Oedipus (Dryden play) act was concluded. Among all our English plays, there is none more determinedly bloody than Oedipus, in its progress and conclusion. The entrance of the unfortunate king, with his eyes torn from their sockets, is too disgusting for representation. "Oedipus Rex" was originally written by Sophocles in 430 BC, and later on the subject was adapted by Seneca and Corneille. In the preface to "Oedipus, a Tragedy", Dryden refers to these authors and comments on their works. By doing so, he reveals his concept of "Oedipus, a Tragedy", and explains why he thinks that the Latin and French adaptions of
Oedipus Rex larger myth obliquely, which was already known to the audience in Athens at the time. The trilogy containing "Oedipus Rex" took second prize in the City Dionysia at its original performance. Aeschylus's nephew Philocles took first prize at that competition. However, in his "Poetics", Aristotle considered "Oedipus Rex" to be the tragedy which best matched his prescription for how drama should be made. Many modern critics agree with Aristotle on the quality of "Oedipus Rex", even if they don't always agree on the reasons. For example, Richard Claverhouse Jebb claimed that "The "Oedipus Tyrannus" is in one sense the masterpiece