The Oedipus Complex, Antigone and Electra

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Introduction

It is a well-known fact that theatre as well as society in Ancient Greece was extremely male-dominated. The female population wasn’t assumably even allowed to attend theatre performances let alone perform on stage. However, still some of the strongest and most unforgettable characters in Greek tragedy were female, perhaps the most feisty and passionate of all being Sophocles’ Antigone. Antigone, one of the best known Greek Tragedies, is filled with strong-willed women. The play is built around the conflict between King Creon and Antigone, who breaks the law by burying her brother Polynices. King Creon considers Polynices a traitor, and decides to kill Antigone as a punishment. Eventually he realizes that he made a mistake, but by then it’s already too late to avoid the disaster leading to three tragic deaths. Not only Antigone but also her sister Ismene, and her fiancé’s mother Eurydice are certainly women with strong opinions and they are not afraid to show them. The striking contrast between women’s role in Ancient Greece and the way they are portrayed in Antigone, made me think; what was the real reason behind men’s need to try to control women. Could it be that in fact the fierce and passionate nature of women, caused men to be intimidated and even scared of them?
Women’s life in Ancient Athens is a widely researched subject. In the book “Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves” Sarah B. Pomeroy describes in detail women in Ancient Greece. She also arises the question of the difference between the image of obedient and repressed women in Greek society and the forceful heroines of Greek Tragedy. “A number of scholars find a direct relationship between real women living in Classical Athens and the heroines of trag...

... middle of paper ...

...why this play was written could well be related to these themes. What its original audience of Greek men could have taken with them after leaving the theatre, is a new point of view into the social roles of both genders and maybe a need to narrow the wide gap between genders.

Works Cited

Pomeroy, Sarah B., (1975), Goddesses, Whores, Wives & Slaves, (Pimlico)

Pritchard, Annie, (1992), “Antigone's Mirrors: Reflections on Moral Madness”, Hypatia Vol. 7, No. 3, p.77 – 93. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3809873

Russell Brown, John, (1995), The Oxford Illustrated History of the Theatre, (Oxford University Press)

Sophocles (2005) Antigone (tr. Marianne McDonald) London: Nick Hern Books

Willner, Dorothy, (1982) “”The Oedipus Complex, Antigone and Electra: The Woman as Hero and Victim”, American Anthropologist Vol 84, No.1, p. 58-78. http://www.jstor.org/stable/675950

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