1

Prophecy and Oracle In Greece, religion

was completely embedded in life, with no
clear distinction between the sacred and the
profane (Bremmer 1999a: 24). Convinced
of the fragility of human affairs and conscious that the failure or success of human
enterprises was wholly dependent on divine
veto or favor, the Greeks used numerous
religious practices to gain the favor of the
gods. In addition, omens, oracles, and
divination in its widest sense were essential
to determining the right course of action
and reducing failure to the minimum, since
they were supposed to give direct access to
the will of the gods (Jouan 1991). In this
sense, divination helped bridge the gulf
between divine omniscience and imperfect
human knowledge.
Given its omnipresence in Greek life, it is
not surprising that prophecy also had a prominent place in Greek tragedy. A case might
be made for a theory deriving the deep interest of tragedy in the problems of human
action in relation to human fate from the
same roots from which divination in all its
forms originated (Kamerbeek 1965: 30).
Admittedly, prophecy, oracles, and omens in
tragedy are also important means to increase
dramatic tension and suspense (Bchli 1954;
Kirkwood 1958/1994: 7282; Jouanna
1997: 283) and attention should be paid to
determining their artistic utility not only
within a given play but also in a TRILOGY,
forexample (Staehlin 1912). However, a proper understanding of the meaning of these
phenomena should take into consideration the
performance as a whole, namely not only the
play and the AUDIENCE but also the characters
and their worldview (Kamerbeek 1965: 312).
As in Homer (Il. 1.6970), divination in
Greek tragedy is also concerned with past,
present, and future (Aesch. *PV 84276;
Eur. Phoen. 93159; Soph. Phil. 191200;
Eur. Ion 57; IT 125982; Hel. 9223). In
point of fact, however, the skill of the SEER is

to understand the past in order to see in

which way it acts upon the present and influences the future (Aesch. *PV 84276; Ag.
117897). This is especially so in the context
of Greek tragedy: due to the events taking
place in a MYTHICAL past, prophecy mainly
appears as interpretation of past events, so
much so that predictions may sometimes even
appear as prophecies ex eventu.
There are two forms of divination, inductive and inspired (Bonnechere 2007), and
both play a relevant role in tragedy. As to the
former, it is conceived of as an art (techn) by
both PROMETHEUS (Aesch. *PV 506) and
ANTIGONE (Soph. Ant. 998). Prometheus further describes many of its varieties (Aesch.
*PV 48599), which are also attested to in
other tragedies. Oneiromancy or DREAM interpretation is referred to (Aesch. Cho. 2141;
Eur. IT 125284) as a way to determine
thewill of the gods; cledonomancy, with its
focus on casual acts or utterances (kldones)
and their possible effect on reality, reflects
the importance of language in the world of
omens(Aesch. Ag. 2557, 1247, 1652 with
Peradotto 1969a); ornithoscopy or bird
interpretation (Aesch. Ag. 10459; Soph.
Ant. 9981004; Eur. Phoen. 840; Bacch.
347) was a Near Eastern method already
recorded in Homer (Bremmer 2011b); hieroscopy or the reading of entrails (Eur. El.
82633) was an inductive form of divination
which appears in the post-Homeric period
and may or may not have been regularly used
by the prophts; and empyromancy, or the
observation of how victims are consumed
on the sacrificial fire (Soph. Ant. 100511;
Eur. Phoen. 12558), certainly played an
important role.
Some of these phenomena, notably bird
flight or casual utterances, could be and in
fact were interpreted by ordinary people.
Other varieties, such as hieroscopy, empyromancy, or oneiromancy required skilled interpretation: it was the prophet who practiced

The Encyclopedia of Greek Tragedy, First Edition. Edited by Hanna M. Roisman.

