0
Antigone
The play 'Antigone' is at least 2,440 years old. Still timely nevertheless are its main concerns over what to do about a bad law and how far to go for the sake of love or justice. Contributors typically ask and answer questions about the play's author, characters, imagery, literary devices, plot, and relationship to other plays of the same themes or time period.
3,361 Questions
What is the Greek myth of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth?
The Minotaur was a curse on Crete, I think sent from Poseidon or born from something sent by Poseidon. King Minos of Crete kidnapped the genius inventor Daedalus and his son, and told him to design and build an impossible labyrinth in which he could keep the Minotaur so it could never get out. Daedalus did this and then eventually escaped from Crete, but that is another story.
King Minos told Athens that he would go to war with them if they did not send 10 young men and 10 young women each year for him to feed the Minotaur, and King Aegeus of Athens had no choice but to agree. So every year the 20 sacrifices were put on a ship and sent to Athens where they were thrown into the labyrinth and fed to the Minotaur. Eventually King Aegeus' son Theseus of Athens decided this had to stop so he begged his father to let him go with the next group of sacrifices so he could slay the Minotaur and no more sacrifices would be needed. Reluctantly King Aegeus agreed, and told his son that if he was successful he should sail home in a ship with white sails, and if he were to die the ship should return with black sails.
When Theseus arrived in Athens with the other 19 sacrifices he was met by the King and his daughter Princess Ariadne of Crete. She immediately recognised Theseus as a prince and fell in love with him, but she was fairly plain to look at and he barely noticed her. The sacrifices were taken to the holding cells to await their fate with the Minotaur, and Theseus began to work out how he could escape from the maze again after slaying the Minotaur, for King Minos had begun to enjoy the fearsome reputation his monster gave him and would not be pleased when it was slain. One night, after visiting Daedalus who had soft spot for the princess, Ariadne came to Theseus and offered him a way to escape the maze after killing the Minotaur if he would agree to take her with him as his wife when he escaped. Theseus did not want to marry Ariadne but nor did he wish to be stuck in the maze forever so he agreed, and she gave him a ball of string.
Eventually it was Theseus' turn to be thrown into the labyrinth. He was taken to the grid that was the entrance and thrown in. He then attached the end of the string to the grating before setting off into the maze to find the monster. Eventually at the centre of the labyrinth he came across the Minotaur, and proceeded to wrestle the bull creature, until he caught it by the horns and wrenched at it's head, breaking it's neck. He then followed his string back to the entrance to the labyrinth where Ariadne was waiting and together they escaped for the ship and set sail back to Crete.
Theseus was overjoyed at his success, but less pleased by the plain-looking princess he had acquired. He decided he did not wish to marry her, so on the way home he had the ship stop on the island of Naxos, claiming he wished to return home refreshed and with a gleaming ship. Ariadne offered to go and clean the sails, which had become fairly dirty in the ship's time in Crete's harbour. Watching her on her knees on the beach happily scrubbing the sails, Theseus was disgusted by her un-princess-like behaviour, and boarded his ship and set sail for home without her, leaving Ariadne stranded on the beach with the sails. One of the gods fell in love with Ariadne and took her away from the island to be his wife, but that is another tale.
As the sails had been left on the beach with the princess, the crew took out their spare set of sails, the black pair, and set off once again for Athens. King Aegeus was, as he had been every day since his son left, waiting on the cliff looking for some sign of his son's ship, and as it came over the horizon he was filled with happiness which was quickly overcome by grief when he saw the colour of the sails and, remembering his son's promise, believed that Theseus was dead. In his grief he hurled himself off the cliff into the sea that was named after this act, the Aegean sea.
Theseus returned home to find his father dead, and regretted the day he had ever left Ariadne and the sails on an island.
Why are Antigone and King Creon tragic figures?
Tragic figures face misfortune. Both Antigone and Theban King Creon are tragic because of the unfortunate lot that becomes theirs in life. Antigone is tragic, because she loses her life. But her tragedy arises from her passionate belief in a higher moral aurhority, and her consequent respectful defense of the dead. In contrast are the tragedies of the King. King Creon is tragic, because he loses everything that made his life worth living: his wife Queen Eurydice, his son Haemon, and the respect of his people and of the blind prophet Teiresias. And his tragedy arises from his obstinate pride in thinking that he canenact and enforce laws that are contrary to god-given justice and traditions.
I have no idear.
What is the conflict in antigone?
