Song, or melody, is fifth, and is the musical element of the chorus. Aristotle argues that the Chorus should be fully integrated into the play like an actor; choral odes should not be “mere interludes,” but should contribute to the unity of the plot.
Choose one ode and analyze how it contributes to the unity of the plot.
In the strophe 1 of the fourth ode, the chorus comments on Oedipus's recent revelation regarding the truth behind his past. "Your splendor is all fallen. O naked brow of wrath and tears, O change of Oedipus! I who saw your days call no man blest-Your great days like ghosts gone." This is significant because the chorus, though mournful, has also lost hope in the king they regarded so highly throughout the story. The ode goes on to resell the story of Oedipus and recount the "false years" that have passed since Laïos's death.
ReplyDeleteIn Ode 1, the chorus is telling about not only the prophecy but also about the man telling the prophecy. It does not tell directly about the things to come though, but rather hints at events that could happen. However, technically they still don't think that Oedipus himself is the man that did the crime, and thinks that it is speaking of someone else. This creates a bit of irony to tie into the play and storyline.
ReplyDeleteOde III is the shortest in the play. It is hopeful and optimistic in tone. It is an example of the "false hope" that Oedipus can escape his fate. The ode is even deceiving, like Iocaste in the scenes, it diverts ones attention from the real issues of the play.
ReplyDeleteThe Chorus is optimistic that the shepherd will reveal that Oedipus was born of a noble race. They try to guess the origin of Oedipus' birth. Some say he was born of nymphs; some say of the god Apollo; and other say of Hermes. They conclude by saying that Oedipus must have been born of the Dionysus. The Chorus is painting a picture of a noble, royal, and wise king who must have been the child of the gods and who will have a happy ending.
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ReplyDeleteThough the chorus looks at the situation with regret, they are steadfast in their search for justice. (ex) "For I weep the world's outcast.." and "But all eye's fail before time's eye, all actions come to justice there.")
ReplyDeleteOde 3 is talking about the mountain, Kithairon, where Oedipus was found and how it is still unknown who his real parents were and who had found him and took him to the people who had raised him as their son. We had just learned that Oedipus was given to the people he thought were his parents after he was found on Kithairon and he had sent for the man who had found him on Kithairon. So this ode contributes to the unity of the plot because it starts to make us wonder who had found him, why he was left on the mountain, and why was he given away to this other family. This then makes the audience think about what really happened to Oedipus on Kithairon and sets up the story for when the man who found Oedipus comes to tell him about what happened to him.
ReplyDeleteParagraph 2 of Ode 2 describes our main character, Oedipus. "The tyrant is a child of pride, who drinks from his great sickening cup, recklessness and vanity, until from his high crest headlong he plummets to the dust of hope. That strong man is not strong." The tyrant is a child of pride represents Oedipus, his great sickening cup meaning all the lies that he has been told by his parents, real and fake. He was riding high until he heard his prophecy, now he is desperately hoping that it is false. He isn't a strong moral character anymore.
ReplyDeleteIn Ode three, the chorus is all questioning where Oedipus came from, and how he became their king from just being a baby in the wilderness. It is stated here, "Who bore you, royal child." Being Greek, they assume that the grand mountain has something to do with his birth. When they say, "And caught you up in his own proud Arms from the sweet god-ravisher," they are suggesting that Oedipus must come from some god or a royal family.
ReplyDeleteIn contribution to the plot, and to unify it as well, Sophocles adds in Ode 1 as a way to include past incite upon the subject of the prophecy. It is the people of Thebes, the generalization that their hero Oedipus is not a killer, but who should they believe? They believe Oedipus should be righteous, to help capture the murderer of their beloved king, to be stronger than the words of those who seek to suppress him and his greatness with their evil lies. They want him to hunt down the murderer, and to bring him to justice, but they hear the prophecy from the seer, the man who has a direct connection to the Gods, or supposedly so, and they hear another tale; that their hero is not what he seems and lives as something he is not. His downfall, from hero, to someone who the masses question, all come from this one, singular man, proving that strife lives within those even of the highest of houses. Although the man is a connection with the Gods, and the Gods know all and only speak truth, the people wonder who they should really believe for wisdom changes in second sight, and this leads to confusion, with hopes that Oedipus can overcome the "evil lies" and prove to be worthy of his heroic status.
ReplyDeleteOde IV, the last ode, ties the entire play together by giving context and emotion to Oedipus's fate. The chorus continues to switch between praising Oedipus to mourning his fate. The chorus expresses their unchanged love for him, regardless of what happened and also shift the blame to the gods, the prophecy, and at one point call out Jocasta when they say "How could the queen whom Laios won, the garden that he harrowed at his height be silent when the act was done?" It makes you pity Oedipus more if you are the audience, and adds to the wanted katharsis.
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