At the beginning of the play, the city is perceived as dark and gloomy because someone knows the truth about what happened to the former king. When Oedipus first arrives in Thebes, Creon tells Oedipus that he must "purify the city of Thebes, purify the plague." (115). This plague is why the king was killed suddenly without warning. The city is described as a “black stain” (116) that “poisons the earth” (117) and “makes the hearts of the people sick” (118) who live in the city. The reason everyone is so confused is because they don't know what happened. No one actually knows what could have caused this and who did it. Everyone is shocked by what happened and shocked. To free the city from this plague it is necessary to find out who killed the Laius. These are dark images that represent ignorance because everyone has no knowledge of what happened. Until they solve the mystery that surrounds the city, people's lives will be painful and restless since none of them know or have the power to understand it. When the city finds out what happened to Laios, that's when the city's plague was resolved and the people could actually rest. When Oedipus discovers that he was the cause of the king's death, he cries out and asks to be "taken away from Thebes" (1747) and says that he was the "destroyer and [then] destroyed" (1748). It is at this moment that the