Premium Essay

Oedipus The King Rhetorical Analysis

Submitted By
Words 1401
Pages 6
Prompt #1:
While the play begins with Oedipus holding an assembly to discuss the plague which torments his people, his story begins many years prior. His tumultuous life is full of questions and ambiguity which no doubt shape him into the person he is when we are introduced to him. When he is a young man a sprout of doubt creeps into his mind, like a weed, pesky, bothersome, and impossible to kill. “One day at table, a fellow who had been drinking deeply Made bold to say I was not my father’s son.” (47 line 781-782) It was after this interaction that Oedipus began to feel distrust towards everything he thought he knew, he felt unsettled and uprooted and quite shocked. Until this point he felt relatively stable with who he was and where he …show more content…
They pose as a way to communicate to the audience what the other characters do not say explicitly and allow the audience to gain some insight into what the characters are unaware of, opening the door for the presence of dramatic irony within the play. Seemingly existing simultaneously in Oedipus’ world as well as that of the audience, the Chorus often breaks the fourth wall to speak directly to the audience. In times of confusion the characters are able to inquire upon the Chorus for a dose of the truth or advice. When Jocasta sees Creon and Oedipus arguing, for instance, the Chorus advises “Persuade, madam, persuade. The King to go awhile apart” (44 lines 678-679) They tell the truth with a cadence and rhythm that seems to add to their already prevalent wisdom. And their wisdom is not only directed at the characters, their most important advice is often directed at the audience, which can be seen in their last line “Then learn that mortal man must always look to his ending, And none can be happy until that day when he carries His happiness down to the grave in peace.” (68 lines 1527-1530). Their insight seems godly, in a way, as if they are more of an omniscient, all knowing group, rather than normal townspeople. While, old age may play a part in their wisdom, as they have had more life experience than others, they still seem to know a little too much for age to …show more content…
When Oedipus was young his life was nice, he had a loving family and he was in a high position in his city state, but as he came to realize his parents might not be his real parents, and he discovered the prophecy about him, he became paranoid and scared and fled the city, becoming a murderer along the way. As he cultivated his new life it seemed as if life might be improving until again he came to understand that he had killed his father and married his mother, driving him into a pit of shame. When he was young and dumb he was relatively carefree but as he gained knowledge, it “hurt me; but for the time I suffered in silence As well as I could.” (47 lines 783-784) and the more knowledge he gained the more it hurt him, eventually driving him to obtain physical pain as well as emotional pain, when he stabbed his eyes out. Similarly, Jocasta, though her first husband had died, seemed to be fairly content at the start of the play; she had a strong, young husband and had managed to thwart a prophecy given to her late husband many years prior. However, again, as the play progressed, she realized that not only had her husband killed her late husband, but he was her son, and she had actually failed to thwart the gods, leading her to become overwhelmed with emotion and guilt, hanging herself, to rid the shame from her mind. Even when the possession of knowledge seemed to be good, like in Theresias’

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

The Struggle

...Syntax AP English Language and Composition What is syntax? SYNTAX The term syntax refers not only to the structure of sentences, their types, their uses, their connection, and the variations authors choose, but also to smaller structures within sentences. Phrases (any group of words) and clauses (groups of words that contain a subject and a verb) are also syntactic elements that require a reader’s attention. Syntax affects the pace of a piece. • Short, clipped phrases, sentences and clauses tend to create a feeling of quickness, decisiveness, and speed to a piece. It is important to be aware of the content of a piece and look for connections to syntax. Pay attention to how pacing relates to the action and purpose of a particular piece. • Long, convoluted sentences, especially with subordinate clauses at the beginning tend to slow the pace of a piece. Often they are connected to a contemplative section, a heavy or serious subject and the writer wants to emphasize it. Sometimes, however, they are placed in a piece for the purpose of demonstrating the ramblings of a character, the ludicrousness of an idea, or the ridiculousness of a situation. Watch for occasional satire or irony in these long sentences. Key Questions: • How does syntax contribute to and enhance the meaning and effect of language? • How does syntax contribute to tone? 1. “Syntax” refers to the ways words and phrases are arranged to form sentences. The reader must identify...

