two at noon, and three in the evening?" Oedipus gave the correct answer: "A human being, who crawls as an infant, walks erect in maturity, and leans on a staff in old age." With this answer, Oedipus not only defeated the Sphinx, which killed itself in rage, but won the throne of the dead king and the hand in marriage of the king's widow, Jocasta. * See Names and Places at the end of this volume for further information. Oedipus and Jocasta lived happily for a time and had two sons and two daughters. Then a dreadful plague came upon Thebes. A prophet declared that the plague would not end until the Thebans drove out the murderer of Laius, who was within the city. A messenger then arrived from Corinth, announcing the death of King Polybus and asking Oedipus to return and rule the Corinthians. Oedipus told Jocasta what the oracle had predicted for him and expressed relief that the danger of his murdering Polybus was past.

Jocasta told him not to fear oracles, for the oracle had said that her first husband would be killed by his own son, and instead he had been murdered by a stranger on the road to Delphi. Suddenly Oedipus remembered that fatal encounter on the road and knew that he had met and killed his real father, Laius. At the same time, Jocasta realized that the scars on Oedipus's feet marked him as the baby whose feet Laius had pinned together so long ago. Faced with the fact that she had married her own son and the murderer of Laius, she hanged herself. Oedipus seized a pin from her dress and blinded himself with it. Some accounts say that Oedipus was banished at once from Thebes, while others relate that he lived a miserable existence there, despised by all, until his children grew up. Eventually he was driven into exile, accompanied by his two daughters, Antigone and Ismene. After years of lonely wandering, he arrived in Athens , where he found refuge in a grove of trees called Colonus.

By this time, warring factions in Thebes wanted him to return to that city, believing that his body would bring it luck. However, Oedipus died at Colonus, and the presence of his grave there was said to bring good fortune to Athens. Legacy. Thus runs the best-known account of the myth of Oedipus, preserved in Oedipus the King and Oedipus at Colonus, two dramas by the ancient Greek playwright Sophocles . Most versions of the story have followed the pattern that Sophocles set down, although an earlier version, mentioned by Homer in the Greek epics the Iliad and the Odyssey , says that after Oedipus's identity was revealed, Jocasta hanged herself. Oedipus, however, continued to rule Thebes, died in battle, and was buried with honor. prophet one who claims to have received divine messages or insights epic long poem about legendary or historical heroes, written in a grand style The story of Oedipus has inspired artists and thinkers since ancient times.

The Roman philosopher Seneca wrote a tragedy entitled Oedipus that influenced writers such as England 's John Dryden and Alexander Pope and France 's Voltaire and Pierre Corneille. Later artistic treatments of the Oedipus story include a translation of Sophocles' work by Irish poet William Butler Yeats, a play entitled The Infernal Machine by Jean Cocteau of France, music by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky, and the movie Oedipus Rex by Italian filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini. Sigmund Freud , one of the founders of modern psychiatry, used the term Oedipus complex to refer to a psychological state in which boys or men experience hostility toward their fathers and are attracted to their mothers. See also Antigone; Greek Mythology; Homer; Jocasta; Sphinx. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. MLA

Question: Who was the mythical Greek king of Thebes who killed his father so he could marry his mother?
Answer: Oedipus