In Sophocles's story of Oedipus Rex,
it may be that Lauis's death is a punishment. At one point in his life, Thebes is
conquered by Amphion and Zethus, and Laius is smuggled out of the city. He is welcomed
in Pisa (in the Peloponnesus—an island in southern Greece), by King Pelops. There are
two versions of this part of the story. First, Laius is teaching Chrysippus, the
illegitimate son of Pelops, how to drive a chariot. Hyginus, another source, records
that Laius is escorting Chrysippus to the Nemean Games. In either case, Laius abducts
and rapes the boy.
Ultimately, Laius returns to Thebes and
marries Jocasta. It is said that Laius and his family and city are later punished by the
gods for Laius's actions.
Laius and Joscasta have been
forewarned by an oracle that their son will kill his father and marry his mother. When
Joscasta gives birth to Oedipus, the parents decide to kill him in order to stop the
oracle from coming true. While some sources say that Oedipus is taken up the mountain to
be left to die by a servant, the translation of the play states that it is a shepherd.
The shepherd feels sorry for the baby and does not kill him, but passes the baby to
another shepherd and the boy finds his way to the palace of Polybus who raises Oedipus
as his natural son.
When Oedipus is grown, he is accosted
at a crossroads by a man arguing over who has the right of way. The old man
insists he has the right, and hits Oedipus. This starts a fight and
Oedipus unknowingly kills Laius, his biological father, still believing that Polybus is
his true father.
It is in this way that Laius of
Oedipus Rex is connected to Chrysippus and
Pelops.
Additional
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laius#Abduction_of_Chrysippus
No comments:
Post a Comment