Transcript Background Notes on Antigone

Background Notes on
Antigone
(Pronounced “An-tih-go-knee”)
The History of Greek Theater
• Drama grew out of ancient celebrations
(bacchanalians) honoring Dionysus
(Bacchus), god of wine and fertility.
• Athens, 6th century B.C.: The
celebrations became an annual festival,
and a “hero” would wear masks and
sing hymns about his character.
• Drama was born when Aeschylus
added a second character at the
performance, creating the possibility of
conflict.
The Theater of Dionysus
Greek Masks
• Exaggerated mouthpieces (like
megaphones) to be heard from far
away
• Familiar Character-types (happy,
sad) to be seen from far away
• By switching masks, each actor
could play several roles.
Who Was Sophocles? (496?-406 B.C.)
• Considered greatest of Greek
playwrights
• Of 123 plays, only 7 survive.
INNOVATIVE:
• He introduced elaborate scene-painting
• Added the 3rd actor to the cast,
allowing for more complicated staging
and conflict.
Antigone, 442 B.C.
• Antigone is the second sequel to Oedipus
Rex, which was actually written after in
429 B.C.
• Sophocles also wrote a third play, Oedipus
at Colonus, just before he died in 406 B.C.
• The order in which the plays were written:
1) Antigone, 2) Oedipus Rex, 3) Oedipus
at Colonus
• Order of the Trilogy: 1) Oedipus Rex, 2)
Oedipus at Colonus, 3) Antigone
Background Plot to Antigone
• Oedipus Rex marries his mother
Jocasta and kills his father Laius
• After his tragedy, Oedipus (the King
of Thebes) exiles himself.
• His two sons, Eteocles and Polynices,
become the rulers.
• They agree to reign in alternate
years, but after the first year, Eteocles
refuses to surrender the throne.
Antigone continued…
 To get revenge, Polynices attacks
Thebes.
 In a duel, the two brothers kill each
other, and Creon, their uncle, takes
the throne.
 Creon allows Eteocles to be given a
heroic funeral, but he orders the body
of Polynices be exposed in the fields
for attacking his hometown.
Antigone continued…
• The play Antigone is about how
Antigone, the sister, goes against
Creon in this decision, believing that
her brother deserves a proper burial.
• A key element of conflict: Antigone is
engaged to Creon’s son, Haemon.