| Antigone | sister of Ismene, Polyneices, and Etocles, daughter of Oedipus, wants to/does bury Polyneices, engaged to Hiamon, hangs herself in a cave |
| Ismene | sister of Antigone, tries to dissuade Antigone from burying Polyneices then tries to share blame but is spared by antigone because antigone doesn’t want to lessen her death then creon declares she is guilty by association knowing the plan |
| Creon | King of Thebes, decrees that no one may bury Polyneices, puts Antigone in a cave, uncle of Antigone |
| Sentry | reports burial of Polyneices to Creon, fears Creon and thinks to save himself, catches Antigone burying Polyneices the second time |
| Chorus | represent the elders of Thebes, gives background, gives their opinions |
| Haemon | son of Creon, tries to kill Creon but stabs himself, talks to Creon about the people approve of Antigone’s actions, advises Creon to be like a lithe tree or sack sail |
| Polyneices | brother of Antigone, attacked Thebes with Argive army, Etocles killed him, he killed Etocles, considered a traitor |
| Oedipus | old King of Thebes, cursed for killing his father and marrying his mother |
| Eteocles | Antigone’s brother, was buried honorably as a hero, killed by Polyneices, Polyneices killed him |
| Choragus | leader of the chorus, Creon finally listens to him and rushes to free Antigone |
| Jocasta | Oedipus’ mother and wife and the Queen of Thebes. She left her son, Oedipus, to die as a baby. |
| Compare the syntax of Antigone and Ismene in lines 1-10 What do Antigone’s quick sentences reveal about her character and what does Ismene’s longer paragraph reveal about her character | Antigone is hasty and thinks with her heart. Ismene is rational and thinks with her head. |
| After describing the details of Creon’s decree, Antigone presents the alternatives to Ismene. (Line 25) What word with strong connotations does Antigone use | Stoning |
| tone conveyed through Antigone’s word choice | Morbid tone |
| Antigone asserts, “Creon is not strong enough to stand in my way” (line 35). What does this statement reveal about her character | She stands up for what she believes in regardless of consequences. |
| What event does Ismene allude to in lines 36 -42 | The death of Oedipus (her father), her mother’s suicide and death of both her brothers. |
| In lines 45-52 what arguments does Ismene provide against Antigone’s plan | They would be put to death. We are only women, we can’t fight men. We must give into the law. I must yield to authority. It is dangerous to meddle. |
| What does Ismene’s choice of words, “meddle” reveal about her views of her own role and ability to fight against Creon | It is none of her business. |
| Which literary technique is used in Antigone’s statement that her “crime is holy” | Metaphor |
| At line 60, Antigone provides her reasoning for burying Polyneices. What is it | We die forever (she will always regret it, and he will never be properly buried and will live forever as a disgrace). |
| In the next passage, what does Ismene reveal about her thoughts about the law | Laws are made for the good of the public. |
| Antigone and Ismene’s contrast to one another causes them to be_________ | foils. |
| Compare Antigone’s tone to Ismene’s in the last passages of the scene | Antigone’s tone is frustrated, while Ismene’s tone is admonitory. |
| What type of figurative language is used to describe “long blade of the sun…” is a | metaphor |
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| As indicated in the quote, “Open, unlidded eye of golden day!” what type of figurative language is used to describe the sun | Apostrophe/ Epithet/ Metaphor |
| What effect has the bright morning light had on the attacking enemy of Thebes | It strikes down the enemy. |
| Polyneices is compared to what type of animal What image is conveyed by the comparison? | Wild eagle screaming; he is on the attack with no mercy. |
| The Thebian guard, fending off Polyneices’ attack, is compared to what | A dragon |
| The Choragus’ use of word like “bray, “bragging,” and “swaggering” reveal what attitude toward the attacking troops | They are arrogant and over-confident regarding victory. |
| The Choragus implies that the Thebans’ cause is more just than that of the attacking troops through which quotes | Yielded their clanging arms to the god. |
| Which god is referred to as the “god/That bends the battle-line and breaks it” | Ares, the God of War |
| The repetition of the “b” sound in the same passage uses which sound device How does its use enhance the sound of combat, as described by the Choragus? | Alliteration; it quickens the combat making the audience anxious for the outcome. |
| What is the tone of lines 39-43 Which words and passages convey the tone? | Joyous- beautiful, morning, victory, son, joy, dancing, sweet, praise |
