OED. Woe, for my cruel fate![OEDIPUS is seated
CH. Now thou unbendest from thy stubborn ways,
O man of woe!
Declare, what mortal wight thou art,
That, marked by troublous fortune, here art led.
What native country, shall we learn, is thine?
OED. O strangers, I have none!
But do not—
CH. What dost thou forbid, old sir?
OED. Do not, oh, do not ask me who I am,
Nor probe me with more question.
[page 267][212-244] CH. What dost thou mean?
OED. My birth is dreadful.
CH. Tell it forth.
OED. What should I utter, O my child? Woe is me!
CH. Thy seed, thy father’s name, stranger, pronounce!