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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
Who are the suicides in 'Antigone'?
Antigone, Haemon and Theban Queen Eurydiceare the suicides in the play 'Antigone'. Antigone is first to commit suicide by hanging herself with her own halter. Haemon is second to kill himself by running himself through with his own sword. Queen Eurydice takes her life last by stabbing herself in the heart.
What is an example of honor in 'Oedipus Rex'?
Honor refers to an individual's good reputation or the public esteem in which that individual is held. The concept shows up in 'Oedipus Rex' in terms of the character of the same name. Oedipus has an honorable reputation, and is held in honor by Thebans, for having delivered the city from the Sphinx. Before Oedipus' arrival, the Sphinx terrorizes the city and cripples the city and its people with heavy taxes.
In the play 'Antigone', no information is given as to the age of the main character of the same name. But in ancient Greece, betrothal arrangements tended to be made in the childhood, if not the infancy, of the future bride and groom. A guess based on Antigone's actions and speech may be at around 15 years old.
What are the different world views of Antigone and Creon?
The world view of Antigone is the perception of the world as the passage through life into death. She believes that she will spend more time in the world of the dead than of the living. And so she wants to pay attention to the passions of life and the respect for the dead. This is why she says that she doesn't want to carry life's hatreds over into the treatment or mistreatment of the dead. It also is why she sees the ties of blood and of community as important connections that don't end with death. A word that sums up Antigone's world view is mercy. The world view of Theban King Creon is the immediacy of life, the importance of the here and now. He believes that a ruler must be focused on the lasting nature of his own rule. And so he wants to pay attention to the control of life by way of an ordered society in which the power is centralized at the very top. This is why he says that obedience to the laws that the ruler enacts and enforces is the supreme good, disobedience the supreme evil. It also is why he's devoted to this dictatorial view througout all aspects of his personal and professional life. A word that sums up the King's world view is 'order', at all costs.
What is the pronunciation of 'Oimoi Talaina' in 'Antigone'?
According to classical Greek, the phrase 'oimoi talaina' is pronounced oy-moy tah-lie*-nah. According to modern Greek, it's pronounced ee-mee tah-lay**-nah. Either way, the phrase is considered the equivalent of 'Alas!Woe is me!' in English.
*The sound is the same as the sound of the verb 'to lie' in English.
**The sound is the same as the sound of the verb 'to lay' in English.
What is English for 'Rex' in 'Oedipus Rex'?
'King' is an English equivalent of 'Rex' in the play 'Oedipus Rex'.
Why is Creon determined not to bury Polyneices in 'Antigone'?
That he likes his job, that he does not want to lose it, that he disdains the opinions of others, and that he can discourage future challenges and rebellions are the reasons why Creon is determined not to bury Polyneices in "Antigone" by Sophocles (495 B.C.E. - 405 B.C.E.).
Specifically, Theban King Creon has all the royal powers to himself and does not want that to change. He does not care what any one person or any one god thinks. He believes that denying burial rights to Thebans whom he considers disloyal will prevent future bloodshed and instability.
What action does Creon take after the prophecy?
Creon makes his way to the horses and burns the prophecy with his flaming sword.
Why does Tiresias refuse to help Oedipus?
Knowledge of the shocking truth is what makes Teiresias the blind prophet refuse to help Theban King Oedipus. Teiresias is asked to identify the killer or killers of Theban King Laius.
Oedipus promises to punish the culprit or culprits with death or exile. He clearly values his reputation, his life, his job, and his family. And yet he'll lose all of that if Teiresias helps Oedipus. The reason lies in Oedipus being the very person whom he himself seeks. Albeit unknowingly, Oedipus is the killer of Laius, his father and his king. With the revelation of that crime will come that of another. Oedipus is married to his own mother, Theban Queen Jocasta.
The realization of the indecent truth behind the apparent royal marital bliss is something that Oedipus won't accept lightly. He has a quick temper, and speaks before he thinks. Teiresias knows his monarch very well, and therefore is reluctant to be the bearer of such news.
Why did Polynices attack Thebes?
The play 'Antigone' doesn't give any information as to the motives of Polyneices in attacking Thebes. But the play 'Seven Against Thebes' by Aeschylus [525/524 B.C.E.* - 456/455 B.C.E.] does. Eteocles and Polyneices are the twin sons of Theban King Oedipus and his wife, Queen Jocasta. They succeed their parents, and initially power-share the throne. But Eteocles doesn't like sharing. He therefore banishes his brother. Polyneices gets together an opposition force, with the help of Argos. He thereby aims to force Eteocles off the throne. *Before the Christian Era.
What is the law for breaking mailboxes?
It is a felony to tamper with mailboxes. The judge may not be severe but there can be a large fine and even jail time.
Why is the Delphic Oracle important to Oedipus?
As an expected source of the truth and of the future, and as an unexpected source for the fulfillment of one's fate, the Delphic Oracle is important to Theban King Oedipus. That's why Oedipus goes to Delphi to check out a recent rumor. It's a case of an upsetting rumor that Oedipus isn't the biological son of the only people he believes to be his parents: King Polybus and Queen Merope of Corinth.
But under questioning, the Oracle describes Oedipus' fate as the killer of his own father and the wedder and bedder of his own mother. The horror of such an unexpected response causes all questions as to his true parents to disappear. That same horror causes Oedipus to run away from home and try to start life afresh far away from Corinth.
But in the process, everything that Oedipus does just draws him closer to his nightmarish fate. And so ultimately, the Delphic Oracle ends up as the source of Oedipus' free will choices and actions that hand him over to his miserable destiny.
