1. Antigone by Sophocles
... it's cultural and political high. All male citizens were required to participate in local politics while all citizens lived by and loved their city-state. Sophocles" #reading audience understood the importance of a good tyrant and obedience to their home. Kings were not only supreme rulers, but judges and model ... power of Thebes, he tries to persuade Oedipus to return. His motives are completely selfish and based on power. III. Point of View: Sophocles wrote the story for an Athenian Greek audience. These citizens would relate to the numerous prophecies in the play. However, they would...
... suffer because he believed he deserved it.-------------- Finally, there was one part of Oedipus the King that I didn't like and can blame on Sophocles. That was the part where the chorus seems to go on and on about the gods and how Apollo and Zeus should save them. They ... to Delphi or another temple if Oedipus" story wouldn't come true. I did not like reading that part at all and consider it a waste of Sophocles" talent. ---------------- In Oedipus the King, I thought Oedipus was the central character because the whole play was about him. It focused on Oedipus" life ... fascinates rea...
... like what he hears he try's to stop it by fleeing the situation when in reality he was actually walking right into it. In Sophocles" play Oedipus Rex, Sophocles portrays his main idea of predestination through the use of discovery and reversal. The first major character who goes through a reversal in this ... the soothsayers when she says "If it is a question of soothsayers, I tell you that you will find no man whose craft gives knowledge of the unknowable"(Sophocles 185-186). This quote shows us that Jocaste doesn't believe that a person can get messages from the Gods about the destiny ...
... but has a deeper meaning within social ranks. "Tyranny refers to the oppressive nature of the ruling class (men) on their women in a male dominated society. Perhaps Sophocles used the theme of a political totalitarian, which all citizens would be able to understand, to describe unnoticed, but similar, oppression women faced (Simpson, No Page)." ... ending of his play. Maybe by writing this piece of literature he opened up a new life for women, as equals to men. "The outcome of Sophocles" play suggests that it would be mistaken to assume that he intended to set two morally equipollent ide...
Sophocles" Antigone takes place in ancient Thebes at a time when men were warriors and women were delicate. The feminist movement has not yet come to pass, ... body of Polynices and gives him the last rights. She knows that if she is caught death is the punishment, but her self-sacrificing attitude shows incredible strength. Sophocles develops the character of Antigone throughout the tragedy, using her to represent family values and female strength. Antigone embodies strong feminine characteristics to stand up for a divine ... and universal principle demanded by the deities. Sophocles is awa...
The fates of young women Jocasta's destiny is really cruel in play Oedipus. Jocasta is an integral part of the play, Oedipus the King, by Sophocles. Her actions and thoughts are important to the reader as well as the characters within the play. In this passage there are several themes and significant ... have to worry about his actions. "Best to live lightly, as one can, unthinkingly," Jocasta says, painting a portrait of a society without morals. One might say that Sophocles here argues that fate is responsible for everything and that man can do nothing to avoid it. In this play we realize t...
... for the war against Samos. In 411 BC, he was selected to be on a special council to deal with the disaster of the Athenian expedition to Sicily. In 468 BC, Sophocles won first place at the Dionysia for is drama. He produced over 100 plays in the next 62 years. He never came in third place with his great plays. He ... ...
... for the overthrow of Creon and the throne. Another prophecy creates disturbances for Oedipus and this leads him ultimately to death. This masterpiece was written when Sophocles was nearly ninety. Although at an old age, Sophocles creates some of his finest lyrics in Oedipus at Colonus. Oedipus has been wandering like a beggar with his daughter, Antigone, and has reached Colonus, a suburb of ... " is his theoretical viewpoint. He accepts his punishment because he has no choice, but now claims on his personal innocence and accredits the ultimate responsibility for his crimes to fate. Sopho...
Characters and Plot: "Antigone" by Jean Anouilh is an adaptation of the original "Antigone" written by Sophocles. It is the story of young Antigone, daughter of the late King Oedipus, who is devoted to her brother Polynices. In a power struggle to see who should inherit the throne ... be performed presumably because they found Creon's arguments for dictatorship so convincing. The play is regularly performed and studied around the world. Least Rewarding Facet: After having read Antigone by Sophocles before I read this version, I found myself partial to the original version - for I had known e...
... Creon. Antigone did things that other people wouldn't normally do. Some people wouldn't defy authority to do what they believe is right. Creon did things that people wouldn't do. I think Sophocles believed a little in both family and authority. But I think he found family more important. Antigone felt strong in her beliefs. She was a brave woman. Creon made a law that no one ... that made Creon look at life differently, now that he has no family left. Creon was wrong because he started this whole ordeal by deciding not to bury Polyneices. I think, Sophocles believed in both family and a...
The Antigone Essay Through "Antigone", the play, Sophocles lets it be known that family is more important than authority. Antigone, Ismene, Creon, and Haemon were a good related family that stood by each other, with the exception of Creon, ... there were rough times they all dealt with. Creon chose to stand up for his authority rather than to stand up for his family. Since family is more important to Sophocles than authority, the play gets complex with Creon, and him wanting to choose authority over his family. Antigone and Haemon also play big roles in demonstrating how they want their ... ...
... , which as the description implies, have deep-seated problems that prevent them from functioning normally. This was a popular theme for Greek tragedians and no one depicted it more poignantly than Sophocles during the fifth century B.C. The popular Greek dramatist could have also been a successful family psychologist as this insightful play Oedipus the King reveals ... . Sophocles brings an added dimension to the ancient tragedy by introducing the element of family dysfunction into the dramatic mix. While Oedipus did not realize he had committed both patricide and ... . Many a man before...