| The chorus’ belief that Thebes will, “take leave of war” reflects what expectation | There will be no more fighting. |
| Contrast the tones of the Prologue to Parados | Prologue- dark, foreboding Parodos- educational, descriptive |
| What is the meaning of “auspicious,” as spoken by the Choragus’ speech _________________________ | Attended by favorable circumstances; prosperous, successful. |
| What tone is reflected through the choice of words in the choragus uses in discussing creon speech | hopeful about Creons future |
| What type of figurative language does Creon use to describe the welfare of Thebes | compares thebes to a ship going through storms and how he brought is back to safe land. Figurative language to describe Thebes welfare: metaphor: Ship of State, storms, safe harbor. |
| Why do you think Creon gives a review of history | (Lines 10 – 20)? He is not confident. He must remind people they have been loyal to their leaders in the past and hope they will transfer loyalty to him. |
| Creon’s principles are given in lines 20 – 35. He has contempt….. | for the kind of governor who is afraid to do what he knows is best for the state, no use for who sets private friendship above public welfare, and no dealings with an enemy of the people. |
| Creon’s assertion that “Friends made at the risk of wrecking our ship are no real friends at all” refers to whom | He places public welfare above personal friends or family, so it refers to friends or family that would be promoted when not in the best interest of the state. |
| What decision has Creon made regarding Eteocles’burial and Polyneices’ burial | Eteocles will be buried and placed as a military hero and Polyneices left to rot therefore never finding peace. |
| How are Creon’s tones different at the end and beginning of his address to the Chorus | Creon starts out sounding very reasonable and humane but ends up sounding vengeful and cruel. |
| Based on the Choragus’ response, what can you infer he feels about Creon’s decision | Choragus will obey it, but he doesn’t seem to like it. He doesn’t say all of Thebes agrees with Creon, but instead he talks about “your will” and Creon’s right to enforce it. He also asks that younger men carry out his will. |
| “Only a crazy man is in love with death” alludes to the upcoming actions of which character | Antigone, who is in love with the idea of dying for her cause. |
| Creon’s response in lines 63-65 that “Money talks…” reflects his belief that all men are capable of what | He has a suspicious nature. He is cynical about the honesty of others, ready to believe that anyone can be bribed. |
| What does the Sentry’s rambling, bumbling speech provide after the somber and serious passages preceding it | Comic relief |
| Although the Sentry does not know who buried Polyneices, nor does Creon, the audience does. What type of irony is reflected through this knowledge | Irony: Dramatic Irony |
| What effect does the Choragus’ implication that the gods have become involved have on Creon and Why | It angers him. It challenges his authority. Why would the gods sympathize with the traitor, Polyneices. He is sure that the Gods would agree with him about his view of Polyneices as a “bad man”. He is sure the Gods are on his side. |
| Creon’s response to the Choragus’ doubt reveals his true feeling about the Theban elders. Which words reflect his true sentiments | Doddering wrecks” “Senile opinion” – maybe some of them have been “scheming” against him. |
| Creon believed that sentry had disobeyed his orders Why | For money |
| Of whom did he suspect the same fault earlier in the scene | Earlier he was worried about stiff-necked anarchists plotting against him. Now he is accusing the sentry of taking money to bury the corpse or protect the person who did. |
| Based on Sophocles’ development of Creon at this point in the drama, what seem to be his strengths and weaknesses | Strength: his determination, his power, his ability to rule Weaknesses: He is proud and easily angered; he is presumptuous, assuming that he knows what the gods want. |
| What quality did the Sentry see in Creon, as revealed in the statement, “How dreadful it is when the right judges judge wrong” | Suspicious, cynical in misjudging an honest man |
| Did the Sentry plan or returning, as commanded by Creon Why or why not? | He does not plan to return. bc doesn’t want to be charged with crime he didn’t commit and sent to death |
| Summarize the main points of the Ode | Nothing is more wonderful than man. Man has conquered the bird, the fish of the sea, the mammals on land. His capacity to speak, think, persuade has enabled him to conquer the elements, but he cannot conquer death. There is no civilization without law. The Chorus will support Creon even if they are insulted by him because they will not tolerate anarchy. |
