Oedipus Rex the play, although some are alluded to in the text. Oedipus is the son of Laius and Jocasta, the king and queen of Thebes. The misfortunes of his house are the result of a curse laid upon his father for violating the sacred laws of hospitality. In his youth, Laius was the guest of Pelops, the king of Elis, and he became the tutor of Chrysippus, the king's youngest son, in chariot racing. Laius seduced or abducted and raped Chrysippus, who according to some versions, killed himself in shame. This murder cast a doom over Laius and all of his
Laius not clear. Another theory is that the entire line of Cadmus was cursed, either by Ares when Cadmus killed his serpent, or else by Hephaestus who resented the fact that Cadmus married Harmonia, the daughter of Ares and Aphrodite, Hephaestus' straying wife. Certainly, many of Cadmus's descendants had tragic ends. Laius In Greek mythology, King Laius (pronounced ), or Laios () of Thebes was a divine hero and key personage in the Theban founding myth. Son of Labdacus, he was raised by the regent Lycus after the death of his father. While Laius was still young, Amphion and Zethus usurped