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Summary for an essay about antigone by sophocles
Antigone as a Greek tragedy
Summary for an essay about antigone by sophocles
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Greek tragedies, such as The Three Theban Plays: Antigone, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, often end with a loss, a lover's betrayal, or death. "Antigone", a Greek play, portrays series of events that follow the deaths of Antigone's brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, who died fighting for the throne of Thebes a few hours after the Trojan War. Sophocles' play discusses the effort and determination of Antigone's will to bury her brother and defend her rights. This play presents several themes that relate to historical issues during the Ancient Greek Era, such as standing up for one's belief, foolish pride, and gender discrimination. Gender discrimination was common throughout the play, because during the Greek period, women and girls couldn't attend school and had very minimum freedom.
To begin with, standing up for one's beliefs is one of the many themes present in "Antigone". Antigone notifies Ismene her plan to bury Polynices, but Ismene renounces to aid her, so she banters:
ISMENE. Then don't, at least blurt this out to anyone, keep it a secret. I'll join you in that, I promise.
ANTIGONE. Dear god, shout it from the rooftops. I'll hate you all the more for silence-tell the world (99-100).
Although Ismene refuses to help, Antigone still carries out the plan. She knows the consequences that would follow if she buries his body, but she doesn't care. She believes that she is doing the respectable thing. Likewise, Antigone represents the theme when Antigone admits, "I will bury him myself. And even if I die in the act, that death will be a glory," (85-86). Antigone knows if she buries Polynices' body, she will face death. Nevertheless, Antigone decides to bury her brother's body anyways because she knows that it is proper. ...
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To conclude, "Antigone" presents several themes throughout the play: standing up for one's belief, foolish pride, and gender discrimination. The first theme is present when Antigone continues on with her plan to bury her brother, even though she knows she will be killed. Another theme Sophocles' play portrays is foolish pride: Creon's pride often results in disastrous situations. Last of all, gender discrimination is often found throughout the play, given that is was common during the Greek Era, when girls were not allowed to attend school. As others read "Antigone", they will find that there are several more theories that can be found in many Greek tragedies such as this.
Works Cited
Sophocles. "Antigone." Trans. Robert Fagles. The Three Theban Plays: Antigone, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus. Penguin Group. New York. 1982. 1-1470. Print.
In the play, Sophocles examines the nature of Antigone and Creon who have two different views about life, and use those views against one another. Antigone who is depicted as the hero represents the value of family. According to Richard Braun, translator of Sophocles Antigone, Antigone’s public heroism is domestically motivated: “never does [Antigone] give a political explanation of her deed; on the contrary, from the start [Antigone] assumes it is her hereditary duty to bury Polynices, and it is from inherited courage that [Antigone] expects to gain the strength required for the task” (8). Essentially, it is Antigone’s strong perception of family values that drive the instinct to disobey Creon’s orders and to willingly challenge the King’s authority to dictate her role in society.
The play Antigone opens up with the dialogue of two sisters, Antigone and Ismene, with two completely different opinions. Antigone believes that as Polyneices' sisters, they are responsible for burying him properly, according to the god's rules. On the contrary, Ismene feels that they should not get involved, they are "women born, unapt to cope with men." (Sophacles, p.3) Antigone disregards this statement and still adamantly insists that they must bury him. She feels that by burying him, she will be following the gods, which is more important than following the ruler. As she says on page 3, “Loving and loved, I will lie by his (Polynices) side. Far longer is there need I satisfy those nether Powers, than powers on earth; for there for ever must I lie.” She believes that in afterlife she ...
Antigone, as a character, is extremely strong-willed and loyal to her faith. Creon is similarly loyal, but rather to his homeland, the city of Thebes, instead of the gods. Both characters are dedicated to a fault, a certain stubbornness that effectively blinds them from the repercussions of their actions. Preceding the story, Antigone has been left to deal with the burden of her parents’ and both her brothers’ deaths. Merely a young child, intense grief is to be expected; however, Antigone’s emotional state is portrayed as frivolous when it leads her to directly disobey Creon’s orders. She buries her brother Polynices because of her obedience to family and to the gods, claiming to follow “the gods’ unfailing, unwritten laws” (Sophocles 456-457). CONTINUE
Antigone’s firm belief that her brother Polyneices should have a proper burial is established by her conviction in that the law of the gods is above all else. This law proclaims that all men be mourned and honored by family and friends through means of a suitable burial. Antigone’s need to put honor upon Polyneices’ soul is so grand that she ignores the advice of everyone around her, including her sister Ismene, who tries to pull her away from performing this criminal act because it will disobey the law set by King Creon, and lead to her demise. However, Antigone does not care about the repercussions because even though “[s...
Antigone is a strong willed character who is not afraid to defend her beliefs. After learning that Creon has denied Polyneices of a proper burial she uses her free will to decide that she must lay her brother to rest, as she strongly believes he should be honored like the other fallen soldiers. Unable to
In the prologue, Antigone tells Ismene that she will do whatever she wants pertaining to their brother, whether or not Ismene agrees and wants to do the same. Antigone tells Ismene, “If that is what you think, I should not want you, even if you asked to come. You have made your choice, you can be what you want to be.” Antigone displays ee cummings’ thought. The gods want her to think and act a certain way  their laws  but she has her own belief that her brother, Polyneices, should be buried and his spirit should have the proper life, instead of being punished. Even if he was brave, he should be punished. But Antigone doesn’t believe in that. No matter what the consequences, she fights it and does what she thinks is right.