Words: 2800 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

Fluidity of Hamlet: Gender Norms & Racial Bias in the Study of the Modern "Hamlet"

...The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. Set in the Kingdom of Denmark, the play dramatizes the revenge Prince Hamlet exacts on his uncle Claudius for murdering King Hamlet, Claudius's brother and Prince Hamlet's father, and then succeeding to the throne and taking as his wife Gertrude, the old king's widow and Prince Hamlet's mother. The play vividly portrays both true and feigned madness – from overwhelming grief to seething rage – and explores themes of treachery, revenge, incest, and moral corruption. Hamlet is Shakespeare's longest play and among the most powerful and influential tragedies in the English language, with a story capable of "seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others." The play was one of Shakespeare's most popular works during his lifetime It has inspired writers from Goethe and Dickens to Joyce and Murdoch, and has been described as "the world's most filmed story after Cinderella". Shakespeare based Hamlet on the legend of Amleth, preserved by 13th-century chronicler Saxo Grammaticus in his Gesta Danorum as subsequently retold by 16th-century scholar François de Belleforest. He may also have drawn on or perhaps written an earlier Elizabethan play known today as the Ur-Hamlet. He almost certainly created the title role for Richard Burbage, the leading tragedian of Shakespeare's time. In the 400 years since, the role has been performed by highly acclaimed actors and actresses from each successive age. Three...

Words: 5201 - Pages: 21

Premium Essay

Narrative

...Narrative A narrative is a sequence of events that a narrator tells in story form. A narrator is a storyteller of any kind, whether the authorial voice in a novel or a friend telling you about last night’s party. Point of View The point of view is the perspective that a narrative takes toward the events it describes. First-person narration: A narrative in which the narrator tells the story from his/her own point of view and refers to him/herself as “I.” The narrator may be an active participant in the story or just an observer. When the point of view represented is specifically the author’s, and not a fictional narrator’s, the story is autobiographical and may be nonfictional (see Common Literary Forms and Genres below). Third-person narration: The narrator remains outside the story and describes the characters in the story using proper names and the third-person pronouns “he,” “she,” “it,” and “they.” • Omniscient narration: The narrator knows all of the actions, feelings, and motivations of all of the characters. For example, the narrator of Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina seems to know everything about all the characters and events in the story. • Limited omniscient narration: The narrator knows the actions, feelings, and motivations of only one or a handful of characters. For example, the narrator of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has full knowledge of only Alice. • Free indirect discourse: The narrator conveys a character’s inner thoughts...

Words: 12257 - Pages: 50

Free Essay

Gothic Women

...writings, the Gothic era is frequently defined as a period in which the oppression of females was at its most intense. In response to fin de siècle anxieties of a social revolution in which gender stereotypes could be overhauled, gothic writers, it is claimed, sought to reassert cultural and gender norms – a reassertion which inevitably resulted in the oppression of women. In view of such contemporary analysis, it is thus all too tempting to offer a sweeping judgement of gothic literature as victimising, oppressive and misogynistic; Dracula’s “victims” are all “unambiguously women[1]”, Poe victimises through an “idealised and dehumanising image of women[2]”, while Carter is a “pseudo feminist” who merely “reinforces patriarchal views” with her “pornographic” writing[3]. Yet such views are largely artificial, and are primarily based on potted summaries of the above works, rather than a closer textual analysis. If one takes the definition of a victim as a being who is subject to the successful predatory actions of another, and who is resultantly devoid of power[4], then such primitive analysis in blindly labelling “all women as victims of the beastly male[5]” becomes flawed. Read in the context of Carter’s ironic foreword[6] to Perrault’s Short Stories, a deeper exploration reveals women as being willingly complicit in adopting the role of victim. Such complicity can be further explained through the...

