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What Is The Role Of The Chorus

In The Play Oedipus Essay, Research Paper


In answering this question, I will look at the


question in two ways.? Firstly, I will


look at the role of the chorus objectively, examining the basic role of the


chorus in the play, and looking at the role of the Chorus as Sophocles would


have intended the role of the Chorus to be understood.? However, I will then look at how I think the


Greek audience would have perceived the role of the Chorus and then how the role


of the Chorus is perceived today by a 20th century and examine the


key differences in the two different sets of perceptions.? Finally, I will look at the importance of


the role of the Chorus to a 20th century audience and a Greek


audience respectively. ??????????? The Chorus in the play Oedipus has


three basic functions. Firstly, to act as bystanders throughout the play,


observing what goes on, reacting and offering opinions at regular intervals


throughout the play (e.g. when Oedipus accuses Croon irrationally of conspiring


against him, the Chorus says ?To one who fears fall, his words seem good; O


king, swift counsels are not always safe?) In this role they are important


to the play as they often offer the voice of reason during moments of heated


debate, the voice of fear and confusion during Oedipus? downfall, which seems


to mirror the audience?s reaction and emotion in many situations throughout the


play. The Chorus are also used as a sort of receptive audience for passages of


description over what has gone on behind closed doors (e.g. after Jocasta has


realised the truth the second messenger describes the scene inside the palace


to the Chorus: ?Within the porch, straight to the couch she rushed, her


bridal bed, and tore her hair?) ??????????? Secondly, the Chorus offers a sort


of running narrative for the audience.?


This function is equally vital to the success of the play.? The Chorus often speaks in this way at the


end of a scene to clarify what has just gone on. (e.g. at the end of the first


scene, the chorus clarifies the diseased state that the city of Thebes has


descended into: ?Still breeding plague, unpitied infants lie?and wives and


mothers, grey with hoary age?by every alter mourn.?)? ??????????? Finally, the Chorus is used to keep


the continuity during the play.? In


modern theatre, the plays are normally split up into scenes and acts.? However, the Greek kept the continuity


between these natural gaps, by having a narrative section.? This prevented the necessity of having


breaks in the action and also kept the audience up to date with what had just


gone on, and perhaps offering some insight or other. In this role, I think the


Chorus is very helpful to the audience, as it succeeds in keeping the audience


?on the edge of their seats?. ??????????? I think that in the play Oedipus,


Sophocles intended the Chorus to be a constant significant part of the play,


observing and reacting to situations, whilst never being the centre of


attention during the main story, and only coming to the fore during the


narrative passages of the play.? ??????????? However, in addressing the role of


the Chorus in this play, I think it is vital that one decides whether the role


of the Chorus is and objective role, inserted in to the play by Sophocles and


unaffected by the audiences perception, or whether the role is subjective, and


the significance of the role depends upon the viewer?s perception of the


Chorus? role in the play. ??????????? In my opinion, the role of the


Chorus is certainly subjective and depends almost entirely upon the


audience.? I think that although the


basic participation of the Chorus in the play can?t be changed, the


significance of their part can certainly alter quite considerably depending to


the type of audience or viewer and their own perception due to experience.


Consequently, the role of the Chorus would have a different significance for

an


ancient Greek audience and a 20th century audience. ??????????? The Greek audience would, no doubt,


place a great deal more significance on the role of the Chorus than a 20th


century audience would.? The common use


of a Chorus in Greek plays meant that the audiences almost expected any play to


contain one, therefore, the concept of a Chorus was not one they were not used


to.? Therefore, the Greek audiences


would have understood the many voices speaking together much more easily than a


20th century viewer.? Also,


the narrative passages spoken by the Chorus would be better received by the


Greek audience, as they are used to this type of narration, once more this


would be alien to a 20th century audience. Furthermore, the


environment in which the play Oedipus was originally performed was the Greek


amphitheatre.? This held approximately


17000 people.? One can imagine that it


may have been quite difficult for people further away from the stage to here


the main characters as there was no amplification other than the natural


acoustics. ?It is therefore reasonable


to assume that the Chorus? narrative role was very important in situations such


as these, as many voices speaking in unison are certainly louder than a single


voice, and therefore more easily heard.?


In this environment, then, the Chorus would have played a large role in


the audience?s understanding of the play, as well as keeping the tension,


excitement, dread and mirroring the emotions felt by the audience throughout


the play. ??????????? However, to a 20th


century audience, the role is somewhat less significant.? In plays today, the breaks in between scenes


heightens the tensions by inducing the audience to wonder; ?What happens


next??? Hence the Chorus? role in


keeping the continuity is unnecessary.?


Moreover, due to the audience?s ignorance and unfamiliarity with the


role of the Chorus in Greek plays, the tension, instead of being heightened by


the Chorus, is diminished, as the audience no longer concentrate during the


narrative passages.? This is partially


due to their unfamiliarity in listening to several voices speaking at once, and


partially due to the lack of requirement of a narrative passage as in most


cases, the action has spoken for itself.?


The Chorus can therefore become a boring and unwelcome disruption to the


flow of the play. However, this does not alter the fact that the Chorus still


has a significant role to play, even for a 20th century


audience.? The way in which the Chorus


mirrors the reactions and emotions of the audience during the play, as well as


the other basic roles held by the Chorus are still vital to the success and


understanding of the play Oedipus, even to a 20th century audience. ??????????? To conclude, the chorus fulfil vital


functions if the play is being performed in an Amphitheatre or in a modern


theatre. They act as a narrative, summarising the most recent action (on-stage


or not). They take on the role of bystanders who watch and react to the action


as it happens. Also they maintain the continuity as their being present removes


any need for scene or act changes.?????????? ??????????? In the Greek theatre they take on a


significant role of emphasising the storyline by groups speaking in unison


rather than one single actor trying to reach the ears of around 17,000


listeners. They were after-all a very natural part of Greek theatre and their


absence would certainly reflect an unorthodox presentation. They also keep the


emotion running as any scene changing can be done during their narrative


sections. ??????????? In a 20th Century


production the chorus perform a seemingly less essential role. As there would


be ample amplification of sound the chorus could be projected to the role of


town folk who would fit into the structure of the play neatly.

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