Comparing Antigone to Me
George Bernard Shaw said, "Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself." While analyzing Sophocles's play "Antigone", we studied the different characters to discover which character we relate to most. We learned about their trials and values; we read about their lives in ancient Greece around 430 B.C. They had an evil, cruel leader whose laws prohibited them to bury their beloved family and friends after an intense, gory battle. Throughout this play, Antigone refers to her pure morals and breaks the law to bury her brother. She confronts death but does so honorably. She becomes a role model and a great example to the town of Thebes. She becomes a hero in her sister's eyes! I have found that I am most similar to Antigone. I've evaluated my life and her story and have discovered that Antigone and I have complementary physical capabilities, personalities, backgrounds, and responsibilities.
Although Antigone's physical description is not directly stated in Sophocles's writings, we can infer
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She had to cook, clean, and look after her siblings. Even though Antigone spent a considerable amount of her life in the wilderness, she still had many duties. While lead her disabled father around, she supplied them with food, and she had to found shelters for them to rest and inhabit. She had to teach herself several survival skills, for she had no educators. Her father was aided by Antigone in relearning basic skills by that had become difficult to him because he was blind. According to ancient Greece texts, many women had to farm to earn a salary. Most likely, after her parents passed away, Antigone had to harvest crops to make money. Because Ismene was so reserved, she possibly struggled to find employment. Thank goodness that her sister was so benevolent! Antigone would have contributed much to Ismene to keep her healthful. Antigone had many
The Book of Esther and Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone tell the story of two heroic women and their acts of bravery. While both Esther and Antigone are female heroes in their respective works of literature, their acts of heroism, personalities and the purpose and genre in which their stories are told differ.
Antigone and her family have suffered many things. It all began with her father Oedipus. Oedipus has a very confused life. He ends up killing his father, the king of Thebes, while he believes his father is someone else. He ends up as the king of Thebes and married to his mother, Jocasta. He dose this all while believing that his parents are dead. He finally ends up finding all this out; he blinds himself and is banished from Thebes. This is where Antigone's two brothers come in, Eteocles and Polynices. They end up fighting for the throne. Eteocles wins and banishes Polynices from Thebes. Polynices, however, is not done. He goes to Argos and recruits an army to take Thebes. The plan backfires though and Eteocles and Polynices end up killing each other, and the army is driven off. With no male heir to the throne, Creon, Oedipus' brother, takes the throne. This may be a lot for one person to handle, but Antigone's grief has just begun.
She reminds Antigone that they are the only family members left and pleads with her not to commit such a crime, but Antigone refuses to accept the logic in her sister’s argument and will not be swayed, even though the idea of her death clearly upsets her sister. Ismene later has a change of heart and wishes to die alongside her sister in order to honor the dead as well, she even confesses to Creon, but Antigone rejects her idea of being a martyr, saying that her own death “will suffice” (Sophocles 136). Ismene then imagines life without her sister. The idea of losing the only kin she has left on Earth terrifies Ismene. She pleads to Antigone, “what life is dear to me bereft of you?” (Sophocles 136). Ismene would rather die than live without Antigone. In deciding to give her life for her brother, Antigone neglects her sister, and acts selfishly. She therefore should not have signed herself over to death as it has severely negative effects on her only living
Antigone is also an independent woman. She relies on no one but herself and the gods. She is bound and determined to give her brother proper burial rights. Whether her sister Ismene wishes to help or not, she will do it, regardless. She shows her sister she can and will so it without her when she says to Ismene, “‘You have your excuses. I
The Antigone is widely thought of as the tragic heroine of the play bearing her name. She would seem to fit the part in light of the fact that she dies doing what is right. Antigone buries her brother Polynices, but Creon does not like her doing that one bit. Creon says to Antigone, "Why did you try to bury your brother? I had forbidden it. You heard my edict. It was proclaimed throughout Thebes. You read my edict. It was posted up on the city walls." (Pg. 44) Antigone buries her brother without worrying about what might happen to her. By doing this, she takes into consideration death and other consequences for burying her brother. Antigone follows what she thinks is right according to the gods. She is the supporter of her actions in the burial of Polynices.
Around the time where Greece was known to be the greatest civilization on earth, many people used myths and stories as an extension of their belief because they were culturally significant and important. Ancient Greece was a male-dominated civilization that created laws which would benefit only those with power, which let to the suffering of those without power. The relationship of the sexes was very important, because it showed how men were more superior and woman were frowned upon because they were treated more like minorities. Aeschylus’ “Agamemnon” is about a Greek king who would do anything, including sacrificing his daughter, because he feels as a man and a king whatever decisions he makes are always just. Sophocles’ “Antigone” is about a girl who goes against the religious values of the society, and get persecuted because state laws restrict her
Today the United States is controlled by three branches, but the executive branch is the branch that is commonly referred to when mentioning the United States; the President. Who was once just a loyal friend of Oedipus, now the ruler of Thebes, Creon can be considered Thebes’s president. A ruler who believes and insists that his word is final when it deals with anything under his jurisdiction, meets a match in Antigone, the daughter of the former ruler of Thebes before he parted unto the other side. “When the unstoppable object collides with an unmovable object,” can be used to describe the two opposing views of Antigone and Creon.
