Oedipus Journal #2

Visual Action Vs. Speech
Visual aspects of drama vastly enhance the experiences of the reader in my opinion. The people who learn better visually and the people who relate to things better when they can see them probably agree this as well. The quote "actions speak louder than words" applies and really is the epitome of stage productions. Words can be depicted several different ways usually and don't have a clear meaning. The action of the word is much more precise and enhances all of the aspects of the play. The stage directions in the book can also help intensify the meanings that are trying to be expressed.
However, I believe that speech should not be overlooked either. The speech is deliberate and is expressed a certain way to highlight the diction and feelings expressed by the characters. Most of the time, the visual aspects of plays are not as important as the speech because they do not send the message as clear or as deliberate sometimes. The ostentatious portion of plays is really more for show in my opinion than for helping to understand the meaning thus making it less important. It does help to understand what the author meant by certain things through different interpretations of the text however, it is not essential to understanding the purpose of themes.
In Oedipus, the stage directions are very useful in deciphering what Sophocles really meant to occur. The stage directions themselves paint a picture in the mind to get a feeling of what was in mind when Sophocles wrote it. The directions give the reader a clearer understanding of the motives of certain people and how they choose to express their emotions. The visual aspects of Oedipus and some of the other key characters is very important and I feel like if I saw this play it would give me a much better understanding of what certain things were supposed to mean. For these reasons visual action is important for the most part but never more important than speech.