Oedpius - Journal #3

Journal Prompt #3:
 Compare how writers in your study have explored the themes of judgement and punishment, or disguise and deceit, or love and friendship.

Response:
In Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Federico Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding the themes of judgement and punishment are explored. In both plays the judging of others is quite prominent, and the punishment which follows is a large aspect of the plays. Whether it be blatant judgement and punishment such as in Oedipus or the more subtle judgement and punishment of Blood Wedding, but Sophocles and Lorca have it as a clear theme.

Sophocles takes a direct approach in exploring judgement and punishment in Oedipus the King. Through the use of gods and oracles, including Apollo, judgement of Oedipus is key to the story. The power that Oedipus holds at the beginning is materialistic since he is in charge of the kingdom. Oedipus does not yet have the power of wisdom. For Oedipus being full of himself, he must experience punishment. The prophecy states that he will kill his father, which he does. By doing this and fulfilling the prophecy he is then judged by the gods and loses his material power and is punished by having his daughters sent away and gouging out his own eyes. By doing this Oedipus might have lost his material power, but he gains the power of wisdom as he has gone through and experienced a lot. The judgement and punishment end up benefiting Oedipus in the end, in a way.

Lorca, on the other hand, approaches judgement and punishment in a more subtle manner. Some of the characters judge the Bride from the beginning, even though they do not know her, one of which includes the Bridegroom's Mother. Later on they continue to judge her as she runs off with Leonardo and can objectively judge her. The punishment later not only comes to the Bride, but to all of the families as the Bridegroom dies. This is essential to the play as the punishment the Bride faces is not physical, but instead emotional stress. The Bridegroom's Mother also faces punishment due to being quick to judge earlier, even though she is right.

Oedipus - Journal #2

Journal Prompt #2:
To what extent would you agree that plot should be valued more highly than style in the work. In your answer you should refer to two or three works you have studied.


Response:

In each of the literary works we are studying style often seems to be the focus of the reading. The way the story is written is essential to understanding a theme behind the story/play itself. Although noticing and exploring style is important, it is first most important to understand the plot itself. Sometimes the plot may not give as great of insight to the story as the style does, but other times looking at the over all picture is just as important.

The play Oedipus the King is one of the cases in which the plot should be valued more highly than the stylistic aspects of the work. In ancient Greece the story was performed as a play, which allowed the way it was acted out to be style. The most essential aspect of the play itself, though, is the story. Without a solid storyline the message of the play would not as easily be conveyed. To someone who is told the tale of Oedipus they can comprehend that the tragedy is the main focus of the play, where as picking apart diction and tone “beat around the bush”, so to speak, as to getting to a theme. So much like that of the time when the story was presented and told orally, the plot tends to be the focus of the message.

Comparatively, Lorca’s Blood Wedding can also be considered important to be looked at as a whole, rather than piece by piece. The story has a very clear beginning, middle, and ending, as the wedding begins, a conflict arises, and the tragedy occurs. The images used in Blood Wedding can be analyzed, but the tone of mysterious and despair can be found just by looking at the events that happen in the story. Each of the characters blatantly explains what is occurring in the play, which allows the audience to have a better understanding of the meaning of the play.

Oedipus - Journal #1

Journal Prompt #1:

Setting: This included cultural as well as geographical and historical setting. What effect does the setting have on story, character, and theme?

Response:

The setting of Oedipus the King has great effect on much of the play. The geographical setting of Greece is quite barren and rugged, surrounded by high rocky hills. The towns in Greece were often carved out of the mountains, causing people to have to go far to get water. The landscape relates to the story of Oedipus as it talks about how Lauis has gone away from the city, out in the wilderness. From the knowledge of the landscape given, one can concur that wherever Lauis has gone it is not pleasant, and quite possibly dangerous. This gives Lauis a characteristic of bravery for facing the obstacles out in ancient Greece.

Not only does the geographical setting play a role in the play, but the historical setting does as well. In ancient Greece mythology played a large role in the lives of the people. The story of Oedipus references many of the Greek gods, due to the fact that tragedy originally came from the Greeks as “one that falls from a higher power”, such as Oedipus does. The Greek gods are what make up a large part of ancient Greece, as the people believed. Taking a look at it from today’s viewpoint, one can see how since the gods were emphasized of being important that that is why they are used.

The setting is also a key element in the play as it differs from books written in that time period. The fact that as a play the audience is able to relate to the setting by seeing it performed. The play takes place in Thebes, so those who may have watched it in a Greek city were able to understand the setting much more than someone who is reading the play today. A visual representation, including backdrops and props, allows the audience to experience a familiar setting.