Words: 5092 - Pages: 21

Free Essay

Literary Theory

...Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction ‘Jonathan Culler has always been about the best person around at explaining literary theory without oversimplifying it or treating it with polemical bias. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction is an exemplary work in this genre.’ J. Hillis Miller, University of California, Irvine ‘An impressive and engaging feat of condensation . . . the avoidance of the usual plod through schools and approaches allows the reader to get straight to the heart of the crucial issue for many students, which is: why are they studying literary theory in the first place? . . . an engaging and lively book.’ Patricia Waugh, University of Durham Very Short Introductions are for anyone wanting a stimulating and accessible way in to a new subject. They are written by experts, and have been published in 15 languages worldwide. Very Short Introductions available from Oxford Paperbacks: ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY Julia Annas THE ANGLO-SAXON AGE John Blair ARCHAEOLOGY Paul Bahn ARISTOTLE Jonathan Barnes Augustine Henry Chadwick THE BIBLE John Riches Buddha Michael Carrithers BUDDHISM Damien Keown CLASSICS Mary Beard and John Henderson Continental Philosophy Simon Critchley Darwin Jonathan Howard DESCARTES Tom Sorell EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY BRITAIN Paul Langford The European Union John Pinder Freud Anthony Storr Galileo Stillman Drake Gandhi Bhikhu Parekh HEIDEGGER Michael Inwood HINDUISM Kim Knott HISTORY John H. Arnold HUME A. J...

Words: 45107 - Pages: 181

Free Essay

Literature

...Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction ‘Jonathan Culler has always been about the best person around at explaining literary theory without oversimplifying it or treating it with polemical bias. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction is an exemplary work in this genre.’ J. Hillis Miller, University of California, Irvine ‘An impressive and engaging feat of condensation . . . the avoidance of the usual plod through schools and approaches allows the reader to get straight to the heart of the crucial issue for many students, which is: why are they studying literary theory in the first place? . . . an engaging and lively book.’ Patricia Waugh, University of Durham Jonathan Culler LITERARY THEORY A Very Short Introduction 1 Great Clarendon Street, Oxford o x2 6 d p Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Athens Auckland Bangkok Bogotá Buenos Aires Calcutta Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Florence Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi Paris São Paulo Shanghai Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw with associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York © Jonathan Culler 1997 The moral rights...

Words: 44695 - Pages: 179

Free Essay

Shiloh

...Cecil College Record: 1 Full Text Database: Academic Search Complete Title: The Wounded King: Bobbie Ann Mason's "Shiloh" and Marginalized Male Subjectivity. Authors: Bentley, Greg Source: Southern Literary Journal. Fall2004, Vol. 37 Issue 1, p144-161. 18p. Document Type: Literary Criticism Subjects: CRITICISM MASON, Bobbie Ann, 1940- HUMAN sexuality in literature PSYCHOANALYTIC interpretation PSYCHOANALYSIS & literature SEMIOTICS CHARACTERS & characteristics Abstract: This article examines the central element in the writings of Bobbie Ann Mason. Use of psychoanalytic semiotics in understanding the characters in the writings of Mason; Significance of the absence of sexual difference to psychoanalytic semiotics; Representation of normative male identity in the novels of Mason. Full Text Word Count: 7599 ISSN: 0038-4291 Accession Number: 15418214 Persistent link to this record (Permalink): http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hlh&AN=15418214&site=ehost-live Cut and Paste: The Wounded King: Bobbie Ann Mason's "Shiloh" and Marginalized Male Subjectivity. Database: Humanities International Complete Several of Bobbie Ann Mason's works have been approached from the perspective of myth-ritual criticism--especially the Grail motif--with mixed results.(n1) Perhaps the most central element of the Grail motif is the king's wound, which is clearly sexual in nature, and critics who approach Mason's work from this perspective have pointed out...

Words: 7952 - Pages: 32

Premium Essay

Will Do Next Time

...Instructor’s Manual and Test Bank to accompany A First Look at Communication Theory Sixth Edition Em Griffin Wheaton College prepared by Glen McClish San Diego State University and Emily J. Langan Wheaton College Published by McGraw­Hill, an imprint of The McGraw­Hill Companies, Inc., 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020. Copyright Ó 2006,  2003, 2000, 1997, 1994, 1991 by The McGraw­Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. The contents, or parts thereof, may be reproduced in print form  solely for classroom use with A First Look At Communication Theory provided such reproductions bear copyright notice, but may not be reproduced in  any other form or for any other purpose without the prior written consent of The McGraw­Hill Companies, Inc., including, but not limited to, in any  network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for distance learning. PREFACE Rationale We agreed to produce the instructor’s manual for the sixth edition of A First Look at Communication Theory because it’s a first-rate book and because we enjoy talking and writing about pedagogy. Yet when we recall the discussions we’ve had with colleagues about instructor’s manuals over the years, two unnerving comments stick with us: “I don’t find them much help”; and (even worse) “I never look at them.” And, if the truth be told, we were often the people making such points! With these statements in mind, we have done some serious soul-searching about the texts that so many teachers—ourselves...