Antigone believes that a woman should be intrepid and strong, even at the risk of challenging men’s authority. When she proposes to bury Polynices, Ismene answers, “we’re not born to contend with men”. (75) Antigone’s response, “that death will be a glory” (86), does not directly address gender issues, but it expresses her fury at Ismene’s passivity. After the burial of Polynices, Antigone defiantly states, “I did it. I don’t deny a thing,” while being interrogated by Creon (492) and later comments that she was “not ashamed for a moment, not to honor my brother”. (572-3) Antigone’s gallant speech and defiance toward traditional gender identities audaciously shows her revolutionary desire for gender equality.
The play “Antigone” is a tragedy by Sophocles. One main theme of the play is Religion vs. the state. This theme is seen throughout the play. Antigone is the supporter of religion and following the laws of the gods and the king of Thebes, Creon, is the state. In the play Creon has made it against the law to bury Antigone’s brother, something that goes against the laws of the gods, this is the cause of most conflict in the story. This struggle helps to develop the tragic form by giving the reader parts of the form through different characters.
Antigone's beliefs were never conflicted. From the beginning of the play, the reader sees a steadfast woman, when Antigone tries to persuade Ismene to help bury Polynices. "Will you lift up his body with these bare hands / and lower it with me?" (52-53). Antigone is fully aware of the consequences (37-43) for such an action. Greek custom demands burial of a body and failure to comply risks retribution from the Gods. Antigone's allegiance to the Gods compels her to act and gain their favor. "I have longer / to please the dead than please the living here. / In the kingdom down below I'll lie forever" (88-90). However, despite being aware of the punishment for her crime, she believes execution is unlikely. "No one will ever convict me a traitor" (57). Antigone clearly believes the will of the people will overcome the will of the king. Her loyalty is bound to the laws of the God's, not to the laws of Thebes.
The protagonist is convincingly characterized because she is constantly determined to fight for what she believes is right. Antigone’s belief that burying her brother is the right thing to do is distinct in the drama and comes to light when Antigone, as Bobrick puts it, “proudly” admits to going against Creon’s decree when put before him and states as a fact that “religious rituals justify her actions.” Antigone is determined to bury her brother, Polyneices, no matter the consequences. Bobrick suggests that this defiance is Antigone’s “first act of self- isolation” and further explains that self- isolation and her doing what is right go hand in hand (41). Antigone views the burial of her sibling as a duty and must be completed; Lansky illustrates this with the comment that “Creon is the guardian of the honor of the polis and Antigone of that of the family” (49). Besides being convincing because she behaves consistently, the protagonist is a convincing character because the love for her brother motivates her to disobey the decree of her king to do what she believes is right. Kirkpatrick points out that Antigone is aligned with her family over the nation and that it is not an inquiry of whether to bury her brother or not but more along the lines of how (407). In “Polis and Tragedy in the Antigone”, Philip Holt says that because
Antigone was disappointed at first, but decided that she will bury Polynices with or without Ismene’s help.
“Antigone” is a great Greek tragedy by Sophocles. The story is about a young woman who has brother by breaking king’s decree, and now she is punished for obeying God’s law. In the classic model of dramatic structure, two characters move the action of the play from introduction to climax to resolution with their conflict. One of these characters is the protagonist, and the other is the antagonist. The protagonist is a “good guy” and the antagonist is the “bad guy”. In Sophocles’ play Antigone , the lines between protagonist and antagonist are blurred. In the Greek tradition , the title character is the protagonist, but in this play the supposed antagonist, Creon also displays characteristics of protagonist.
In order for a play to be considered a tragedy, it must achieve the purgation of fear and pity. In the play “Antigone”, Sophocles does a great job of bringing out these two emotions in the reader. At the beginning of the play, there is a conversation between Antigone and her sister Ismene. During the conversation, the reader learns the two girls lost their father in battle and both of their brothers at the hands of one another. Then the reader learns that one of the brothers, Polynices, has been left to die without a proper burial.
In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, it is greatly apparent just within the first few exchanges between Ismene and Antigone that there are various social issues surrounding the women in ancient Greece. The play raises many gender and socially related issues especially when looking at the contextual background of the playwright and the representation of the women within the play. When the characters of the first scene begin their analog, it is important to note what they are actually saying about each other and what their knowledge of their own social status is. The audience is first introduced to Antigone who we later learn is the antagonist of the play as she rebels against the protagonist, Creon. Her sister, Ismene, is the second character the audience is introduced to, hears of Antigone's plan to bury their brother's body in the first scene. Ismene’s actions and words give the reader the hint that her sister’s behavior is not usual, "so fiery" and "so desperate" are the words used to describe Antigone's frame of mind. At this very early point in the play the reader discovers that Antigone is determined to carry out her mission to bury her beloved brother. However, she is in no position that gives her the rights as a woman, sister, or even future queen to make her own decisions and rebel. Instead, her decision to bury her brother demonstrates her loyalty to her family, the gods, and to all women. Her motivation for those decisions will end up driving her far more than that of what the laws set by Creon have implemented. She shows no fear over disobeying the king and later says about the punishment of death "I will lie with the one I love and loved by him"(Sophocles, 2). Throughout the play the reader can see the viewpoint of an obedient woman, a rebellious woman, and the social norms required for both of them.
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.