Transcript Antigone - Salesianum School

Antigone
Sophocles
Scene 4 Allusions
Reference to a diff. text, history, Bible
 Who does Antigone compare herself to?

 Niobe—queen
of Thebes –kids killed bc she
boasted she was greater than a goddess
Myths
Traditional stories with supernatural
beings or events to explain natural
processes or phenomena
 Myths were a kind of science and religion
(birth, death, and the origins of the
universe)
 Classical mythology came from Ancient
Greece

Vocabulary
chorus
choragus
antagonist
skene
tragedy
protagonist catastrophe orchestra
Background
Oedipus
Is the King of Thebes
Marries Mom
Kills Dad
When Oed dies, his sons Creon (the uncle)
Oedipus blind himself
Eteocles and Polyneices Becomes king of Thebes
Daughters take care of
Take over
And is trying to
Him while in exile
Both die fighting
Restore order
Characters

Antigone


Daughter of Oedipus
Haemon



Creon’s son
Engaged to Antigone
Ismene


Daughter of Oedipus
Eurydice

Wife of Creon
Creon
Eteocles
 Buried with military
honors
 Given a soldier’s
funeral

Polyneices
 Will not be buried
 No one will mourn for
him
 Stoning to death if
orders are not
followed

Sisters

Ismene





Will not help her sister
bury their brother
Will obey the law of
the land
Is afraid and weak
Says she is helpless
Will not attempt the
impossible

Antigone





Will bury her brother
Is bold and confident
Tells Ismene to tell
everyone she is
responsible
Says you are dead
much longer than you
are alive
Thinks her sister is
selfish
Flashback of the Battle
Polyneices earlier retreated, but he comes
back for a final battle
 Polyneices tries to accomplish a surprise
attack
 Polyneices hurls insults and tries to
defame the land
 For going against the gods, he loses
 Both brothers were killed in the battle

Scene 1---Choragus’ speech

How does he start out his speech?

How does he say he will rule?

What do you think is his motive for
treating Polyneices’ corpse this way?

What metaphor does he use?
Questions
What does the Sentry
reveal?
 Describe Creon’s
reaction to the news
 How does Creon feel
about the Sentry’s
question about the
gods?
 Describe the burial

Money talks (Creon)
 There’s nothing in the
world so demoralizing
as money
 A fortune won is often
misfortune
 How dreadful it is
when the right judge
judges wrong

Ruling
Where do gender roles come up?
 What does Creon demand Sentry do?
 When are men weak? (1031).
 When is a government strong? (1031).

Scene-2 Antigone is Caught

Antigone
How do they know she
is to blame?
 How does the Sentry’s
description invoke
sympathy for
Antigone?
 What metaphor does
the Sentry use?
 How is she bold?
 What is her attitude
toward death?


Creon
What metaphors does
he use show
Antigone’s
stubbornness?
 Why MUST Creon do
something?
 Who else does he
accuse?

Antigone vs Creon



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What does Antigone
assume about the
attitude of the chorus?
Is Antigone justified
How does she feel
about the gods?
How does Antigone
treat Ismene?
Why does Ismene
want to die?

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
Is Creon justified?
How does he feel
about the gods?
What ulterior motives
does Creon think
Antigone has?
How does Creon view
the sisters?
How does Creon bring
up gender issues?
(1031).
Ode 2
How do different people judge God?
 Who is the ode talking about?
 What does it say?

Like Father Like Son?

Haemon
 “I
am your son, Father. You are my guide.
You make things clear for me, and I obey
you” (1041).
 Don’t lose your head over a woman
 “Do you want me to show myself weak before
the people?”
 Show me the man who keeps his house in
hand, He’s fit for public authority.
Creon Goes Off
The man who knows how to obey, and
that man only, knows how to give
commands when the time comes.
 And no woman shall seduce us. If we
must lose, Let’s lose to a man, at least! Is
a woman stronger than we?

Haemon Defends Antigone
Reason is God’s crowning gift to man. . .
 Your temper terrifies them—everyone Will
tell you only what you like to hear.
 They say no woman has ever, so
unreasonably, died so shameful a death
for a generous act
 Do not believe that you alone can be right

The Fight Continues Haemon
It is not reason never to yield to reason!
 The reasonable thing is to learn from
those who can teach.

Back and Forth

What does Haemon say
about his father’s ability
to compromise? Who
does that remind you of?

Why does Creon bring up
age?

What kind of government
does Haemon seem to be
talking about? Prove it

What kind of
government is Creon
talking about?

Where does God fit in?
Temper, Temper

What does Haemon
threaten?

I swear you’ll regret this
superior tone of yours!

Then she must die. But
her death will cause
another.

“Let her die before his
eyes”

What does Creon decide
about Ismene?

What will Antigone’s
punishment be?
Ode

What’s the ode about ?
Scene 4- Allusions
Refs to text or history or Bible
 Comparing Antigone to people

Niobe-queen of Thebes. Kids killed because she
bragged—turned to stone—still cries
 Persephone-wife of Hades queen of the underworld
(daughter of Zeus) She will welcome Antigone when
she dies (she is also trapped)
 Danea- princess who is imprisoned by her father bc
she predicted her son will kill the king someday

Sum up Scene 4

Antigone is on her way to the tomb

She freely accepts her fate

She still thinks her punishment does not fit
the crime
Ode 4 Allusions
Teiresisas and Creon
Who is Teiresias?
 What is Creon’s
reaction to Teiresias’
 What is he predicting?
predictions?
 What signs has he
 What does he accuse
seen?
Teiresias
of?
 Why is he saying this
 What curse does
is happening
Teiresias tell Creon
of?

Creon finally breaks

Choragus says “I am
old, too, But I cannot
remember that he
was ever false”

Do it Swiftly!

He follows Choragus’
advice to free
Antigone from her
vault and make a
tomb for Polyneices

The Laws of the gods
are might, and a man
must serve them
Exodus

Prove that money cannot
buy happiness

What has happened to
Haemon?

Who is Eurydice and
what does she ask?

What does the messenger
tell Eurydice?
The Queen

The queen leaves without
a work.

Creon is in his room and
gets new that the queen
has killed herself.

What has happened to
Antigone?

What happens to Creon?
Is Creon to blame?

Antigone-

Haemon-

Eurydice-
Themes?