| Antigone | – the daughter of King Oedipus who disobeyed King Creon’s decree by burying her rebel brother- was condemned to death |
| Ismene | -Antigone’s sister who refuses to help her bury their brother Polyneices because she is afraid to break the law because of the possible consequences |
| Polyneices | – Antigone’s brother who fought against Thebes because his (twin) brother, Eteocles, refused to share the throne with him as they had agreed- was left unburied due to King Creon’s law-Antigone tried to bury him |
| Eteocles | -Antigone’s brother that is killed by their brother, Polyneices, in battle-received a hero’s burial because he helped defend Thebes |
| Creon | -king of Thebes-father of Haemon-the brother of Jocasta and uncle of Antigone who became king of Thebes after Oedipus & his 2 sons (Polyneices & Eteocles) die- thought the best rulers are strong and authoritative- forbade anyone to bury Polyneices upon penalty of death because Polyneices had attacked Thebes- ordered that Antigone would be locked in a vault to die so he didn’t have to feel so responsible for her death- only one in his family, besides Ismene, still alive at the end of the play |
| Tiresias | -the blind prophet of Thebes who tells Creon that he should not kill Antigone or others may die & that Creon should bury Polyneices- Creon accuses him of being a liar and accepting bribes for giving the king this information and doesn’t follow Tiresias’ advice |
| Eurydice | -Creon’s wife, whose suicide is Creon’s last punishment, leaving him entirely alone.- she kills herself after she finds out that her son killed himself |
| Haemon | – Antigone’s fiance & Creon’s son- he begs his father for Antigone’s life – kills himself when he finds Antigone has hanged herself |
| Senator (choragus) | -leader of the chorus who finally convinced Creon to change his mind and free Antigone from her punishment- this was the only member of the chorus who could speak with the other actors on the stage |
| Oedipus | -father of Antigone, Ismene, Polyneices & Eteocles & nephew of Creon-Creon gets his throne after Oedipus & his 2 sons (Polyneices & Eteocles) die- king who unknowingly marries his mother after killing his father- in the end, tears out his own eyes and wanders as a beggar |
| Jocasta | -queen of Thebes who unknowingly married her own son Oedipus |
| Thespians | -actors- in ancient Greek plays, there was only one actor, who played several characters, and then there was the chorus |
| Tragic Hero | – the central character of a tragedy- always has a defect or flaw which brings about his downfallEx. Creon and his pride |
| Orchestra | – also called the “dancing place”- where the chorus chanted their lines and danced- the stage |
| Author of Antigone | Sophocles |
| Greatest writers of Greek tragedies | AeschylusSophoclesEuripides |
| Festival of Dionysus | – where writers competed for prizes by staging plays for thousands of spectators |
Eng. 10 Antigone Quizlet
February 16, 2020