which excerpt from the passage best states the authors’ claim? why were the english the first to build factories to mill cloth? because of the wealth they gained, the trade connections they made, and the banking systems they developed in the slave and sugar trade. indeed, the cheap cloth from the factories was used to clothe the slaves. english factories, you might say, were built, run, and paid for by sugar.

What is the significance of the above statement in relation to the play’s conclusion? oedipus treats his inferiors poorly but ultimately grants them the same respect he grants to nobility. while teiresias appears to be mocking oedipus, the real message is one of warning about the forces working against the king. oedipus earns great fame for answering the riddle of the sphinx but ultimately loses his crown to a common man. just as oedipus is unable to conceive that he has done wrong in the past, he is unable to imagine that his enviable position is impermanent.