Long afterward, Oedipus, old and blinded, walked the <br />roads. He smelled a familiar smell. It was <br />the Sphinx. Oedipus said, 'I want to ask one question. <br />Why didn't I recognize my mother?' 'You gave the <br />wrong answer,' said the Sphinx. 'But that was what <br />made everything possible,' said Oedipus. 'No,' she said. <br />'When I asked, What walks on four legs in the morning, <br />two at noon, and three in the evening, you answered, <br />Man. You didn't say anything about woman.' <br />'When you say Man,' said Oedipus, 'you include women <br />too. Everyone knows that.' She said, 'That's what <br />you think.'<br /><br />Muriel Rukeyser<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/myth-12/
