Greek theater served a much larger role in society than entertainment does today. Going to a play was not just a fun activity, it was a citizen's duty. Greek plays held a large role in political ideas. In particular, they were a way to train democratic citizens, teaching each individual what he must do to help maintain an orderly, democratic state. Many traits that are important to a democratic citizen are displayed in Oedipus Rex. This play acts as a guide to show the democratic citizen how to fulfill an active role in government. While through the story of the play, a citizen can clearly see when and why he must be active in government, the choral odes act as the true lesson. These choral odes stop the action, and make the spectator think critically about their government. The odes question whose power is more dominant, the king's or the god's.
             The first choral ode raises many questions about who to trust. The odes illustrate an important trait essential to a democratic citizen: skepticism. The placements of the odes themselves serve as an important example of this democratic trait. By stopping the action, the odes show the audience to stop and question authority before they just blindly go along with what their government demands of them.
             Within the first ode, many questions are raised about Oedipus's power, and how much faith the citizens can have in the king himself, versus the prophecy of Teiresias. The citizens are torn between trusting what they can see, or what a "man skilled at hearing Fate in the wingbeat of a bird" tells them (26). The first two odes are a debate over whom to trust. It serves as a guideline for what a citizen must do in a similar situation, to either believe in the power of the king or the power of the gods. In the first ode, the chorus says, "no man can judge that rough unknown or trust in second sight," for prophecies cannot be com
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