| Who does the Chrous favor: the lawmaker or lawbreaker | The chorus favors the lawmaker. |
| What opinion does the Chorus express regarding the importance of law in society | If laws are broken, the city is broken. |
| If “law” refers to civil law, who is the anarchist | Antigone is the anarchist in civil law |
| If “law” refers to the gods’ laws, who is the anarchist | Creon is the anarchist if God’s law is supreme. |
| As the scene opens, the Sentry has reappeared. How has his attitude toward Creon changed from the previous scene and Why | He said he would never return to the palace, but he has because he has found who has done this. |
| Who has the Sentry arrested as the culprit guilty of burying Polyneices | Antigone |
| In the passage used to describe the setting in which the Sentry discovered Antigone, which rhetorical strategies were used (Lines 25 – 35)? | Uses description to show that an “act of God” occurred that was beyond their control. Supernatural intervention |
| To what does the Sentry compare Antigone upon finding her work undone and What tone toward Antigone is conveyed through the comparison | A mother bird and Sympathetic tone |
| What do you notice about the action the Sentry describes in lines 25 – 45 | (Where does it take place) How does this relate to the stage and set of ancient Greece? It is god inspired. It relates to Greek Tragedies because usually Gods intervene. |
| On what basis does Antigone justify the burial of Polyneices | It is an immortal unrecorded law of God. |
| Antigone’s assertion that Creon’s edict “was strong/ But all you strength is weakness against itself” is best described by which literary technique | Paradox |
| Through Antigone’s words, Sophocles gives life to death, crime and anarchy. Find examples that personify each in lines 65 – 95 | “Think Death less than a friend…” “Crimes kept in the dark.” “Barefaced anarchy” |
| The Chorus compares Antigone’s actions to those of which other character | Oedipus’ like father like daughter |
| What is Creon inferring about Antigone through the comparisons to tough iron and wild horses | She is tough and is the first to react. |
| Summarize Creon’s views on family versus duty as expressed in line 82 – 85 | He is tied to duty over family. |
| According to Creon, whose crime is worse, Antigone’s or Ismene’s | They are equal. Ismene’s mind is that of a traitor. |
| List two examples of figurative language that Antigone uses to express the elders’ fear of Creon | “Lips frozen in fear”- personification “Ah, the good fortune of kings; licensed to say and do what they please”- sarcasm or verbal irony |
| Contrast Antigone and Creon’s view of honor and burial as revealed in lines 105 -115 | Antigone believes that all of the dead should be honored. Creon believes only the just should be honored. |
| The Choragus compares Ismene’s sorrow to what | A cloud that rains down gentle sorrow therefore sympathetic to her |
| Creon compares her actions to what | A snake sucking blood (she is sucking order out of his house) |
| Find a quote that emphasizes Antigone’s rejection of Ismene’s belated involvement in the “crime” | “You shall not lessen my death by sharing it.”” No Ismene you have no right to say so. You would not help me and I will not have you help me” |
| What is a martyr and How does Antigone fit the description of a martyr | Someone who dies for a cause; Antigone is willing to die for her belief that everyone is entitled to proper burial. |
| Antigone and Ismene are cast as foils. How do the words of Creon and Ismene in lines 148 – 151 reinforce this concept | “One has lost her mind; the other/it seems, has never has a mind at all.” |
| What fact about the relationship between Antigone and Haemon does Ismene reveal at line 154 | “But your son’s own bride!” |
| Ismene speaks to Creon’s son, Haemon, even though he is absent from the scene. Which literary term reflects this type of address | Apostrophe |
| Creon rejects responsibility for Antigone’s death, instead casting the blame on whom or what | Death |
| Summarize the main ideas of Ode 2. | God’s vengeance is terrible and the man who has never seen it is lucky. Sorrow surrounding the house of Oedipus has loomed for years, and it still curses his children. No pride on earth can stop the wrath of Zeus for those who are arrogant. Most of the time, death causes problems, and the things that please man often cause sorrow. |
| How does the sin of moral arrogance apply to both Antigone and Creon? | Creon- morally arrogant regarding his unwillingness to bend the law Antigone- morally arrogant in her unwillingness weight the pros and cons of her actions. |
