ANTIGONE SOPHOCLES MOST FAMOUS TRAGEDY BACKGROUND INFO Setting

ANTIGONE SOPHOCLES MOST FAMOUS TRAGEDY

BACKGROUND INFO • Setting: Thebes • Characters: • Antigone • Ismene • Etocles • Polynieces SIBLINGS/ Children of Oedipus and Jocasta • Creon: King of Thebes; Antigone’s, Ismene’s, Etocles’, and Polyneices’ uncle • Sentry • Teiresias: blind prophet

PROLOGUE • Antigone approaches Ismene and tells her what happened with Etocles and Polynieces. • Antigone asks for Ismene’s help burying Polynieces, since he is rotting in the open air (because he’s a traitor fighting for the Argive Army instead of the Theban Army). • Ismene tells Antigone no, because Creon declared anyone who buries Polyneices will be stoned to death. • Antigone tells Ismene she’s going to bury Polyneices anyway and leaves. Antigone wants to follow the laws of the gods, rather than the laws of man.

PARODOS • The choragus and chorus tell us about the battle between the Argive Army and Thebes. • In the beginning, the Argives were winning, but then Polyneices bragged and made the gods angry. • Zeus threw down a lightning bolt and changed the tables of the war. Now, Thebes was winning, and they continued winning. • Polynieces and Etocles were the only two left and they stabbed one another at the same time and both died. • Thebes was victorious and the Thebans celebrated all night by singing hymns to the gods.

SCENE 1 (PAGE 700) • Creon has called a meeting to inform his counsel that Polyneices and Eteocles have died and that he, himself, is now the king of Thebes. • At the meeting, Creon states that he hates traitors even if they are his friends or family members. He will always put his kingdom first. • The sentry comes to tell Creon that someone covered Polyneices’ body with dust (just enough so that his soul can rest).

• The sentry was afraid to tell Creon because Creon is a relentless ruler. • Creon is angry because the Chorogus suggests that perhaps the gods are responsible for burying Polyneices. Creon is indignant and paranoid. • Creon tells the sentry to find who buried Polyneices or he will torture and kill the Sentry. • Creon thinks that one of his guards/sentries was bribed to bury Polyneices. • The Sentry wants to find the “man” who buried Polyneices, but he is afraid of Creon, so the Sentry leaves and says he will never return to Creon’s palace.

ODE 1 • STROPHE 1: The world’s greatest accomplishment is mankind. • ANTISTROPHE 1: Man has dominated: birds, beasts, fish, lions, wild horses, and mountain bulls with his mind. Man has consciousness, but animals do not. (Men are superior to animals. ) • STROPHE 2: Men can speak and think quickly, and we have protected ourselves from everything. We have outsmarted everything…EXCEPT DEATH. • ANTISTROPHE 2: Men are capable of both good and evil. When men are obedient and laws are kept, everything is fine. When laws are broken, things fall apart. The chorus does NOT support lawbreakers.

SCENE 2 (PAGE 707) • Sentry brings Antigone to Creon because the sentry and other guards caught Antigone in the act of burying Polyneices. • There was a wind storm and Antigone showed up during this storm and began to bury Polyneices. Based on this storm, we can assume that the gods are in support of Antigone’s actions. • Antigone knew she was breaking the law by burying Polyneices, but she says she would rather die doing the right thing, than live doing the wrong thing. • Creon sentences both Antigone and Ismene to death for “double insolence. ” • Creon tells Antigone that she insults Eteocles’ memory by treating Polyneices the same as Eteocles. Antigone tells Creon that they are no judge of what is wrong—that’s the gods’ job.

• Ismene shows up and tries to die with Antigone, but Antigone refuses because she is mad at Ismene and she doesn’t want to lessen her own honor by sharing it with Ismene (who didn’t help her bury Polyneices). • Creon still insists on sentencing Antigone to death, despite the fact that Antigone is engaged to Creon’s son, Haimon. • Creon tells Ismene there are “places enough for [Haimon] to push his plow. ” • Creon has Ismene and Antigone taken away by the guards to await their deaths.

ODE 2 • STROPHE 1 • It is a lucky man who has never had to face to wrath of the gods. Once a person angers a god, they AND their family are punished FOREVER. • ANTISTROPHE 1 • We can see this example through Antigone: her father, Oedipus, angered the gods, and now each of his children suffers the consequence. • STROPHE 2 • Nothing can escape the wrath of Zeus. He is in charge of the past, the present, and the future. He is and always will be IMMORTAL. • ANTISTROPHE 2 • Men are only briefly happy—they will never be immortal like the gods. All humans will die, and oftentimes, the things that make them happy lead to their destruction. • “Man’s little pleasure is the spring of sorrow” (line 28).