2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

2
this, since he or she was able to discover
within the microcosmos in which men acted
signs of the macrocosmic structure determined by the divine. To do so, he or she
depended, to a certain extent, on the influence of divine inspiration (already found in
Heraclit. 92 DK). Indeed, Plato (Phdr.
2445) even derives the term mantis seer
from the same root as mania madness
(Nagy 1990a: 604), understood, of course,
as divine madness, although this etymology
and approach to the mantis knowledge has
more recently been contested: the term rather
derives from the root *ma to reveal, which
means that his knowledge may be qualified as
lucid (Casevitz 1992: 118).
Inspirational prophecy, the second form of
divination, seems to be a product of the
archaic period and its eager desire for oneness
with the gods (Dietrich 1990: 159). At an
early stage, poet and prophet still belonged
to an indiscriminate category (Hes. Theog.
2634, with Nagy 1982; contra Bremmer
1996), expressed by the term aoidos (bard),
which would later retain its sacred allure due
to its close association with the Muses (see
Platos Phdr. [above] and the Ion passim).
Inspired by the divinity (entheos inspired, full of the god, enthousiasmenos
inspired, possessed by the divinity), the
mantis is an intermediary between men and
the gods. Tragedy regularly uses the term
mantis to refer to diviners who have become
legendary, such as TEIRESIAS (Soph. Ant. 992,
1053; OT 298, 390; Eur. Phoen.), CASSANDRA
(Aesch. Ag.; Eur. Tro.), CALCHAS (Soph. Aj.
760, 7801), Helenus (Soph. Phil. 604, 615)
or THEONOE (Eur. Hel.), but the term may
sometimes also refer to the god himself
(Aesch. Cho. 559; Ag. 1202, 1275; Eum.
169, 595, 615; Soph. OT 994) and in
SOPHOCLES, derivatives such as manteia divination or mantikos prophetic, oracular
may allude both to the oracle and to its
prophecies (OT 394, 723; Ant. 1055; see
Jouanna 1997: 3034).
Oracles are also omnipresent in Greek tragedy, notably the oracle at DELPHI (Vogt 1998)
and DODONA (Aesch. *PV 65866, 82935;

Soph. Trach. 16972, 116472; Eur.

Andr. 88390; Phoen. 97984; Dieterle
2007). Inpoint of fact, the Delphic oracle is
mentioned in 14 of the 33 surviving plays,
which include 34 consultations of the PYTHIA,
who also appears as a character in plays by
AESCHYLUS (Eum.) and EURIPIDES (Ion). An
analysis of these consultations may help us
determine the role played by the oracle in
fifth-century Athens, the influence of the
Delphic shrine on Greek politics, and the
place it occupied in the publics mind
(Bowden 2005: 4155, 1607). Oracles were
pronounced by the Pythia and interpreted by
the prophts or declarer. The theros
(envoy sent to consult an oracle) finally,
was the official delegate appointed by the city
to transmit the message. Oracles were in general ambiguous, as a result of which misinterpretations were apparently frequent (Hdt.
1.71). In the context of Greek tragedy
this ambiguity generates so-called dramatic
IRONY (in general, see Markantonatos 1977;
for Sophocles, see Kirkwood 1958/1994:
24787).
In Aeschylus plays, omens, prophecy, and
oracles occupy an important place as a means
to describe mans entanglement in the concatenation of events, which in turn explains
his SUFFERING and misfortune. They obviously
have an important dramatic function but the
weight of their meaning transcends the mere
technical goal. As to the former, premonitions (Pers. 1112, 59, 93; Ag. 1419),
DREAMS (Pers. 176; Cho. 324), omens
(Ag.91113, 97275), and the flight of birds
(Ag. 10421; Pers. 20514; Sept. 23), among
others, serve to increase the dramatic tension,
preparing the public for the tragic denouement that will ineluctably take place when
events confirm the prediction. Prophecies
also occupy an important place in Aeschylus,
and are sometimes pronounced by famous
figures, such as DARIUS (Pers. 681843) and
Prometheus (*PV), and seers such as Calchas
(Ag. 2014) and Cassandra (Ag. 1072322),
or at other times by the oracle (Cho. 26070)
or the god APOLLO himself (Eum. 19, 615,
625). At the same time, their existential

