Oedipus

When he first appears, Oedipus—unlike other Senecan protagonists—does not initially identify himself. Instead, the audience must see his royal costume and hear his personal narrative to infer his status and name. Like other Senecan protagonists, this opening monologue is character-defining. From the start, the play establishes Oedipus as a good king. He is concerned about his kingdom and searches for a solution to the plague. Yet this monologue also emphasizes his anxiety about his role, as he wonders, “What joy lies in kingship? O treacherous prize / What evils you hide with that smiling face” (6-7). For Oedipus, the “evils” of kingship now appear to outweigh the benefits and high status that royalty once granted him. Furthermore, he is tormented by suspicions that he has committed a crime that has made him responsible for the plague, with his lack of infection deepening his guilt, as he worries that he has “made the air guilty” (36). As a result of this guilt, Oedipus fears he has failed as a king and falls “[p]rostate at the altar” (71). He prays for “an early fate/ Before the fatherland’s ruin: let me not / Be last to fall, my realm’s final funeral” (72-74). Thus, Oedipus’s opening soliloquy serves to establish both the crisis in Thebes and Oedipus’s own internal conflict.  

The opening soliloquy also introduces one of the play’s main thematic concerns: Oedipus’s attempts to alter fate inadvertently fulfill the prophecy and bring destruction to Thebes. Oedipus seems partially aware of the dangers of trying to avoid fate, as he repeatedly references the prophecy. He describes how the “Delphic laurels warn[ed]” (16) him about his fate, but the severity of these sins shock Oedipus and he is “ashamed to speak [his] fate” (19). He worries that “this fear” (22) that drove him to flee Corinth as he “moved your laws, / Nature, to safety” (24-25) caused him to sin anyway, suggesting that fate is always inevitable.

When Jocasta enters during these final protestations, she criticizes Oedipus for his “whining” (82), as she believes that he is failing to meet the expectations surrounding a king. Jocasta questions his bravery and his leadership, stating that a king “[s]hould seize adversity” (82). Oedipus’s imploring prayer is not the strong action she believes a king should take. She alludes to his ascension to the throne, as she believes that the “more doubtful / His position and unstable his power / The firmer he should stand, brave and steadfast” (83-85), alluding to the belief that Oedipus is supposedly an outsider instead of the rightful heir to the throne. This creates dramatic irony, a situation in which the audience knows something before the characters do. In the case of Oedipus, an audience familiar with the myth will know that Oedipus is the son and heir of the murdered Laius.

Jocasta’s criticism of Oedipus as a king also includes her own views on fate. Rather than viewing the plague as a punishment, she sees it as an opportunity brought by destiny. She states that “[h]e is no man who flees before Fortune” (82-86). At this moment, Jocasta is commenting on how Oedipus is not capitalizing on the political opportunities presented by the plague, as it presents him with a chance to prove himself a strong leader. Ironically, Jocasta is not yet aware that she herself has unsuccessfully fled from fate, for at this moment, neither are aware that Oedipus has not escaped the horrors predicted for him.

When Oedipus retells the story of his encounter with the Sphinx that establishes his claim to the throne, he emphasizes his physical bravery and the gruesome violence of the encounter. Oedipus’s “courage knows no cowardly terrors” (88) as he “did not run from the Sphinx’s blinding mesh / Of words” (92-93). Unlike most retellings that focus on his cleverness, Seneca’s Oedipus uses this story to illustrate physical prowess and bravery. The Sphinx had “vatic jaws of blood” (93), and the “dirt [was] blanched with scattered bones” (94). Oedipus describes how she was “[p]oised over her prey” (96), “[h]urling her threats like some savage lion” (97), and “claw[ing] the cliff / With talons” (99-100). While Oedipus’s retelling stresses his courage in the face of physical danger, it also ironically alludes to Oedipus’s current struggle to solve the riddle of his fate and the fate of the city: In focusing only on his physical struggle with the Sphinx, Oedipus overlooks the deeper symbolic meaning the encounter might hold for him. The Sphinx itself is also an unnatural mixture of creatures, paralleling the incestuous nature of Oedipus’s marriage and parenthood.

The appearance of the chorus signals the end of Act I and marks the passage of time. In Seneca’s tragedy, the chorus is a group that is separate from the main action of the play; they do not directly interact with other characters or influence the action. The common people of Thebes comprise Seneca’s chorus, which details their suffering during the plague and their perspective on the ruling class. Their opening remark specifically calls out the “High-born breed of Cadmus” (109) and connects it to the city, stating that they will “fall / With all the city” (109-110). In the kingdom, the countryside is “[w]idowed of tillers” (112) and the gates of heaven “are not wide enough / For the crowd coveting a grave” (129-130). The chorus here develops Oedipus’s initial description of the suffering of Thebes to create a greater sense of urgency for the play that contrasts with the royal Creon’s later insistence that Oedipus should not actively pursue the answer needed to save the city. In their pointed description of their suffering, the chorus illustrates why they want to hold the guilty responsible.

The chorus’s final image creates a parallel between the city and Oedipus. Earlier in the act, Oedipus prayed for his own death to end the plague for his people. Here, those sick with the plague pray for their own death to end their suffering. Unlike Oedipus’s, their wish is granted.