SCENE 3 • Haimon comes to talk to Creon asks Haimon if Haimon is mad about Antigone’s execution. Haimon says he supports his dad’s decision. • Creon tells Haimon he is happy that Haimon will obey him, since anarchy leads to the downfall of everything. • Haimon tells his dad that while he supports his choice to execute Antigone, it might be helpful to consult the advice of others. Haimon also tells Creon what people have been saying on the streets: Antigone doesn’t deserve to die. People say this, but not to Creon, because they are afraid of his bad temper. • Haimon and Creon begin arguing and Haimon tells Creon that if Antigone dies, someone else will die as well. (He could be referring to committing suicide, OR to killing his own father, Creon. ) • Creon threatens to kill Antigone right in front of Haimon.

• Haimon leaves and tells his father, Creon, that he is never coming back. • Creon says he is still going to kill both Ismene and Antigone, but the Choragos talks him out of killing Ismene. • Creon says he will take Antigone far away and lock her in a stone vault and let her die.

ODE 3 • STROPHE • Love ruins everyone. • Even the gods cannot escape Love. • ANTISTROPHE • Aphrodite is responsible for Creon’s and Haimon’s wrecked relationship. • Aphrodite mocks humans and gods alike, by playing with their hearts. Love is the only one who ever truly wins.

SCENE 4 • The Chroagos suddenly seems to be on Antigone’s side, and says that he can no longer keep back his tears (though he’s supported Creon throughout the play). • Antigone enters, with guards on each side, and is on her way to her stone vault (to die). • The chorus tells her not to feel too bad, because she’ll still be lovely in the afterlife. • Antigone tells everyone to feel sorry for her and compares herself to Niobe. • Antigone blames her misfortune on her parents: Oedipus and Jocasta (since they were incestuous). • Antigone accepts her punishment, but curses Creon before she enters the vault. She prays that his punishment is equal to her own.

ODE 4 • STROPHE 1 • Danae was locked in a tower (by humans) but Zeus still managed to visit her. PEOPLE CANNOT KEEP FATE FROM HAPPENING. • ANTISTROPHE 1 • Dryas’ son (Lycurgos) was punished by Dionysos for mocking the gods. • STROPHE 2 • King Phineus locked away his former wife and then his new wife plucked out his sons’ eyeballs. Oedipus’ eyes were also plucked out (though by himself). • ANTISTROPHE 2 • Cleopatra was a demi-goddess who married a human. This led her to her death (thanks, Love!)

SCENE 5 • Teiresias comes to Creon and tells him the gods are angry with Creon because Creon did not bury Polyneices. • Teiresias is a highly respected, blind prophet. (Irony: he can’t see with his eyes, and yet, he is a prophet) • Creon accuses Teiresias of lying for money, and Creon refuses to bury Polyneices, regardless of what anyone says. • Teiresias warns Creon that the gods will take what is theirs: since Creon has denied the gods the spirit of Polyneices, they will take a spirit (or spirits) of people who Creon loves. His house will be filled with mourning. His own family will die. • Teiresias leaves and the Choragos tells Creon that Teiresias has never been mistaken before… • Creon finally relents; he says that he will free Antigone, and at the end of Scene 5, he requests axes so he can let her out of her vault.

PAEAN • Chorus and Choragos tell the citizens of Thebes to pray to Dionysus for the healing of Thebes. The gods are the only ones who can fix the mess Creon created.

EXODOS (THE FINAL, OR EXIT, SCENE) • Both good people and bad people will have happy times and sad times. No one is exempt from hardship. • The messenger says that even though Creon has money and a nice home, he isn’t really rich because he doesn’t have a family anymore. • The Messenger tells the Choragos that Haimon killed himself because Creon killed Antigone. • The Messenger tells Eurydice what he saw: Creon and servants were on their way to free Antigone, after having buried Polyneices, and they heard Haimon screaming and crying from inside Antigone’s vault. Creon saw Antigone hanged (with her veil) and Haimon with his arms wrapped around her dead body, crying. Creon tried to apologize to Haimon, but Haimon only spit in his face and charged Creon with his sword. Creon dodged the sword, so Haimon stabbed himself and died in Antigone’s arms. • Eurydice doesn’t say anything to the Messenger, but simply walks back into the palace.

• Creon returns home, carrying the body of Haimon. • The Messenger returns, telling Creon that Eurydice is dead inside, having stabbed herself in the heart. • Before she died, Eurydice cursed Creon. • Creon is led into the house, and he says he hopes he dies soon, because he has nothing left to live for. • The Choragos tells viewers: A person cannot be happy without wisdom. The only way a person can be wise is to listen to the gods. If they don’t listen to the gods, they are punished. The older people get, the wiser they become.