The Choral Ode in Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus: Part 2

[Please Note: This post is a continuation from the previous post titled 'The Choral Ode in Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus: Part 1'. In order for a coherent reading, please peruse that post before reading this one.]

The next part of the ode is, like the Dionysus reference, symbolic of life after death and hope in destruction. The chorus sings of the burial flowers: the narcissus and the crocus. These flowers were commonly used by the ancient Greeks in burial rites and rituals. So by saying that the Athenian land was covered with these flowers, Sophocles is telling us that these lands are ready for burial. However, the flip side of the narcissus and the crocus imagery is that these flowers were sacred to the goddess Persephone and her mother Demeter. Demeter and Persephone are the very personifications of the cycles of life and death. The chorus sings about them ("the mother and daughter twine") and dedicates the flowers and the lands of Athens to them (Storr, 1912). Now Demeter, being the goddess of agriculture and soil fertility, was thought to cycle between vigour and deathly depression every year and the ancient Greeks attributed the phenomenon of the cyclical changes in soil fertility to this fact. The reason for her deathly depression during the winter was explained by Greek myth too. According to classical belief, Hades saw Persephone and fell in love with her and desired her. He kidnapped her one day and took her down to the underworld where he made her his queen (Harrison, 1908). Demeter was devastated at the disappearance of her daughter and looked for Persephone high and low but could not find her and so descended into a deep void of depression and along with her, agricultural output on the land plummeted and people began to starve. To bring an end to this catastrophe, Zeus made Hades give up Persephone. However, Hades made Persephone eat a pomegranate seed before she returned to earth and this meant that she had to return to Hades for three months of the year and during those three months Demeter would be depressed and so there would be winter. So, Persephone basically died for three months every year and was re-born and then 'lived' for the rest of the year and so, as I mentioned above, personified the cycle of life and death and the possibility of life after death. By including the flowers sacred to her in the ode and by making the chorus directly sing about her and Demeter, Sophocles bluntly suggests that Athens may 'die' but then will rise from the ashes.

The Rape of Persephone by Hades

The final part of the ode is a praise of Athens and a description of some things that were typically Athenian. The chorus calls Attica a "heaven-favoured plain," beloved by the Olympians. The Muses are mentioned and through them Sophocles reminds us of the enormous role that music plays in Athenian culture and society. Aphrodite is also specifically mentioned: the goddess of love is not far from the minds of men anywhere. By mentioning these divinities, Sophocles reminds the Athenian citizens that the Olympians have always favoured their cause and that is most important. Whatever else happens, divine favour is steadfast and valuable. It is also noteworthy that before the choral ode, all major references to deities have been about local cults and, by mentioning major Olympian gods, Sophocles reinforces the power and importance of Athens (Markantonatos, 2002).

That verse also mentions the Athenian river Cephisus which the chorus uses as a metaphor for Athens. Cephisus is fed by very small streams and it itself is a very small river. Looking upon it, one could expect it to dry at any moment and leave the land without water. However, Cephisus, small as it may be, never dries and never fails the Athenian lands (Markantonatos, 2002). Similarly, the military might of Athens is diminished and when Sparta defeats them, their political power is lessened too. However, the chorus tells the audience that Athens will not 'dry up'. Instead, it will keep 'flowing' and bring more joy and happiness to the land than ever before.

Few things are more Athenian than olive trees. According to classical myth, when the city of Athens was a newborn, unnamed entity, it needed a patron god. The two prime contenders for the honour were Poseidon and Athena. It was decided that the two deities would give Athens a gift each and the citizens would vote on which gift was better and that deity would be named the city's patron. Poseidon fashioned horses for the Athenians and, in addition, provided a pool of freshwater in the city. Athena created the first olive tree. Though Poseidon's gifts were undoubtedly remarkable, the sheer usefulness of all the different parts of the olive tree won the minds of the men and the vote ended with Athena victorious. The olive tree, then, is also a symbol of the goddess and is revered in Attica. The chorus sings about the qualities and uses of the now ubiquitous olive tree and, by extension, the glory of the gray-eyed goddess herself. Sophocles reminds the citizens that Athena Polias (or Athena of the city) will always stand with them and protect them against adversity and help them recover when they fall.

The Western Pediment of the Parthenon shows the Contest for Athens

It is impossible for Poseidon to go without mention here, especially since the ode was written during wartime. Poseidon provided Athenians horses and chariots, their most powerful weapons on land. More importantly, the chorus tells us that Poseidon gave Athenians the "oar" which represents control of the sea and the might of naval power (Markantonatos, 2002). The Athenian navy was their most valuable asset during the Peloponnesian war and the Athenian empire was built almost solely on the might of its navy.

I believe that this particular choral ode is an astounding example of how the tragic narrative can interact with the audience even though tragedy does not recognize the presence of an audience. Through the ode, Sophocles provides the audience hope in darkness and assurance in the face of bleak destruction. Also, he reinforces the Athenian sense of pride. To reiterate my first few arguments, it cannot be a coincidence that Sophocles chose to base this tragedy in Athens during the close of the Peloponnesian war. It cannot be chance that Sophocles' praise of Athens (via the choral ode) is fraught with the imagery of resurrection and life after destruction. It also cannot be that when the play was performed (after the defeat in the war), the ode did not make an impact on the minds of the men (and possibly women) watching the play. Therein lies the beauty of this particular ode.