Burial Rituals In Antigone

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The play Antigone by Sophocles showcases traditional values in ancient Greek culture. In Antigone, Antigone is determined to give her brother a proper burial against the king’s orders. She wants to do this because doing it will uphold the traditional values of ancient Greece. The people of ancient Greece had many values that are not an important part of culture today. Antigone shows values of ancient Greek society such as the importance of proper burial rituals, the importance of family, the importance of honor, and the importance of religion. The proper burial rituals were very important in ancient Greek culture and this is portrayed in Antigone. The Odyssey states that souls cannot fully enter Hades unless they are buried, and therefore cannot experience the afterlife (Retief 46). This is one of the reasons burial is so important to the people …show more content…

In ancient Greece, honor was something that determined the place of a person in society. This honor had to be constantly preserved and earned in order to keep their societal position. Honor also had to be rewarded with things like gifts so that it is truly represented. In The Iliad Achilles was publicly shamed, which caused him to have a lower societal position, and this resulted in his refusal to fight in the Trojan War; because of this, Achilles asked the gods to make sure the Greeks lose the war if he is not fighting. This would bring shame to the Greeks who would then bring Achilles gifts associated with honor in order to have his help again (Bellitti). This importance of honor is displayed in Antigone when Antigone wishes to bury her brother because, as mentioned earlier, it would harm his honor (Sophocles 1-2). Polynices’ honor being lowered, even after death, is something Antigone cannot stand to see happen to her brother. Honor was incredibly important in Greek culture, and Antigone shows

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