| Orchestra | The orchestra (literally, “dancing space”) was normally circular. It was a level space where the chorus would dance, sing, and interact with the actors who were on the stage near the skene (see explanation below).The earliest orchestras were simply made of hard earth, but in the Classical period some orchestras began to be paved with marble and other materials. In the center of the orchestra there was often a thymele, or altar to Dionysus. The orchestra of the theater of Dionysus in Athens was about 60 feet in diameter. |
| Theatron | The theatron (literally, “viewing-place”) is where the spectators sat. The theatron was usually part of hillside overlooking the orchestra, and often wrapped around a large portion of the orchestra (see the diagram above). It held as many as 16,000 citizens. Spectators in the fifth century BC probably sat on cushions or boards, but by the fourth century the theatron of many Greek theaters had marble seats. Some say that only male, free Greeks were allowed to attend the plays, while others assert that women and slaves were allowed to sit in certain reserved sections of the theater. State officials, priests, and dignitaries sat in the front row. |
| Skene | The skene (literally, “tent”) was the building directly behind the stage. During the 5th century, the stage of the theater of Dionysus in Athens was probably raised only two or three steps above the level of the orchestra and was perhaps 25 feet wide and 10 feet deep. The skene was directly in back of the stage and was usually decorated as a palace, temple, or other building, depending on the needs of the play. It had at least one set of doors, and actors could make entrances and exits through them. There was also access to the roof of the skene from behind, so that actors playing gods and other characters could appear on the roof, if needed. |
| Parodos | The parodoi (literally, “passageways”) are the paths by which the chorus and some actors (such as those representing messengers or people returning from abroad) made their entrances and exits. The audience also used them to enter and exit the theater before and after the performance. |
| Aeschylus 525 B.C. – 426 B.C. | introduced a second actor which made possible dialogue independent of the chorus. He wrote his plays in trilogies, three based on a single story or theme. These three tragedies, along with a satyr play (a type of comic relief) were performed on a given day of the festival. |
| wrote 123 dramas; seven still exist. He won fame in his early 20’s at his first competition when he defeated Aeschylus. He was the first playwright to add a third actor and increased the size of the chorus to fifteen. He also introduced the use of painted scenery. Antigone belonged to the Oedipus cycle. Antigone was introduced in 441 B.C., Oedipus Rex in 430 B.C., and Oedipus at Colonus in 401 B.C. (after Sophocles’ death). Thus, Sophocles did not follow the tradition of Aeschylus’ in presenting interrelated themes as contest entries. After his death, he was honored as a hero. | Sophocles 496 B.C. – 406 B.C. |
| Euripides 480 B.C. – 406 B.C. | is referred to as the most tragic of the three great playwrights. He sought to humanize characters and make conflict more realistic. He reduced the role of the chorus by detaching it from the main action. He employed the device of opening drama with a speech reviewing events and was known for his overuse of ending his plays with intervention from heaven |
| Prologue | Spoken by one or two characters before the chorus appears. The prologue usually gives the mythological background necessary for understanding the events of the play. |
| Parodos | This is the song sung by the chorus as it first enters the orchestra and dances. |
| First Episode | Scene in Antigone This is the first of many “episodes”, when the characters and chorus talk. |
| First Stasimon | Ode in Antigone At the end of each episode, the other characters usually leave the stage and the chorus dances and sings a stasimon, or choral ode. The ode usually reflects on the things said and done in the episodes, and puts it into some kind of larger mythological framework. |
| Exodos | At the end of play, the chorus exits singing a processional song which usually offers words of wisdom related to the actions and outcome of the play. |
| What is a classical drama | the drama of ancient greece and rome it arose in athens in honor of dionysus |
| Who were the actors in Greek dramas | All male actors |
| What did the actors wear | Robes and masks |
| Describe the chorus | A group of about 15 men who commented on the action |
| Who is the choragus | The leader of the chorus who participated and dialogue |
| What did the chorus mainly communicate | Gave insights on messages of the play |
| tragedy | Drama recounts a downfall of a character of the play |
| Define tragic hero | The character who experiences the downfall of the tragedy |
| What usually causes a tragic hero’s downfall | character gets involved in historically or socially significant events |
Antigone through Ode 2
February 15, 2020