The history of the critical reception to Oedipus Rex begins with Aristotle (384-322 B.C.), who in his Poetics inaugurated the history of formalist and structural analysis of literature, two important cornerstones for the enterprise of the critical interpretation of literature. In some ways, Poetics can be regarded as the first book of literary criticism.
The influence of Sophocles in general and Oedipus Rex in particular is enormous, due to the exemplary status Aristotle granted...
Source: Drama for Students, ©2013 Gale Cengage. All Rights Reserved. Full copyright.
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