The name "Oedipus" is commonly associated with concepts of power, incest and destiny due to Sophocles' enduring play Oedipus the King, but it is not a word that many Greek historians or students of literature would associate with vegetables. In 2005, however, Jason Wishnow created exactly this strange pairing by directing an eight-minute stop-motion rendition of Oedipus the King where all the characters were depicted as different vegetables, speaking to each other in human voices, and featuring the story. of the king of Thebes and his tragic destiny. Videos like this, which depict ancient stories in a comedic light, have some positive attributes, including a wider audience through the use of the Internet and a light, aesthetic distraction from potentially disturbing themes, but many qualities essentials of classical Greek. literature is lost in conversion. Although depicting the story of Oedipus through a vegetal film may be more enjoyable than the original text for some audience members, this entertainment value comes at a high cost: the emotional attachment to the characters is lost, the dramatic setting of Ancient Greece is confounded by multiple anachronisms and many deep themes are depreciated or omitted in order to make room for the ultimate goal of comic relief. The obvious and intentional difference between Sophocles' original Oedipus and Wishnow's adaptation is the use of plant characters as opposed to real humans. While this may seem like an innocent change, it has some pretty big implications for how the audience sympathizes and responds to the characters and their ideas: using potatoes, broccoli, tomatoes, and cauliflower , Wishnow removes the human element of the argument. .....middle of paper......some common elements to share between the two. It is important to remember, however, that both works serve their respective purposes: the play presents scholars and students with moral and philosophical questions concerning a man's destiny and his fitness to rule, while the vegetables take on costumes to entertain internet users around the world. the digital age. The tragic and comic versions play off each other: without the original tragedy, the Vegetal Oedipus would have no basis for its puns and irony, and without Wishnow's adaptation, there would be no foil nor contrast with which to compare the dark text of Sophocles. "Success" and "failure" are relative terms, and although it is obvious that Wishnow failed to create a morally charged play that could be performed in fifth-century Athens, he may have managed to provide a humorous twist to Sophocles' strongest point. famous creation.