Summary of Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannos
Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannos Characters
Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannos Study Questions
Terms to Know
Hamartia
Conventionally, hamartia can mean anything from mistake to sin. It is usually translated as tragic flaw. Hamartia is related to the Greek for missing the mark in archery (Rabinowitz). In Greek tragedy, it generally means mistake. Here is a page that argues against Oedipus having a tragic flaw: The so-called "tragic flaw" (why there isn't one).Anagnorisis
Anagnorisis is the technical term for the moment of recognition. From this point, things go downhill for the protagonist.Tyrant
The play is usually translated into Latin as Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King), but the Greek form is Oedipus Tyrannos. There is a difference because unlike a king (Greek: basileus) a tyrant was not an hereditary monarch. Oedipus acquired the throne when it was awarded him by the Cadmaeans for saving them from the sphinx. This idea comes from the same site as the comment on hamartia.Stasimon, Strophe, Antistrophe
CC Flickr User Alun Salt.
The chorus moves onto the stage (orchestra) during the parados. This is also called the eisodos where the "eis-" pref refers to the action of the chorus going in. The parados comes after the prologue. The next choral ode is the first stasimon. Stasimon refers to a standing song. There are two sections to these, a strophe and an antistrophe. These are balanced metrical sections of the stasimon. There may be more than one strophe, but then there should be the same number of antistrophes. Following these pairs, there may be an epode. The exodus, like the eisodos (parodos), refers to the movement of the chorus -- this time, out.
