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The Sphinx was a scary monster in Greek myths. She had a lion’s body, wings, and a woman’s face. She sat near the city of Thebes, blocking the road. She asked travelers a tricky riddle. If they failed to answer, she killed them. The riddle was:
What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?
Oedipus, a brave and clever man, came to Thebes. When the Sphinx asked him the riddle, he thought carefully. He answered: “A human!” This is because a baby crawls on four legs in the morning (childhood), an adult walks on two legs at noon (adulthood), and an old man uses a cane as a third leg in the evening (old age).
The Sphinx was shocked! No one had ever solved her riddle. Defeated, the Sphinx threw herself off a cliff and died. The people of Thebes were saved. They celebrated Oedipus as a hero. They made him their king because their old king, Laius, had been killed earlier (Oedipus unknowingly killed Laius, his real father). Oedipus married Queen Jocasta, Laius’ widow—who was actually his real mother.
This riddle is a metaphor for human life. But it also shows the irony in the play. Oedipus was smart enough to solve the Sphinx’s riddle, but he could not “see” the truth about his own life—that he had killed his father (Laius) and married his mother (Jocasta). His victory over the Sphinx made him a king, but it also led him closer to his tragic fate.
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