Dramatic Irony In Sophocles Oedipus Rex

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Greek tragedies would be the most boring of stories if irony had not been imbedded into them. The tragedy or tragedies in these types of Greek plays are usually already known to the reader or audience. To have the most impact on the reader or audience, the writer had to rely on some other means to improve the effect of the tragedy in the play. Dramatic irony is how this was done. In Oedipus Rex there are many examples of dramatic irony. When the story begins and the townspeople are pleading for help from Oedipus to save them from pestilence, they nor he, know that Oedipus himself is actually the one who is the cause of their troubles. Neither one of them understands that. Tiresias, the blind prophet is the only one who knows the truth.
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