What to do about the unburied Theban dead and what to do about Antigone are the conflicts in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban King Creon is supported by the chorus, the guards and Princess Ismene in the issuance of the non-burial edict regarding the disloyal Theban dead. Princess Antigone, Creon's niece and opponent, is supported in obedience to divine law and Theban traditions by Prince Haemon, Teiresias the blind prophet, and Thebans. But the line-up basically dissipates so that Creon is standing alone when he decides death is what needs to be done about Antigone.
The play 'Antigone' was written about 443, 441 B.C.E.* It first was performed about 440 B.C.E. Yet no information is given in the play as to Antigone's age or her birth date. But the city of Thebes may have been founded around 2000 B.C.E. The founder was Antigone's great great great grandfather, Cadmus. Antigone represented the sixth generation from Cadmus and his wife Harmonia. Each generation may be guesstimated within a range of 20-40 years. That would mean 120-240 years after the city's founding. So Antigone may have been born sometime between 1880 and 1760 B.C.E. *Before the Christian Era.
How is Laius' murder important in 'Oedipus Rex'?
The murder of Theban King Laius is important as a heinous offense, and as a step in the fulfillment of a horrific fate. The offense is the killing of a father and a sovereign. Such an offense requires special cleansing procedures for purification of the particular individual and the place where that individual resides. A lack of individual cleansing pollutes the entire environment in which that individual lives.
Subsequent Theban King Oedipus is Laius' killer. He doesn't know of the personal and professional relationship that he shares with an apparently churlish, surly stranger. Oedipus nevertheless needs purification for his double offense. He doesn't go through it. So he pollutes himself and everyone and everything that comes into contact with him. Consequently, Thebes is visited with a pestilence whose fearful impact affects Theban livestock, harvests and birth rates.
On a personal level, that killing brings Oedipus closer to the terrifying fate that he seeks to avoid. He's warned by the Delphic Oracle of a future as a father killer and as a sex offender with his mother. So he flees Delphi and Corinth, where he mistakenly believes himself to be the biological son of Corinthian King Polybus and Corinthian Queen Merope.
But his flight takes him to a crossroads where a street brawl over a right-of-way leaves a stranger and four of his five companions dead. Unbeknownst to Oedipus, that stranger is precisely the father whom he seeks to avoid. Equally unbeknownst to him, Oedipus then heads to his hometown. There a grateful people reward him with a vacated royal throne and a grieving royal widow for ridding Thebes of the beastly, bullying Sphinx. Unbeknownst once more to Oedipus, that widow is his own mother, Theban Queen Jocasta.
All of the horrific pieces of the puzzle of Oedipus' life come together with that senseless killing at the meeting place for three roads. In fact, the English adjective 'trivial' traces its origins to the Latin for 'three roads'. The reason that trivial has its meaning is the unimportance of which road Oedipus chooses. All three roads meet at the very spot where a father unknowingly challenges a son's right to the road. So the origins and destinations of father and son are irrelevant, given that all meet in the same place and with the same heinously criminal, destructive consequences.
What is a good hook to an essay over Antigone?
Often, people must choose between what they believe to be right, and what the authority in a society has deemed to be correct. Such is the case in Antigone, by Sophocles. In the Greek tragedy, Sophocles tells the story of a woman who has chosen to bury her brother, a man who led an attack against his own city. It was decreed by her uncle, King Creon, that her brother should not be buried because he went against his own country. Antigone had to choose between following her heart and honoring her dead brother, or following the laws laid down by the king. In the end, she chooses to honor her brother, and this choice led to her downfall.
When is anagnorisis in 'Antigone'?
It is when Antigone realizes that she is dying because she obeys the gods and when Creon realizes that he is the source of the problems in Thebes that anagnorisis takes place in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, the term anagnorisis describes the discovery of a truth. Theban Princess Antigone makes the realization that she is sentenced to death precisely because she does what she is supposed to: obey divine law and respect the gods. Shortly thereafter, her uncle Creon makes the realization that he is the cause of the pestilence and three suicides in Thebes.
Why does Oedipus insist on letting everyone hear Creon's news?
Having an open interaction with his people is why Theban King Oedipus insists on letting all Thebans hear Theban King Creon's news. Creon comes back with news of how to end the pestilence that wreaks havoc on the city's people, livestock and harvests. Creons wants to step inside the palace, to give the news first to his colleague, and then afterwards to the Theban people. Oedipus wants everyone to hear at the same time.
What is an example of a repetition in 'Antigone'?
The naming and renaming of Ismene as Antigone's sister is an example of a repetition in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, the term repetition describes the saying and saying again of a word within a short space. The description fits the opening lines of the play. Theban Princess Antigone addresses Princess Ismene as "sister, mine own dear sister."