Jocasta is an integral part of the play, Oedipus The King, by Sophocles. Her actions and thoughts are important to the reader as well as the characters within the play. In this passage there are several themes and significant items that she is ... wants and does not have to worry about his actions. "Best to live lightly, as one can, unthinkingly," Jocasta says, painting a portrait of a society without morals. One might say that Sophocles here argues that fate is responsible for everything and that man can do nothing to avoid it. In this play we realize that man is punished for acts that may ...
... the sentry? He has only a few lines and doesn't contribute much to the action. Nevertheless, while he may seem relatively unimportant, the sentry does not lack significance. Within the play, Sophocles uses the sentry not just as comic relief, but also as a moral barometer of the common man, against which to judge Creon. When we first see the messenger, his humorous ... self-pitying turn around as she actually faces her death suggest she's re-thinking her stance, albeit rather late in the game. With all the nobles acting so rashly, maybe Sophocles is suggesting they need a little "common...
Throughout the play Oedipus the King the theme of blindness can be seen. Sophocles uses Tiresias as a major vehicle in establishing this theme. Tiresias" physical blindness is used to accentuate Oedipus" blindness to the truth of his past, and present. Tiresias is a prophet of ... by any chance he proves to be an intimate of our house, here at my hearth, with my full knowledge may the curse I just called down on him strike me!" (Sophocles line 285). Tiresias then informs Oedipus, reluctantly, on the reality of the situation. He tells Oedipus that he is the "corruption of the land" that is ca...
... , not narrative form, and achieves, through the representation of pitiable and fearful incidents, the catharsis of such incidents" (Golden 11). Using the criteria established by Aristotle in Poetics, "Antigone" by Sophocles displays the qualities of a tragedy. The principle character engages in an immense moral struggle (ending in death). Catharsis is accomplished through the catastrophic consequences of the main character's actions. Throughout ... of her own actions in the burial of her brother. She believes she is doing what the God's want. She meets the conditions of a tragic hero. Th...
... , and his niece, Antigone. Although the conflict is clear and easy to understand on its surface, beneath the surface onlookers often become jaded as to which character, Creon or Antigone, Sophocles intended to portray this tragic play through. As the play begins, Antigone is alone in her beliefs. The chorus sides with Creon and most likely the audience as well. However ... ...
Sophocles" Antigone is a classic tragedy depicting the heartrending effects of power, pride, and deception in a family cursed by fate. With the heated conflict between Antigone and Creon at hand, it's easy ... undermine his image as a stern and unyielding ruler. Similar to their stubbornness is Antigone and Creon's second shared attribute; excessive pride. This motif is ubiquitous throughout this great work of Sophocles and is also fundamental in many other Greek tragedies. Creon's frame of mind is that he is a mighty king and cannot be abated by the cowardly dissent of one of ... ...
... problem wasthat the Greeks knew, in their hearts, that this was wrong. Indeed,their playwrights harangued them about it from the stage of Athenscontinually. All of the great Grecian playwrights -- Sophocles,Euripedes, Aristophenes -- dealt with the women's issue. All of themargued, in their various ways, that the women of Greece were not nearlyas incapable and weak as the culture believed them ... ignore Creon's apparently skillful arguments, for he appears torepresent all that the Athenian should strive for. He stands forobedience to the State. Surely it is his voice we should obey.Sop...
A tragedy is a drama in which a major character undergoes a loss in order to gain a new perspective. In Sophocles" Oedipus Rex, the reader sees the epitome of Aristotle's tragedy described in Poetics, the first section of his major critical work. In it, Aristotle defines the three key elements that ... is happy to oblige, to look after his daughters, Antigone and Ismene. Through this act, order is finally restored in Thebes and Oedipus is left to be a crippled bum. In Sophocles" Oedipus Rex, Oedipus fulfills all the three requirements set by Aristotle to define a tragedy. He goes through a p...
Sophocles" Antigone has two major characters, Antigone and Creon, who are the focal point throughout the story. Although these characters importance to the story goes without saying, minor characters such as ... similarly, Ismene matured from beginning to end of Antigone. Regardless of the fact that Ismene appears very little throughout the story, her parts had a significant impact on the outcome of Sophocles" Antigone....
... from the play Antigone, Creon says, " Come tell me now, will you, too, say you bore a hand in the burial or will you swear that you know nothing of it?" (Sophocles, 1633) The other example is from the play Hamlet, Laertes says, "O, heat dry up my brains! Tears seven times salt, Burn out the sense and Virtue of mine eye- (Shakespeare ... has happened to their family. Ismene says, " Third, out two brothers, on a single day, poor wretches, themselves worked out their mutual doom. Each killed each other, hand against brother's hand- (Sophocles, 1622) In the plays Hamlet and A Streetcar Name...
... will be death to anyone who tries to burry him, but she must defend her beliefs, "But I will bury him; and if I must die, I say that this crime is holy," (Sophocles 694). Amazingly, she shows no sign of respect for the king's command: In her heart, she knows the command is wrong. She goes to her sister Ismene for support in ... male authority and will not help Antigone. Ismene, wishing to prevent Antigone from burying her brother, tries to intimidate her by saying, "Impossible things should not be tried at all," (Sophocles 695), but Antigone does not waver. She goes against the king's w...
Sophocles, one of the greatest Grecian playwrights, argued in his Antigone that women were not incapable and weak as the culture believed them to be through the character Antigone. Contrastingly, he ... and civil law. She would rather die peacefully than die for obeying the laws of the gods, and also, honoring her brother by giving him a proper burial. Through these reasons, Sophocles presents Antigone as more of a modern feminist than Ismene, a typical Athenian woman. Antigone was more fiery and rebellious, whereas Ismene was passive and timid; Antigone stood behind civil law, whereas ... ...