byhas often been held
up as the paradigmatic example of the Greek , possessing many of the literary elements that
ancient critics considered essential to the genre.
The first literary element
one finds is the use of verse. Unlike contemporary dramas, which are written in prose,
Rex is written entirely in verse.
As is typical of
Greek tragedies, Oedipus Rex is performed by three actors and a . The
actors engaged in spoken verse dialogue, while the choral odes were normally sung; thewould
dance as they sang and certain choral meters were often accompanied by traditional dance
movements associated with those metrical patterns.
Oedipus
Rex alternates episodes, in which the actors engage in dialogue, frequently in the
meter of iambic hexameter, with choral odes in varied meters, performed by the chorus. The
choral odes were normally organized into a strophe, in which the chorus
moved in one direction, followed by an antistrophe in the identical meter
in which the chorus moved back in the opposite direction to its original position, and an
epode, performed standing still.
The plot structure of
the play begins with anthat informs the audience of a problem, the plague in the city of Thebes.
The middle of the play develops mystery and conflict, and consists of what is sometimes termed
"rising action". Theof the play occurs when we discover that Oedipus has indeed killed
his father and married his mother. The resolution of the play occurs when Oedipus blinds himself
and leaves the city. Thus the play has the narrative literary elements of plot structure and
conflict.
No comments:
Post a Comment