Antigone is one of the greatest, most thought-provoking plays I've ever read.

I think Oedipus at Colonus fleshes out some of the nuance missing from Oedipus Rex and gives some necessary understanding for Antigone's character. With that said, I think there's not much more to Oedipus Rex than the story - if you know the plot or story arc, reading the play doesn't add much, other than an introduction to Creon (for reading Antigone, of course). I'm sure there's much that I'm missing, but I just didn't feel Oedipus Rex really delves into its themes in the way Antigone does. Perhaps Oedipus at Colonus does somewhat, as it remarks that Oedipus unknowingly committed his crimes and shows his moral growth in releasing himself to the will of the gods, but it really all pales to the conclusion to the Oedipus Cycle, Antigone, an absolutely beautiful play that questions God's laws vs human laws. Though the play seems to settle Sophocles' matter on the subject, it's a topic I can't help but return to time and time again as I contemplate our modern world. When compared to Antigone, Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus are mostly interesting only because they provide background for understanding the world of Antigone.

I think I underestimated the Greeks. That may be obvious because I hadn’t read Homer, or any Greek literature, until this year.

There is an intensity to these plays that speaks to the soul, if you let it. My favorite was Antigone, but Oedipus the King is a close second. There can be a lot said for the dichotomy of fate and freewill, which Sophocles deeply explores.

It was a pleasant surprise to see I had Fagles’ translation. Bernard Knox’s introduction was insightful and enjoyable, and I’m someone who finds introductions dry and tedious.

Now I ought to read Aeschylus and Euripides. Or maybe, who knows? Get crazy (for me) and delve into some Plato and Aristotle.

Another one of the books that got me into literature. The number of references to this one throughout not only literature, but also many other disciplines (including leadership, sociology, etc.) is impressive.

not rating this cause it was for school and idk how to feel - prob biased cause it was for school lol

Such a fascinating exploration of so many themes--fate, providence, prophecy, honor, family -- none of which have anything whatsoever to do with Freud's "oedipal complex." What a bizarre thing to pull from these plays.

on to Euripides...

7th book of 2022.

As I'm moving around the (personally) uncharted land of Greek tragedies, I get to Sophocles. I think most people know the story of Oedipus, or can at least guess with general Freud knowledge, but the subsequent two plays in the 'Cycle' were unknown to me plot-wise. Oedipus the King/Oedipus Rex/Oedipus Tyrannus is the first and famous story from Sophocles, where a man attempts to flee the prophecy that he will kill his father and marry his mother. Spoiler alert: he does not outrun it. The following play presents us with a now blinded Oedipus (he blinds himself in the first) with his daughter Antigone (what a call name), in an open landscape, waiting. It's quite clear that Waiting for Godot is a product of this play. It's the weakest of the three despite the Beckett vibes. Theseus shows up and is benevolent to the blind ex-king, but also some great action-hero dialogue [1]. The final play, moving through them without too many spoilers, shows us the lives of Oedipus' children after his death. As expected from a Greek Tragedy, a lot of people die. They are enjoyable reads and as far as my translation went, smooth ones too. What's interesting is seeing what vices were being portrayed in art this long ago that still ravish us today, and usually one can find quite a few. Here we question how much of our lives are predetermined, or even out of our control, by what comes before us, by the choices our parents make, before we have even been conceived. We do not choose where we are born, who we are born to. Our entire lives have to be carved from the position we find ourselves in.

Our fires, our sacrifices, and our prayers
The gods abominate. How should the birds
Give any other than ill-omened voices,
Gorged with the dregs of blood that man has shed?
Mark this, my son : all men fall into sin.
But sinning, he is not for ever lost
Hapless and helpless, who can make amends
And has not set his face against repentance.
Only a fool is governed by self-will.
—Teiresias

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[1] I make no boasts, but while my life is safe,
You need not fear for yours.