Oedipus The King

Name: Oedipus The King
Author: Sophocles

Oedipus The King, also known as Oedipus Rex or Oedipus Tyrannus, is a Greek tragedy written by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC.

Considered the main work of Sophocles, it is one of the most important dramas in the history of Western literature.

The play is based on the Greek myth of Oedipus, king of Thebes, who — without knowing who either of them was — killed his father and married his mother, exactly as the oracle had foretold he would.

Thebes, ruled by Oedipus, is being destroyed by a plague. He sends to the oracle at Delphi, which answers that the city will not be cleansed until the murderer of Laius, the former king, is found, so Oedipus opens an investigation.

The tragedy turns on Oedipus's insistence on the truth, which he keeps pursuing even as the evidence begins to point at him.

This tragedy by Sophocles has stirred emotions for centuries and is still performed today.

Gilbert Murray's translation has been used for this digital edition of the book Oedipus The King

Why Read Oedipus The King in 2026?

Part civic emergency, part moral inquiry, "Oedipus the King" moves like a procedural with a conscience. A leader vows to trace the city's sickness to its cause and will not outsource the truth. In a single evening's reading, the play tests responsibility, certainty, and what we owe the public when answers point inward.

Today's connection

It reads like a masterclass in leadership under pressure: evidence versus certainty, oath versus outcome. The chorus stands in for the city, asking what justice requires now, not later. Public language is measured against real consequences. You leave with a stricter sense of accountability—and of limits.