In "Oedipus the King", Sopocles uses many different literary techniques to emphasize certain aspects of his writing and create a significance to specific parts of the play. The first thing that really stood out was the constant reference to how old something/someone was or how long something had been going on for. It seems that time is a very important aspect of Greek culture and life and is something that is used wisely. The first lines read "Oh my children, new blood of ancient Thebes", from the beginning time is represented as important. Things that are older old more significance than newer things, which is shown with Thebes being referred to as ancient. Also Oedipus gives more respect to the elderly man in the group stating that he should be the one to speak because he is much wiser. It is evident throughout this piece that age denotes wisdom and is greatly repescte, the advice of the old are treasured. But ancient things can also be a bad omen. The past murder of the king that was unresolved caused this great plague to fall upon Thebes. The author is placing emphasise on old wound remaining unresolved and the danger in letting wrongs simmer throughout the years. There seems to be an unwillingness for people to bring up unpleasant memories from the past, the seer has to almost be tricked into revealing what he knows, and when he does he speaks in riddles to hide the true meaning. Also people were happy to forget what happened until the plague struck and they were forced to re-examine the past.
Foreshadow is another technique used often by Sophocles. He gives away the ending of his plays through riddles and trickery wording so the unaware reader won't catch on. "You are the curse the corruption of the land" this very blatantly states that Oedipus was the murderer, the one who brought the curse upon the land, however by having the King quickly jump into a temper and berate the seer the emphasis is taken out of the accusation. "flinging at me the very same insults each man here will fling at you so soon", this line reveals that the King will become blind and will be scorned by the very people who love him now. Another lines also speak about what end the King will come to and what pains he will suffer. However the audience is still brought to believe in the virtue of the king and think the accusations false because of the people's faith in their king and the love that they show to them. This kind of direct foreshadowing sets the stage for the reader to suspect a tradgey and also expect the events mentioned to occur. Sophocles uses this technique to give the audience a sense of power because they know something the characters do not. It is very appealing to audience members who are lower class and upper class because it gives the lower class something to mock the characters with and it makes the upper class think and analze the play's meaning. These were the kinds of plays that won competitions and that audience appeal is what made them classics.
Sophocles also uses irony to a very large extent, this creates plot twists and sometimes comic relief at the expense of the characters. "I will speak out now as a stranger to the story, a stranger to the crime. If I'd been present there, there would be no mystery" the very crime he is denouncing is the one that he commited which brought him into power. The mystery lies in his loss of memory of the event, he is seeking to destroy the murderer when in reality the murderer is himself. Oedipus claims that he is the only man who can save the people from the plague and catch the murderer, he says it is his duty as king to protect the peoples interest, but he was the one who originally shattered their lives and has now brought this terrible destruction upon them.
Already I've noticed many references to animals, horses, bulls, birds, I believe that this is very common throughout Greek plays, but it also draws a significance to why that animal is being depicted. Certain animals represent certain things, birds for example symbolize wisedom and being able to speak to the gods, and so seers and priest connotate birds. While horses represent power and conquest, and so kings are seen as mighty stallions. I am interested to find if Oedipus will change throughout the play, from a racing stallion to something less powerful. This will be very significant because kings were always seen as righteous rulers that were closest to the gods as any mortals could be.
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