Antigone
Sophocles’ Antigone is a Greek tragedy that explores many themes. Two of these themes are the meaning of life and death, and loyalty. Each character in this play has their motivations based on how they view their life, how they feel about death, and where their loyalties lie. We see Antigone loyal to the gods' laws, so much so that she ultimately gives her life to fulfill their wishes. On the contrary, we see Creon hungry for power, and the laws of the land and man are more important to him. Each supporting character is loyal to one or the other, and some of them even change their actions as the play progresses based on the actions and fate of others. This play makes the audience question the character's motives, and wonder who is right and who is wrong. We also see each of Aristotle’s poetics throughout the play: spectacle, song, diction, plot, character, and theme.
Aristotle may not view Antigone as the perfect tragedy, but he would consider it a tragedy nonetheless. His definition of a tragedy is “an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude, in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament, through pity and fear affecting the proper purgation of these emotions.” This play is about the characters, the actions they take, and the consequences of those actions. Aristotle says that for a story to be tragic, the good people must have a sad ending, and the bad people must not have a sad ending. The antagonist doesn’t meet a bad fate in this story, but the protagonists all die. Creon is seen as the antagonist because he doesn’t follow the gods’ laws. He causes one death which inadvertantly leads to two others. He does whatever he feels necessary to lead the city and further his own agenda. Above all other character’s deaths, Haemon’s death is the most tragic. In this play, Haemon is completely innocent. He isn’t the traitor, Antigone is. But because he loves Antigone he decides to join her in death. Creon’s response to Haemon’s death is, “Dead, dead—and the living are guilty of their death!... Haemon’s gone, his blood spilled by the very hand—His own...raging mad with his father for the death [of Antigone].” Haemon’s death was no one’s fault but Creon’s own, but Creon is still alive at the end of the play. These actions also invite catharsis for the audience, making us feel sad for Haemon and Antigone, and even pity Creon a little. Aristotle’s definition of tragedy is apparent in this play, and all six of Aristotle’s poetics are used heavily throughout the play.
One of the least prioritized of Aristotle’s poetics in this play is spectacle. One use of spectacle in Antigone is the dead bodies onstage at the end. Towards the end of the play, Haemon and Eurydice’s bodies are on the stage. Seeing these bodies on the stage causes catharsis for the audience and is something spectacular to see. The other use of spectacle would be the description of the deaths, especially Haemon’s graphic death. When the messenger comes to tell of Haemon’s death, he describes it as follows, “Haemon lunged and missed!--- and then, doomed, desperate with himself, suddenly leaning his full weight on the blade, he buried it in his body, halfway to the hilt. And still in his senses, pouring his arms around her, he embraced the girl and breathing hard, released a quick rush of blood, bright red on her cheek glistening white.” Though the audience doesn’t see the death take place, reading or listening to the description of Haemon’s death makes the reader or watcher picture what this would look like. The picture that is created in one's mind could be seen as spectacle because each audience member or reader imagines the blood, the sword, and the graphic nature of it all.
Aristotle’s poetic, song, also plays a role in Antigone. The chorus is integral to the play, and the words they speak and sing help the story move along and bring the audience into the play even more. However, the way they sing it or the melodies themselves aren’t prioritized. Their reactions to the events make the audience think and imagine what these events would be like. One of the chorus’ best lines is the very last stanza of the play. They say, “Wisdom is by far the greatest part of joy, and reverence toward the gods must be safeguarded. The mighty words of the proud are paid in full with mighty blows of fate, and at long last those blows will teach us wisdom.” These final words summarize one of the themes of this play: reverence towards the gods is more important than the laws of the city, and wisdom is a gift of life. We must learn from our experiences and mistakes. This line, among others, demonstrates the role that song plays in Antigone.
Diction is even more apparent than the previously discussed poetics in this play. The way that each line is delivered is important to the story and draws emotions out of the readers. There are also some idioms in the play that help the audience understand the characters and what they actually mean by the things they say. One example of this is something that Antigone says to Creon when she is confronted for burying Polynices. Creon says that the citizens wouldn’t support her actions, but in response, she says, “They see it that just that way but defer to you and keep their tongues in leash.” The idiom here is ‘keep their tongues in leash.’ This clearly shows that the members of this city feel trapped by Creon, and that they can’t express their true feelings. They feel held back and stuck, in the way that a leash makes a dog feel. Diction is also very important in the scene between Creon and Haemon when Haemon finds out what Creon has done to Antigone. At the beginning of this interaction, Haemon declares his loyalty to his father by saying “I obey you. No marriage could ever mean more to me than you.” But as the conversation progresses, Haemon gets increasingly angry, and towards the end, he says “If you weren’t my father, I’d say you were insane.” Haemon doesn’t agree with his father’s actions, and the way these lines slowly transition from respect to anger shows the effect that Creon has on the people around him. The actor who plays Haemon must deliver these lines in such a way that the audience sees this slow transition. That is where diction comes into play in Antigone.
The next most prioritized of Aristotle’s poetics in Antigone is the plot. The story has an obvious beginning, middle, and end. In Backwards and Forwards, David Ball writes, “Only when we look at events in reverse order can we see, with certainty, how the dominoes fell, which fell against which.” In this play, it’s very obvious which events lead to the next, especially as we analyze the events in reverse order. For example, Antigone kills herself. This happens as a result of Creon placing her in the cave to die. Creon places her in the cave because Antigone breaks the law by burying her brother Polynices. She buries him because she believes in the laws of the gods and wants to give her brother the proper and respectful burial she thinks he deserves. We can see exactly which actions happen and what action precedes it to make it happen. Another element of the plot is the fact that the play takes place over one day, creating the dramatic unity and flow that Aristotle appreciated.