Words: 159106 - Pages: 637

Premium Essay

Nothing

...Analyzing and Interpreting Literature 2012 Examination Guide These materials are owned and copyrighted by the College Board. They may not be posted on the Internet or on any other public document sharing site. The materials in these files are intended for PERSONAL USE ONLY. Violations of this policy may be subject to legal action including, but not limited to, payment for each guide that is disseminated unlawfully and associated damages. V isit our website at w ww.collegeboard.org/clep f or the most up-to-date information. © 2011 The College Board. College Board, CLEP, College-Level Examination Program, SAT and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of the College Board. inspiring minds is a trademark owned by the College Board. All other products and services may be trademarks of their respective owners. Visit the College Board on the Web: www.collegeboard.org. Introduction This is the only official guide to the 33 College-Level Examination Program® (CLEP®) exams. CLEP exams are administered on computer test centers across the country. This Guide has been written mainly for adults who are making plans to enroll in college, but it contains information of interest to others as well. College-bound high school students, current college students, military personnel, professionals seeking certification and persons of all ages who have learned or wish to learn college-level material outside the college classroom will find the Guide helpful as they strive...

Words: 14147 - Pages: 57

Free Essay

Alchemist

...Ben Jonson (1572–1637).  The Alchemist. The Harvard Classics.  1909–14. | | |  | |Introductory Note | |  | |  | |BEN JONSON was born of poor parents at Westminster in 1573. Through the influence of Camden, the antiquary, he got a good |  1| |education at Westminster School; but he does not seem to have gone to a University, though later both Oxford and Cambridge gave | | |him degrees. In his youth he practised for a time his stepfather’s trade of bricklaying, and he served as a soldier in Flanders. | | |  It was probably about 1595 that he began to write for the stage, and within a few years he was recognized as a distinguished |  2| |playwright. His comedy of “Every Man in His Humour” was not only a great immediate success, but founded a school of satirical | | |drama in England. “Sejanus” and “Catiline” were less popular, but are impressive pictures of Roman life, less interesting but more| | |accurate than the Roman plays of Shakespeare. ...

Words: 30021 - Pages: 121

Free Essay

Logistics

...RESEARCH and WRITING CUSTOM EDITION Taken from: Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide, Eleventh Edition by James D. Lester and James D. Lester, Jr. To the Point: Reading and Writing Short Arguments by Gilbert H. Muller and Harvey S. Wiener ISBN 0-558-55519-5 Research and Writing, Custom Edition. Published by Pearson Custom Publishing. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Custom Publishing. Taken from: Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide, Eleventh Edition by James D. Lester and James D. Lester, Jr. Copyright © 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc. Published by Pearson Longman, Inc. New York, New York 10036 To the Point: Reading and Writing Short Arguments by Gilbert H. Muller and Harvey S. Wiener Copyright © 2005 by Pearson Education, Inc. Published by Pearson Longman, Inc. Copyright © 2006 by Pearson Custom Publishing All rights reserved. Permission in writing must be obtained from the publisher before any part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system. All trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, and registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only. Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN 0-536-97722-4 2005240359 AP Please visit our web site at www.pearsoncustom.com ISBN 0-558-55519-5 PEARSON CUSTOM PUBLISHING ...

Words: 70562 - Pages: 283

Premium Essay

Prose Fiction

...21 23 32 SECOND DRAFT 4.1.4 Drama 4.1.5 Films 4.1.6 Literary Appreciation 4.1.7 Schools of Literary Criticism 4.2 Catering for Learner Diversity 4.3 Meaningful Homework 4.4 Role of Learners Chapter 5 41 45 52 69 71 72 73 74 Assessment 5.1 Guiding Principles 5.2 Internal Assessment 5.2.1 Formative Assessment 5.2.2 Summative Assessment 5.3 Public Assessment 5.3.1 Standards-referenced Assessment 5.3.2 Modes of Public Assessment 74 74 74 75 77 77 77 Quality Learning and Teaching Resources 104 6.1 Use of Set Texts 6.2 Use of Other Learning and Teaching Resources 104 108 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 109 Supporting Measures 7.1 Learning and Teaching Resource Materials 7.2 Professional Development 109 109 Appendix 1 Examples of Poetry Analysis 110 Appendix 2 Examples of...

