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Esther's Classic Literature Blog

By Esther Lombardi, About.com Guide to Classic Literature since 2000

Blinded...

Friday September 5, 2008
Oedipus RexHe murdered his father and married his mother. He tried to escape the fate that had been foretold for him. Instead of avoiding the horror, he walked right into it.

In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus says:

"What's done was well done. Thou canst never shake
My firm belief. A truce to argument.
For, had I sight, I know not with what eyes
I could have met my father in the shades,
Or my poor mother, since against the twain
I sinned, a sin no gallows could atone.
Aye, but, ye say, the sight of children joys
A parent's eyes. What, born as mine were born?"

Here are more quotes from Oedipus Rex. Also, read the complete text for the play.

So, what do you think of this famous play by Sophocles? It's a play about murder, suicide, and mutilation. And, then, there's the Oedipal complex for which Freud is so well known.

Cover Art © Oxford University Press.

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