During the Golden Age of Athens people began to question the things they once believed in. In the fifth century, the belief in the gods were challenged. Athenians were great thinkers and one of those great thinkers was Sophocles. In many of his plays used dramatic irony which the audience of Athens loved. The Greek word "Tyrannos" is an absolute ruler who has seized power, not inherited it. In Oedipus the King, the title of "Tyrannos" is the most powerful irony of the play.

The evidence that helps prove that Oedipus is not a "Tyrannos," or an absolute ruler is given by The King himself. Oedipus tells Tiresias, the blind prophet: "No, I came, know-nothing Oedipus, I stopped the Sphinx. I answered the riddle with my own intelligence--the birds had..." (27). Oedipus believes that he an extremely intelligent person defeated the Sphinx and that is why he is king...