Oedipus the King/Recap

A terrible plague is ravaging Oedipus' kingdom. Creon, the Queen's brother, returns from the oracle at Delphi with news that the plague will not be lifted until the true murderer of the old King is found. The blind prophet Tiresias warns Oedipus that he really really does not want to know who the true cause of the plague is. However, Oedipus is driven by both honor and a dedication to his people to root out the cause of this evil. It turns out Oedipus himself is the cause of the plague. The reasons behind it are long and complicated.

When Oedipus was born, it was foretold he would kill his father and marry his mother. His father orders his son to be left in the wilderness to die. This does not work. Oedipus ends up being adopted by another pair of royals who fail to tell him that they are not his birth parents. Oedipus eventually gets wind of the prophecy from his birth and leaves home to avoid that fate. He ends up heading back towards his birth kingdom to solve the Riddle of the Sphinx. On the way he unknowingly encounters his father, who, for lack of a better term, cuts Oedipus off in traffic. Words are exchanged and by the end of it Oedipus' real father is dead by his hand. Continuing on his way, he solves the Riddle of the Sphinx, freeing his birth kingdom from the beast. In gratitude, the people make him king and he unknowingly marries his mother. And has children with her. It is this state of affairs, his father's blood on his hands and his, erm, relationship with his mother, that has thrown things out of whack in his kingdom.

Oedipus' wife/mother figures things out shortly before he does and hangs herself. Upon finding her body, Oedipus gouges his eyes out with her brooches. Now a completely broken man, Oedipus goes into exile with his daughters.