In Sophocles’ play Antigone, Creon was engaged in a conflict with Oedipus’ daughter Antigone. Creon and Antigone did not see eye-to-eye the entire play due to extreme differences. Creon and Antigone had many similarities despite their enormous discrepancies. Having as many differences as they did, it made them uniquely similar in numerous ways. The similarities that Antigone and Creon shared were independence, loyalty toward their views, cruelty and arrogance (“The Similarities”). The connection shared by Antigone and Creon showed that as hard as Sophocles tried to make them diverse, he made them unintentionally equivalent at the same time.
\It’s often said that one should let their heart control their actions, rather than let their mind ruin what they truly want. This struggle on whether to follow your conscience or to side with the demands of the authority is presented in Sophocles's Antigone. The two main female characters in this tragedy, Antigone and Ismene, are shown in different lights: Antigone is a brave woman who is willing to disobey the king; Ismene is simply just the frail sister of Antigone. Their lifestyle, personality, and moral compass influence their actions throughout the tragedy. Antigone and Ismene show great contrast from each other, but their morality determines the fate of their lives. Through analyzing these two female characters, it can be seen that Antigone, though the victim of death, possess qualities that the survivor Ismene lacks; the character of Ismene acts as Antigone's foil.
In the beginning, the author introduced Antigone and her sister, Ismene, and their argument about their recently deceased brother. The argument involved Antigone wanting to bury her brother and Ismene encouraging her to obey the King's orders. Antigone ignored her sister's advice and chose to disobey the King by burying her brother. The King learned of Antigone's actions and sentenced her to death. After listening to his people he lessened her sentence to spend the rest of her life in an isolated cave. With the advice of a trusted prophet, he once again changes his perspective and decides to set Antigone free. However, he arrived at the cave and was shocked to see that Antigone had hanged herself. The situation caused chaos among the people in Thebes.
Sophocles’ Antigone tells of a tragic end of a family that was consumed by love of power which led to the death of the people who were supposed to be the leaders of the people. Antigone, without a doubt is the tragic hero in the play. Compared to her mother’s brother, Creon the King of Thebes, Antigone was the one who showed true heroism. The Hamartia in the life of Antigone was so devastating that it led her end her own life.
Loyalty to the household is one of the foundational values of Grecian cultures. Both Antigone and the Odyssey portray the benefits of this devotion to kin, yet also expose the tensions that can arise while keeping an allegiance to a household. Polis, the city-state, was grounded in the concept of oikos, or households. Ancient Hellenic women were expected to uphold certain standards within society, such as burying the dead family members, pledging allegiance to the household of the betrothed, or marrying into a new household following the death of a husband. Consequently, massive repercussions, even death, could arise if a woman did not fully pledge allegiance to a betrothed household or abandoned her current family without justifiable cause.
Antigone appears to exhibit many characteristics of a Shakespearean tragedy. The scholarly critical articles that are addressed show diverse views in order to display the different levels
Brad Moore, a famous athlete once said, “Pride would be a lot easier to swallow if it didn’t taste so bad.” In Sophocles’ well known Greek tragedy, Antigone, the main character undergoes immense character development. Antigone transforms from being stubborn and underestimated to courageous and open-minded. In reality, it is Antigone’s insular persistence that leads to her ultimate decline in the play as well as others around her. After the death of her two brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, Creon becomes the new ruler of Thebes. With this, he grants Eteocles an honorable funeral service for his brave fighting. Claiming that Polynices was a traitor, he shows complete refusal to grant Polynices a respectable and worthy service. Clearly disagreeing with Creon’s inexcusable demands, Antigone declares she will bury Polynices herself so that his soul can be at peace. Entirely aware of the consequences and dangers of this action, which include death, she goes forward vowing her love for her family. Antigone shows strength and determination towards her brother. However, her growing sense of pride leads to her downfall as she sacrifices everything for her family. Antigone develops into an admirable character in which she portrays her defiance and courage, pride and open mindedness, and sense of moral righteousness to show vital character growth as the play progresses.
The Greek play Antigone, written by Sophocles tells a tragic story of undying love, deep hatred, abuse of power and doing the right thing even though there may be challenges in the way. After examining the Antigone play I found I most associate myself to Ismene, her sister. She and I are alike in innumerable ways; our physical appearance, our temperaments, and our backgrounds are very similar.