Seneca’s

Oedipus

is the only surviving Roman tragedy on the myth of Oedipus. The exact dating of Seneca’s tragedies remains a much vexed question; however, it is very likely that the

Oedipus

together with the

Agamnenon

and the

Phaedra

belong to the poet’s early production. The play has received so far little attention compared with the rest of Seneca’s tragedies, possibly because of its common subject with Sophocle’s

Oedipus Tyrannus

and the emblematic role of the Sophoclean play

in the study of classical drama, as this was established by Aristotle in his

Poetics

. The older claim for the direct derivation of Seneca’s

Oedipus

from Sophocles’

Oedipus Tyrannus

is now considered to be nothing more than unjustifiable assumption. Furthermore, the Sophoclean play does not…

2197 words

Citation: Michalopoulos, Charilaos N.. "Oedipus". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 May 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=13466, accessed 13 December 2024.]

13466 Oedipus 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.