Words: 41988 - Pages: 168

Premium Essay

Learning Theory

...Beginning theory An introduction to literary and cultural theory Second edition Peter Barry © Peter Barry 1995, 2002 ISBN: 0719062683 Contents Acknowledgements - page x Preface to the second edition - xii Introduction - 1 About this book - 1 Approaching theory - 6 Slop and think: reviewing your study of literature to date - 8 My own 'stock-taking' - 9 1 Theory before 'theory' - liberal humanism - 11 The history of English studies - 11 Stop and think - 11 Ten tenets of liberal humanism - 16 Literary theorising from Aristotle to Leavis some key moments - 21 Liberal humanism in practice - 31 The transition to 'theory' - 32 Some recurrent ideas in critical theory - 34 Selected reading - 36 2 Structuralism - 39 Structuralist chickens and liberal humanist eggs Signs of the fathers - Saussure - 41 Stop and think - 45 The scope of structuralism - 46 What structuralist critics do - 49 Structuralist criticism: examples - 50 Stop and think - 53 Stop and think - 55 39 Stop and think - 57 Selected reading - 60 3 Post-structuralism and deconstruction - 61 Some theoretical differences between structuralism and post-structuralism - 61 Post-structuralism - life on a decentred planet - 65 Stop and think - 68 Structuralism and post-structuralism - some practical differences - 70 What post-structuralist critics do - 73 Deconstruction: an example - 73 Selected reading - 79 4 Postmodernism - 81 What is postmodernism? What was modernism? -...

Words: 98252 - Pages: 394

Free Essay

The Outline of English Literature

...Министерство образования и науки Республики Казахстан Кокшетауский государственный университет им. Ш. Уалиханова An Outline of British Literature (from tradition to post modernism) Кокшетау 2011 УДК 802.0 – 5:20 ББК 81:432.1-923 № 39 Рекомендовано к печати кафедрой английского языка и МП КГУ им. Ш. Уалиханова, Ученым Советом филологического факультета КГУ им. Ш. Уалиханова, УМС КГУ им. Ш. Уалиханова. Рецензенты: Баяндина С.Ж. доктор филологических наук, профессор, декан филологического факультета КГУ им. Ш. Уалиханова Батаева Ф.А. кандидат филологических наук, доцент кафедры «Переводческое дело» Кокшетауского университета им. А. Мырзахметова Кожанова К.Т. преподаватель английского языка кафедры гуманитарного цикла ИПК и ПРО Акмолинской области An Outline of British Literature from tradition to post modernism (on specialties 050119 – “Foreign Language: Two Foreign Languages”, 050205 – “Foreign Philology” and 050207 – “Translation”): Учебное пособие / Сост. Немченко Н.Ф. – Кокшетау: Типография КГУ им. Ш. Уалиханова, 2010 – 170 с. ISBN 9965-19-350-9 Пособие представляет собой краткие очерки, характеризующие английскую литературу Великобритании, ее основные направления и тенденции. Все известные направления в литературе иллюстрированы примерами жизни и творчества авторов, вошедших в мировую литературу благодаря...

Words: 82733 - Pages: 331

Premium Essay

Harold Bloom

...Bloom’s Classic Critical Views W i l l ia m Sha k e Sp e a r e Bloom's Classic Critical Views alfred, lord Tennyson Benjamin Franklin The Brontës Charles Dickens edgar allan poe Geoffrey Chaucer George eliot George Gordon, lord Byron henry David Thoreau herman melville Jane austen John Donne and the metaphysical poets John milton Jonathan Swift mark Twain mary Shelley Nathaniel hawthorne Oscar Wilde percy Shelley ralph Waldo emerson robert Browning Samuel Taylor Coleridge Stephen Crane Walt Whitman William Blake William Shakespeare William Wordsworth Bloom’s Classic Critical Views W i l l ia m Sha k e Sp e a r e Edited and with an Introduction by Sterling professor of the humanities Yale University harold Bloom Bloom’s Classic Critical Views: William Shakespeare Copyright © 2010 Infobase Publishing Introduction © 2010 by Harold Bloom All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For more information contact: Bloom’s Literary Criticism An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data William Shakespeare / edited and with an introduction by Harold Bloom : Neil Heims, volume editor. p. cm. — (Bloom’s classic critical views) Includes bibliographical references...

Words: 239932 - Pages: 960