What is the effect of Creon’s describing the plague in this way?
-Oedipus the king part 1

In describing the plague, Creon has an effect of terror and fear.

Explanation:

In "Oedipus the king," Creon describes the plague as follows: "By exile or by death. Blood must answer for blood. A murder blew the deadly plague breath on our city."

This causes an effect of terror, fear and hopelessness, as it shows that the plague will be deadly and will spill the blood of many people, that is, it will kill many citizens of Thebes. This deadly plague will be established if the killer of the former king of Thebes does not appear.

The problem is that the killer of the former king of Thebes is Oedipus, the new king, who unknowingly murdered not only the king of Thebes, but his biological father.

Dismal

Explanation:

It is Dismal because dismal means depressing or in a mood. It means something is gloomy. In this particualr instance, if you're feeling sad, unhappy, or feeling down then that usually means you are depressed. Am I wrong? No.

Therefore this is the correct answer.