What does Oedipus' confrontation with Tiresias and Creon indicate about his character?
This confrontation shows that he is a very emotional, quick-to-action character. He refuses to speak to Creon privately, showing that he is very curious and public about it. In this way, Creon is a foil for him. Tiresias is also a foil, being very cryptic in speech and also recommending privacy. Tiresias is blind but can see the truth but Oedipus can see but doesn't see the truth (at first). Overall, Oedipus is prone to rash decisions and his emotions guide many of his actions before he truly considers the consequences.
What are 10 adjectives describing Antigone from the play Antigone?
Ten adjectives that describe Antigone are:
1. independent
2. respectful
3. bold
4. rebellious
5. family-oriented
6. brave
7. spontaneous
8. unmerciful
9. overconfident
10. emotional
Why does Choragos suggest that the gods might have buried Polyneices?
Because there was no sign of anyone or anything that had been there.
What is recognition in 'Antigone'?
A facing up to accidents, commissions, mistakes and omissions is what recognition is in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, recognition happens with Theban King Creon. It is foreshadowed by Creon's reversing his non-burial edict regarding his nephew Polyneices and seeking to release his niece, Princess Antigone, from her live burial. But it actually occurs just before the chorus' last closing comment. It takes place when Creon is led away blubbering about losing everyone and everything because of his foolishness, offensiveness and stubbornness.
What are examples of foreshadowing in 'Antigone'?
Foreshadowing is a representation before hand, some kind of premonition of what happens in the story. In the play 'Antigone', the main character of the same name decides to disobey an inhumane, unfair, unjust, unpopular law. The foreshadowing of what happens to her in her disobedience is her statement to her sister, Ismene, 'I shall not suffer aught so dreadful as an ignoble death'. Antigone indeed hangs herself after being walled up in a remote cave, away from Haemon, her fiance and first cousin. The foreshadowing of what happens in response to the law is the blind prophet Teiresias' statement to Theban King Creon, 'A time not long to be delayed shall awaken the wailing of men and women in thy house'. King Creon indeed suffers the loss of Eurydice, his wife and his Queen; and of his son, Haemon. Both commit suicide.
Why was Oedipus doomed to make a serious error injudgment?
The gods wanted to have some fun by seeing Oedipus search for the murderer of Laius when it is himself.
What does Antigone say is the cause of her death in 'Antigone'?
Devotion to the gods is what Antigone says is the cause of her death in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban Princess Antigone believes in respecting divinely expressed will. She considers the gods as the ultimate authority in life and death. She defends their dominant role when she breaks a royal edict in order to comply with divinely ordained Theban traditions. The gods may be all powerful, but they do not keep King Creon, their earthly representative and Antigone's uncle, from sentencing her to death.
Why does Creon refuse polyneices's burial?
because creon says that polyneices is a treader to his city and family and he broke his exile to come back with pire and sword against his native city and shrines of his fathers gods, whos idea was to spill the blood of his blood and sell his own people into slavery.
Who was the Ancient Greek man who lived in a bathtub He always carried a lantern and had a dog?
The athenian cynic philosopher Diogenes was the person who lived in a bathtub, had as company a dog and carried a lantern day and night seeking for the man in the darkness of life.
Who is Choragos in 'Oedipus Rex'?
Choragos or Choragus is the chorus leader. The individual in question is the character who speaks on behalf of the chorus of Theban elders. So he's the representative of the chorus in terms of the other characters in the play 'Oedipus Rex'.
Specifically, Choragos represents the informational responsibility of the chorus. That responsibility involves keeping the audience current of what's happening in the play. The other responsibility of the chorus is one that all chorus members carry it. It's the entertaining responsibility of dancing and singing.
What are the main differences between Antigone and Ismene in terms of personality?
The main differences between the two sisters, Antigone and Ismene, trace to their very different personalities. Antigone is a risk-taker. She's willing to stand fast to her convictions. She also is willing to follow through on the action necessary to support those belieffs. Ismene is a passive individual who appears to be more easily intimidated by power. She accepts the status quo. She believes that men are stronger than women, that men and women have different roles, and that the separation needs to be respected. She feels that women shouldn't be competitive with men or confrontational to recognized central authority. Ismene thinks that if women do something that's contrary to accepted procedure, they should do so in secret.
Who or what is Delphi in 'Oedipus Rex'?
The location of an oracle where prophecies are shared with humans is what Delphi is in the play "Oedipus Rex."
Specifically, the location of much of the play's action is Thebes. Thebes and Delphi are both in central Greece. But Thebes is to the southeast of Delphi.
