Who killed Laius? Most readers assume Oedipus did. At the play's end, he stands convicted of murdering his father, marrying his mother, and triggering a deadly plague. With selections from a stellar assortment of critics including Walter Burkert, Terry Eagleton, Michel Foucault, Rene Girard, and Jean-Pierre Vernant, this book reopens the Oedipus case and lets readers judge for themselves.

The Greek word for tragedy means "goat song." Is Oedipus the goat? Helene Peet Foley calls him "the kind of leader a democracy would both love and desire to ostracize", The Oedipus Casebook readings weigh the evidence against Oedipus, place the play in the context of Greek scapegoat rites, and explore the origins of tragedy in the festival of Dionysus.

This unique critical edition includes a new translation of the play by distinguished classics scholar Wm. Blake Tyrrell and the authoritative Greek text established by H. Lloyd-Jones and N. G. Wilson.

About the Author
Mark R. Anspach is the Author of Vengeance in Reverse: The Tangled Loops of Violence, Myth, and Madness and the Editor of Oedipus Unbound: Selected Writings on Rivalry and Desire by RenE Girard.


Book Information
ISBN 9781611863390
Author Mark R. Anspach
Format Paperback
Page Count 473
Imprint Michigan State University Press
Publisher Michigan State University Press
Weight(grams) 612g