3
significance comes to the fore when Aeschylus
characters express their premonitions, revealing their personal anxieties and the power of
the gods (Vicaire 1963: 34950). In the signs
provided by these phenomena, both the characters and the public perceive not only the
expression of the necessity that affects human
lives but also the contours of the world in
which they live and their dependence on
supernatural powers.
As far as Sophocles is concerned, prophecy
and oracle become increasingly important
within the dramatic texture of his plays, notably in AJAX, ANTIGONE, and OEDIPUS
TYRANNUS, the latters Teiresias scene being
the most conspicuous (Staehlin 1912: 59). In
four of his plays, prophecy is due to seers,
who may appear directly on stage to announce
their prophetic utterances, as is the case for
Teiresias in Antigone (9881090) and in
Oedipus Tyrannus (297462), or may be
referred to indirectly, as is the case with
Calchas (Ajax) and Helenus (PHILOCTETES).
Other plays refer to different oracles, be it
Dodona (Soph. Trach. 7681, 1648; and
perhaps also the lost Ulysses Acanthoplex Radt
TrGF vol. 4 F 455, 456, 460, 461), or Delphi
(El. 32, 1425; OC 8795). In the case of
Oedipus Tyrannus, we have both prophecy
and oracle (Jouanna 1997).
Similarly to Aeschylus, oracles have both a
dramatic and a philosophical dimension for
Sophocles. On the one hand they may
increase the tension or prepare the audience
for the ulterior development of events. On
the other, their bearing goes beyond the mere
technical function (Kamerbeek 1965). Unlike
Aeschylus, Sophoclean oracles do not involve
fatalism and prophecy is not enough in
itselfto guarantee that an event will happen.
Admittedly, oracles do reveal divine will,
but in order to be fulfilled they also need
the force of human character (Kirkwood
1958/1994: 7282, see also GODS ROLE/
GODS AND MORTALS), which allows the
playwright to explore human thos. This is the
case in Ajax, which combines ATHENAs will
and the heros own character, and of ELECTRA,
in which the heroines REVENGE is based both

on the oracle and on her own determination.

In addition, the prophecy of Helenus is
intended more as a demonstration of PHILOCTETES stature than a prediction of what the
future may bring, and the same may be said of
WOMEN OF TRACHIS, in which the oracle in fact
tells us more about HERACLES personality
than about the future.
Turning to Euripides, the higher role of
Tyche or (Mis)Fortune in human affairs
seems to lessen the crucial importance of oracles and prophecies apparent in the plays of
his predecessors. Nevertheless, divination still
seems to have a pivotal place in his tragedies
and the playwright even includes numerous
oracles, prophecies, and omens which are not
strictly connected with the main action of
thetragedy (Andr. 123968; Med. 13868;
Heracl. 1028; Hipp. 1416; Hec. 125979;
Supp. 1183213; Tro. 356, 42661; Hel.
1662; Or. 1664; Bacch. 1330). As has been
pointed out, however, the depth or scope of
meaning clearly decreases in favor of the psychological interest in and moral analysis of
the characters (Kamerbeek 1965: 3840).
This is visible both in the analysis of Cassandra
in Trojan Women (309461, with Mason
1959: 8693) and of Theonoes purity of
mind in HELEN. The TeiresiasCREON scene in
PHOENICIAN WOMEN also shows a similar
intent, since we not only see the doubts and
insecurity of the seer (Phoen. 83440, 8915,
9549), but also Creons psychology and his
reluctance to obey the gods (Phoen. 922). At
the same time, the technical function of
prophecies becomes clearer. Thus, for example, the predictions are introduced in the PROLOGUES: pronounced in a monologue by a
godly figure, they remain unknown to the
other characters and have no further influence on the plot. Only the god himself and
the audience hear these pronouncements,
which seems to imply that the intention is to
raise the dramatic tension, involving the audience in the future development of the action.
This is the case in six of the eight tragedies
that include a prologue: HIPPOLYTUS, HECUBA,
Ion, Helen, BACCHAE, and IPHIGENIA AMONG
THE TAURIANS, even if in the latter the

