Backwards and Forwards in Sophoclesâ Oedipus Tyrannus

Evert van Emde Boas

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ChapterÂ 5 Backwards and Forwards in Sophoclesâ Oedipus Tyrannus

In: Prolepsis in Ancient Greek Narrative

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Evert van Emde Boas

Evert van Emde Boas
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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 91â114

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004715530_006

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Abstract

The characters of Sophoclesâ Oedipus Tyrannus struggle to come to grips with the dramaâs past, present and futureâand for much of the play do not know which is which (the playâs key prolepses, the prophecies given to Laius and Oedipus, famously refer backwards by the time of the play). The central premise of this chapter is that the various intellectual and emotional strategies that we see the characters employ to make sense of their life stories model the pre-closural readerly effects discussed in this volumeâs introduction, and so offer pertinent parallels for the experience of narrative and drama. The chapterâs three main sections focus on, respectively, the use of the past to predict the future in rational, probabilistic inferencing (especially in the playâs early scenes); the fear, hope, and suspense felt by the characters as the totality of Oedipusâ life story gradually becomes clear; and the importance of character, both for the figures of the play themselves as predictor of future behaviour, and for the audience as a reflection on different ways to relate to storytelling. The conclusion assesses the extent to which OT and other Sophoclean plays can be seen as being âabout narrativeâ.

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Prolepsis in Ancient Greek Narrative

Definitions, Forms and Effects

Series:Â The Language of Classical Literature, Volume: 40

Cover Prolepsis in Ancient Greek Narrative

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004715530

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 17 Dec 2024

Subjects
- Classical Studies
  - Greek & Latin Literature

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ChapterÂ 5 Backwards and Forwards in Sophoclesâ Oedipus Tyrannus

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Prolepsis in Ancient Greek Narrative

Definitions, Forms and Effects

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ChapterÂ 5 Backwards and Forwards in Sophoclesâ Oedipus Tyrannus