What army does Polyneices join in 'Antigone'?
An army of discontented Thebans and invading Argives is the army that Polyneices joins. He is exiled from the city when it's his turn to assume the throne of Thebes. But his twin brother, Eteocles, doesn't honor the joint power sharing arrangement. Instead, he continues to rule after his year is up. That leaves Polyneices with the option of claiming his rights and his throne by force.
Where does Oedipus play take place?
The plot of Oedipus takes place primarily in the city of Thebes. However, the story also references other areas of ancient Greece including Corinth, where Oedipus was raised by his adoptive parents Merope and Polybus, and the Delphic Shrine, where both Oedipus and his biological father King Laius travel to hear the oracle that depicts their tragic fate.
What does Creon conclude at the end of 'Antigone'?
At the end of the play 'Antigone', Theban King Creon concludes that he has been proud and selfish, that his life has been a series of mistakes, and that his punishment for his cruelty and pride is just beginning. For example, he specifically accepts responsibility for the suicides of his wife, Queen Eurydice; and of his son, Haemon. He considers his willful behavior as the cause of their deaths. In essence, he calls himself their murderer.
Was Oedipus a tyrannical leader?
Yes and no. According to the original meaning of the word, Theban King Oedipus was a tyrant. Originally, a tyrant seized power illegally. That's what Oedipus did by killing his father and his sovereign, Theban King Laius. He didn't know whom he was killing when he responded with violence to violent behavior by a stranger who was old enough to be his father and whom he resembled. But the fact remained that he committed murder and didn't go through the necessary cleansing of required purification ceremonies. So his rise to power was illegal in Thebes.
But according to the modern definition, Oedipus may not have been a tyrant. He didn't appear to be viewed as arbitrary, cruel or selfish by his subjects. Instead, he appeared to have gained the love and respect of the Theban people. In the play, for example, his fellow Thebans referred to his bravery against the frightening Sphinx whom he alone outwitted and defeated.
What other movies or plays resemble the themes and plot of 'Oedipus Rex'?
The play, stage and movie versions of Desire under the Elms by Eugene Gladstone O'Neil [October 16, 1888-November 27, 1953] are somewhat reminiscent of 'Oedipus Rex'. In both cases, an older woman becomes involved with a younger man by whom she has a child. In the Greek tragedy, Theban Queen Jocasta doesn't manage to kill her unwanted son. In the modern New England tragedy, Abbie Cabot succeeds. In both cases, the romantic involvement is unacceptable. Jocasta is Oedipus' own mother, and Abbie Eben's stepmother.
Also somewhat reminiscent are the play, stage and movie versions of Hamlet by William Shakespeare [Baptized April 26, 1564-April 23, 1616]. In both cases, a woman's second husband kills her first. In the Greek tragedy, Theban King Oedipus kills his royal predecessor, Laius, who unbeknownst to him is also his father. In the Shakespearean tragedy, Claudius kills Denmark's King, to dispossess his own brother of life, throne and wife. In both cases, once again, the resulting romantic involvement is unacceptable. Claudius marries his brother's wife, and Oedipus marries his own mother.
Reminiscent too, but most vaguely so, is the film Le Souffle au Coeur by Louis Malle [October 30, 1932-November 23, 1995]. Here, the very fleeting resemblance between the French language film and the Greek tragedy is limited to the treatment of the theme of incest. In both cases, there's a pivotal emotional relationship that becomes incestuous. In both cases too, the incest is between a mother and her son.
Who is the herdsman in 'Oedipus Rex'?
The shepherd who finds the three day old infant Oedipusis the herdsman. He saves Oedipus from the cruel fate of being left on a hillside to be exposed to the weather, the dogs, and the birds. He ends up giving the infant to a shepherd from Corinth. The Corinthian in turn hands Oedipus over to be raised as the heir apparent to the childless Corinthian King Polybus and Queen Merope.Laius decides to take a trip to consult the Delphic Oracle. The route from Thebes takes him to a crossroads where three roads meet. There, he starts a street brawl over a right-of-way with a much younger stranger. He ends up being killed by the young man, who's outnumbered by the royal party and who reacts in self defense. The party's only survivor from the brawl is a shepherd turned servant. When the servant gets back to Thebes, he finds the grieving Jocasta grieving no more, what with a new Theban king and a second husband. The servant takes one look at his Queen's husband and sovereign, and recognizes his previous royal master's killer. So the servant gets permission from the Queen to quit his job and go back to tending crops and livestock in the country. And so he remains until Jocasta calls him back to help solve the still unsolved mystery of Laius' death.
Are Eteocles and Polynices twins?
It's unknown in the play 'Antigone' whether Eteocles and Polyneices are twins. They're described just as brothers. But they in fact are twins according to other information sources. The brothers start out as friendly power-sharing monarchs over the city of Thebes. They end up killing each other in the battle between Argos and Thebes.
What is the conclusion of 'Antigone'?
In the beginning of the story 'Antigone', Theban King Creon denigrates the emotional needs of his people by issuing an inhumane law against the burial of those Theban dead who in life collaborated with the defeated Argive enemy. In the conclusion, the King loses all the emotion-based ties that make his life worth living: the blood ties with all of his dead sister Jocasta's children, the esteem of his people, the good opinion of the blind prophet Teiresias, the love of his wife Eurydice, and the respect of his son Haemon.
Well, the fact that Polyneices, her brother, didn't get a proper funeral, and that his body was corrupted, was considered honorless by Antigone and Ismene, so it's likely that she was referring to that.
