What is the Theban Cycle and when was it composed?
The Theban Cycle consists of four epics composed in dactylic hexameter verse between 750 BC and 500 BC. These works include the Oedipodea, Thebaid, Epigoni, and Alcmeonis which are now mostly lost.
Questions about Theban Cycle
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who wrote the Oedipodea part of the Theban Cycle?
Ancient sources attribute the Oedipodea to Cinaethon of Sparta although historians debate this claim today. This poem served as the opening chapter of the entire cycle focusing on the tragic figure of Oedipus.
How many verses survive from the Thebaid epic within the Theban Cycle?
The Thebaid contained approximately 7,000 verses but no definitive authorship exists for the work leaving its true origin unknown. Ancient Greek elegiac poet Callinus believed Homer wrote this epic yet modern researchers have found no proof of his involvement.
Why did Alcmaeon kill his mother Eriphyle in the Alcmeonis section of the Theban Cycle?
Alcmaeon killed his own mother Eriphyle after learning she betrayed his father Amphiaraus to enemy forces. She had arranged for the death of his father which led him to take revenge against her according to the surviving records.
What happened to Polynices and Eteocles during the war described in the Theban Cycle?
Both brothers died fighting each other at the end of the war after leading an expedition that failed completely. A second expedition led by their sons eventually captured the city of Thebes and destroyed it entirely.