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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Oedipus say the chorus' position will result in?

2. Does Oedipus want to see the person the messenger says gave him the infant Oedipus?

3. What does Jocasta say about human prophecy?

4. Where did Laius order his infant child to be put?

5. Why does Oedipus say he must remain afraid?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the first thing Oedipus tells Jocasta, when he tells her about the argument between himself and Creon?

2. How does the chorus react to Creon's self defense?

3. What does Oedipus say, when he finally finds out the truth about his past and his present situation?

4. What is Oedipus's attitude toward his wife?

5. How did Polybus die?

6. When Oedipus is questioning Creon, why does he ask Creon how long it's been since Laius was killed?

7. Why does Oedipus question how his father could love him?

8. What is Jocasta's response, when Oedipus wants to find and question the shepherd that the messenger said gave him the infant Oedipus?

9. What prophecy does Jocasta tell Oedipus about?

10. How does Jocasta feel about Polybus' death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the natural order in Oedipus, and how does Oedipus upset it?

1) What causes the plague on Thebes? Is Apollo sending a plague as punishment, or is the plague a natural reaction to a disruption in the natural order?

2) What is the hierarchy of power in the play? What place to gods, rulers, men, women, and slaves have in this hierarchy?

3) What makes Oedipus's crime severe enough to upset the natural order?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Oedipus as a tragic hero.

1) What are the qualities of a tragic hero, and how does Oedipus embody those qualities? Are there any ways in which Oedipus is not a tragic hero?

2) What is Oedipus' tragic flaw? How does it contribute to his downfall?

3) The chorus comments on how far Oedipus has fallen in the end of the play. Why is it important for a tragic hero to be a mighty person who falls to a low position? How does Oedipus fulfill this aspect of the tragic hero?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss prophecy in OEDIPUS THE KING.

1) What is the reasons gods provide prophecies in OEDIPUS THE KING? If the characters know their futures, why aren't they better able to change them?

2) How do prophecies fulfill themselves in OEDIPUS THE KING? Are prophecies escapable?

3) How is the prophecy Laius receives different from the prophecy Oedipus receives? Why are these prophecies different?

(see the answer keys)

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