Teiresias bases his right to speech on a double foundation: fairness and the god Apollo’s patronage. First, Teiresias seems to be laying claim to the rights of a free citizenry in a state that provides for dispute resolution based on weighing contrary views. In a state that grants its citizenry rights equal to those in power, the seer can claim the right of any citizen to be heard; he leaves it to the rest of the citizenry to judge his words. Second, Teiresias lays claim to the right to speak on the basis that he is in fact a slave to the god. In this regard, the implication seems to be that one living in servitude to the god is granted a degree of independence from temporal authority, even when it does not recognize the rights of the individual. Regardless of the form of government, then, the seer claims the right to speak and be heard. [Mg] [Mj]