Janani Balasubramanian Miss Shine English 1A 19 October 2018 Quotation Explication In Sophocleś play Oedipus Rex, Oedipus does not meet the expectations of a king. He lies about the things he does wrong and does not deal with his problems instead he runs away. Oedipus does not meet the expectations of a good king according to what the priest says. While the priest talks he tells Oedipus ¨find us our safety¨ saying that Oedipus should protect his people. The people of Thebes and others should look to him for protection. Oedipus goes against this when he kills King Laius unknowingly because he believes this person is a servant. Even though he did think it was just a random servant he did kill him but he did not bother to own up to it. Talking about safety for the people, the priest includes that he should be able to “act in a time of troubles, and act well.¨ Eve through a crisis the people of Thebes are to still be able to look to him for guidance and leadership. Oedipus does not act like a king during a time of crisis. For example, when Oedipus finds out about his family's issues and the much embarrassment to come he runs away from Thebes and leaves his people behind. As he runs away he loses the people's trust from what he gained ¨long ago¨, even before he was the king of Thebes. Oedipus only talks about the good things he has done. For example, he is given the opportunity of being king of Thebes because of defeating the Sphinx long ago. He becomes king but does not tell anyone he killed someone. Instead he takes the praising from the people for something he did back then.