Question

Read these lines from Scene 1 of Oedipus the King and answer the question. Blind though you are, you know the city lies Sick with plague, my lord, We find that you alone can guard or save us. Possibly you did not hear the messengers? Apollo, when we sent to him, Sent us back word that this great pestilence Would lift, but only if we established clearly The identity of those who murdered Laἲos. Based on the context of the lines from the play, what does pestilence mean? quarrel conflict epidemic controversy

Answer 1

Answer:

Epidemic.

Explanation:

Pestilence is a fatal disease or infliction that is suffered in a large part of the land. It is a type of plague that hurts, damaged, and even kills a large number of people.

In the given lines from scene I of Oedipus, The King, we see the people Thebes suffering a great pestilence which has wreaked havoc among them. The given speech is said by King Oedipus to the blind seer/ prophet Teiresias, asking his opinion and help to catch the murderer of Laios so as to end the suffering inflicted upon his people.

Thus, the word "pestilence" means an epidemic that the gods had inflicted upon the people of Thebes.