House of Oedipus
The doomed Theban royal line of Laius and Oedipus, destroyed by patricide, incest, and fraternal war
The Meaning of House of Oedipus
The House of Oedipus represents the most famous tragic dynasty in Greek literature. The curse began when Laius, king of Thebes, defied Apollo's warning never to have children. His son Oedipus was exposed at birth but survived, and unknowingly fulfilled the oracle by killing his father at a crossroads and marrying his mother Jocasta. When the truth was revealed, Jocasta hanged herself and Oedipus blinded himself. Oedipus cursed his sons Eteocles and Polynices, who agreed to share the throne by alternating years. When Eteocles refused to yield, Polynices led the famous Seven Against Thebes. The brothers killed each other in single combat. Antigone, their sister, defied King Creon's edict by burying Polynices and was entombed alive. The dynasty ended in complete destruction, a generation consumed by the sins of its founders.
Parents
None recorded
Symbols
Explore Further
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💭 conceptDynasty, curse
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💭 conceptDynasty, Thebes
The cursed ruling house of Thebes spanning from Cadmus through Oedipus to the fratricidal war of his sons
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💭 conceptepic, dynasty
The cycle of myths surrounding the cursed royal house of Thebes, from Cadmus's founding through Oedipus's tragedy to the war of the Seven and their sons.
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The cursed royal dynasty of Mycenae whose generations of bloodshed and vengeance form the darkest saga in Greek mythology
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The royal dynasty of Thebes founded by the Phoenician prince Cadmus who sowed the dragon's teeth
Seven Against Thebes
💭 conceptwar, curse
The doomed military expedition of seven champions against the seven gates of Thebes, organised by Polynices to reclaim the throne from his brother Eteocles.
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💭 conceptDynasty, Argos
The royal lineage descending from Danaus and his fifty daughters, central to the mythology of Argos
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💭 conceptNarrative
The interconnected myths tracing the cursed lineage of Oedipus from prophecy to tragic fulfilment
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💭 conceptNarrative
A tragedy of forbidden desire, false accusation, and divine cruelty destroying an innocent young prince
Seven Against Thebes
💭 conceptNarrative
The doomed military expedition of seven champions against the city of Thebes in the generation before the Trojan War
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💭 conceptDynasty, Troy
The ruling dynasty of Troy descended from Dardanus through Tros, Ilus, and Laomedon to Priam and his fifty sons
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💭 conceptDynasty, conquest
The descendants of Heracles who claimed the Peloponnese and established the Dorian kingdoms of Sparta, Argos, and Messenia