Oedipus the
King (Grene)
PEOPLE, PLACES, GODS
1. Agenor: king of
Tyre; father of Cadmus.
2. Cadmus: founder and
king of Thebes.
3. Polydorus: king of
Thebes; son of Cadmus and father of Labdacus.
4. Labdacus: king of Thebes;
son of Polydorus and father of Laius.
5. Laius: king of
Thebes; killed by his son, Oedipus.
6. Menoeceus: father
of Creon and Jocasta.
7. Polybus:
foster-father of Oedipus; king of Corinth.
8. Merope: the Dorian;
foster-mother of Oedipus; queen of Corinth.
9. Apollo (also
Phoebus): son of Zeus; god of prophecy and wisdom, medicine, archery.
10. Athene (Roman: Minerva): daughter of Zeus; virgin goddess of
wisdom, arts and crafts, war.
11. Artemis (Roman: Diana): daughter of Zeus; goddess of the
hunt.
12. Ares (Roman: Mars): son of Zeus; god of war.
13. Zeus (Roman: Jove, Jupiter): "father" of the gods.
14. Dionysus (Roman: Bacchus): god of
wine, revelry, celebration of life. A
Bacchant is a cultic follower of Dionysus.
15. Fates: determiners of the
destinies of men. Atropos cuts the
thread of life; Clotho spins the thread of life; Lachesis determines the length
of the thread. Thus, man’s fate is determined
(or woven) by these three women. Even
the gods cannot alter fate.
16. Amphitrite: Poseidon’s wife; queen goddess of the sea.
17. Pegasus: fabulous winged horse.
18. Pan: a fertility god; part-human, part-goat.
19. Sphinx: a female monster with a
human head and a lion body. One such
monster lays siege to Thebes and asks the riddle What creature goes on four
legs in the morning, two at noon, and three at sunset? The sphinx kills all who answer
incorrectly. Oedipus becomes the hero
of Thebes when he gives the correct answer (“man”), and the sphinx kills
herself.
20. Corinth (also Isthmus): the city where Oedipus is raised.
21. Delos: Greek island sacred to Apollo.
22. Delphi (also Pythia, Pytho): location of the most famous
oracle of Apollo (on Parnassus)
23. Thrace: a nation in northern Greece.
24. Cithaeron: Theban mountain where Oedipus was supposed to
die,
25. Helicon: largest mountain of Boeotia (area of Thebes).
26. Parnassus: sacred mountain; home of the Muses.
27. Olympus: highest mountain in Greece; home of the gods.