4
predictions are related more to the future
development of events. Moreover, Euripides
may also challenge the audiences expectations, first raised during the prologue. This is
the case in Ion, Iphigenia among the Taurians,
Helen, and ALCESTIS, in which the original
prophecy is modified, adapted, or questioned
in the course of the play. In this way the
involvement of the public is even greater
(Hamilton 1978b). This also occurs in
Bacchae in which, according to some scholars, Euripides seems to delude the audience
by means of DIONYSUS equivocal prediction
(Dodds 1960: ad 52; Lesky 1972: 486).
Thus, prophecy and oracle seem to have
had a polyvalent function in tragedy. To begin
with, they allowed playwrights and the public
to ponder human existence, mans relationship with and dependence on the gods, and
the gulf between divine and human knowledge. Incidentally, the different means of
accessing divine will and the confidence of
success in this reveals the optimism of a
worldview in which macrocosmos and microcosmos are intrinsically related. From a more
technical perspective, they were clearly used
as a dramatic tool, not only to increase the
tension and prepare the audience for
the development of the plot but also to
endow it with a coherence that, while absent
from real life, is characteristic of such literary
reenactments.
References
Bchli, E. 1954. Die knstlerische Funktion von
Orakelsprchen, Weissagungen, Trumen u.s.w.
in der griechischen Tragdie. Dissertation,
Zurich Winterthur.
Bonnechere, P. 2007. Divination, in D. Ogden
(ed.), A Companion to Greek Religion. Oxford:
Wiley-Blackwell: 14559.
Bowden, H. 2005. Classical Athens and the Delphic
Oracle: Divination and Democracy. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Bremmer, J.N. 1996. The Status and Symbolic
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Svenska Institutet i Athen: 97109.
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Oxford: Oxford University Press; repr. 2006.

Bremmer, J.N. 2011b. Divination. VI. Greek, in

H. Cancik and H. Schneider (eds.), Brills New
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20, 2011.
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105: 118.
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und historische Untersuchungen zur Entstehung
und
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des
Zeus-Heiligtums.
Hildesheim: G. Olms.
Dietrich, B.C. 1990. Oracles and Divine
Inspiration. Kernos 3: 15774.
Dodds, E.R. 1960. Euripides Bacchae, 2nd edn.
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Hamilton, R. 1978b. Prologue, Prophecy and
Plot in Four Plays of Euripides. AJPh 99:
277302.
Jouan, F. 1991. Loracle, thrapeutique de
langoisse. Kernos 3: 1128.
Jouanna, J. 1997. Oracles et devins chez
Sophocle, in J.G. Heintz (ed.), Oracles et
prophties dans lantiquit: Actes du colloque de
Strasbourg, 1517 juin 1995. Paris: De Boccard:
283320.
Kamerbeek, J.C. 1965. Prophecy and Tragedy.
Mnemosyne 18: 2940.
Kirkwood, G.M. 1958/1994. A Study of
Sophoclean Drama. Ithaca, NY: Cornell
University Press.
Lesky, A. 1972. Die tragische Dichtung der
Hellenen, 3rd edn. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht; published in English as Greek Tragic
Poetry, tr. M. Dillon. New Haven, CT: Yale
University Press, 1983.
Markantonatos, G. 1977. On the Main Types of
Dramatic Irony as Used in Greek Tragedy.
Platon 29: 7984.
Mason, P.G. 1959. Kassandra. JHS 79: 8093.
Nagy, G. 1982. Hesiod, in T.L. Luce (ed.),
Ancient Writers. New York: Charles Scribners
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Nagy, G. 1990a. Ancient Greek Poetry, Prophecy
and Concepts Theory, in J.L. Kugel (ed.),
Poetry and Prophecy. Ithaca, NY: Cornell
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Peradotto, J.J. 1969a. Cledonomancy in the
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Staehlin, R. 1912. Das Motiv der Mantik im
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33757.

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Vogt, S. 1998. Delphi in der attischen Tragdie.
A&A 44: 3048.

Further Reading
Burkert, W. 1972. Seer or Healer, in The
Orientalizing Revolution. Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press: 4187.

Dodds, E.R. 1951. The Blessings of Madness,

in The Greeks and the Irrational. Berkeley:
University of California Press: 64100.
LAUTARO ROIG LANZILLOTTA