Character plays a huge role in Antigone. Two of the main characters, Antigone and Creon, are essential to the story. One trait that Antigone possesses is bravery. She displayed this bravery because she will do whatever it takes to do what she believes is right. The most apparent example of just how brave Antigone proves to be is in the scene where she is
confronted by Creon. When he gives her the chance to deny what she’s done and save herself she says, “I did it. I don’t deny a thing.” She even says to Creon later on, “If my present actions strike you as foolish, let’s just say I’ve been accused of folly by a fool.” Antigone’s words result in her death, but she’s brave. She’s especially brave considering the time that this play was written. A woman saying these things to a man during this period in time is significant to the story. Some may argue that Antigone isn’t brave, that she’s just stupid. But seeing her as the brave protagonist makes her death even more tragic, especially because her death leads to two more. Antigone’s character is so important to the play that it’s named after her.
Creon’s character is endlessly interesting. He values money and power, he has poor judgment, and he is prideful. Referring to his lack of judgment, the Sentry says “Oh it’s terrible when the one who does the judging judges things all wrong.” Regarding Creon’s poor judgment the messenger comments “Creon shows the world that of all the ills afflicting men the worst is lack of judgment.” We see Creon’s poor judgment throughout Antigone, and this is ultimately what leads to the deaths in the play. Another interesting thing about Creon is that he only takes advice from others, or follows the laws of the gods when it aligns with his agenda. We see this when Tiresias comes in and tries to talk Creon out of these decisions he’s making. When their conversation first starts, Creon says to Tiresias, “I’ve never wavered from your advice before.” But by the end of the conversation he says, “This slander of yours–are you aware you’re speaking to the king?... You–you have your skills, old seer, but you lust for injustice.” Creon doesn’t like to be told that he’s doing something wrong, no matter who corrects him. However, we see Creon slightly develop as a character as he humbles himself just enough to decide to let Antigone out of the cave. He initially is very reluctant to consider releasing Antigone, and when contemplating what he should do about her he says, “It’s a dreadful thing to yield...but resist now? Lay my pride bare to the blows of ruin? That’s dreadful too.” He doesn’t want to give up his pride and admit that he may have been wrong. But after a little more time, he decides to release Antigone. About this decision he says, “Oh it’s hard, giving up the heart’s desire... but I will do it–no more fighting a losing battle with necessity.” Creon gives up his desire to keep Antigone locked away and ends the losing battle he is fighting. But when he arrives at the cave, he finds his son also dead with Antigone and he exclaims, “Ohhh, my crimes, so senseless, so insane, my stubborn, deadly–Look at us, the killer, the killed, father and son, the same blood–the misery!” Creon finally admits that he is in the wrong because he realizes the magnitude of his decisions.
Through the actions of the characters, we see the most prioritized of Aristotle’s poetics in Antigone, and that is theme. Among many themes, the overall theme of this play is loyalty. It begs the question, where do our loyalties lie? It shows us what happens when we are too loyal to one entity, or not loyal enough to another. Each character makes certain decisions based on where their own loyalties lie. Creon is loyal to himself and the city he leads. The choices he makes are based on how the result will benefit him and his city. There’s a moment in the play when Creon talks to Haemon about Antigone and how he thinks people would view him if he made a certain choice. He says, “I caught her in naked rebellion, the traitor, the only one in the whole city. I’m not about to prove myself a liar, not to my people, no, I’m going to kill her!” Creon fears that if he doesn’t kill Antigone, his citizens will view him as a liar. So to avoid this, he decides to kill her.
Haemon on the other hand, is loyal to Antigone, and by default, he’s loyal to the gods because that’s who Antigone is most loyal to. Ismene is also loyal to Antigone, but she still fears authority and the possibility of punishment. To Antigone, she says, “Remember, we are women, we’re not born to contend with men...I must obey the ones who stand in power. Why rush to extremes? It’s madness, madness.” Ismene doesn’t want to cause any trouble. She is more loyal to herself in this way, worried about potential consequences, and loyal to man’s law and the way their society functions. But later in the play, she volunteers to die with Antigone even though she had nothing to do with the burial of Polynices. Antigone is loyal to the gods, so much so that she breaks man’s law to keep the laws of the gods. Before she buries Polynices, she says to Ismene, “I will bury him myself. And even if I die in the act, that death will be a glory. I will lie with the one I love and loved by him–an outrage sacred to the gods! I have longer to please the dead than please the living here: in the kingdom down below I’ll lie forever. Do as you like, dishonor the laws the gods hold in honor.” Antigone is loyal to the gods because she views her current life as something temporary, but she knows that she will be with the gods forever when she dies. So to her, pleasing the gods is more important than pleasing man. Each of these characters shows us to whom they are most loyal.
Antigone ends with this line from the chorus, “We must deal with all that lies before us. The future rests with the ones who tend the future.” Creon has the power to ‘tend the future’ of the city. He can change the way that people are treated and how the laws of the gods are viewed and upheld. The chorus also says “The mighty words of the proud are paid in full with mighty blows of fate, and at long last those blows will teach us wisdom.” These phrases from the chorus sum up the play beautifully. Creon’s pride and lack of judgment cost him three lives of citizens of his city, two of which were his own family. But hopefully, Creon learns from these experiences, gains wisdom, and leads his city to be more loyal to god’s laws than man’s. Seeing these characters' actions and their consequence should give the audience the idea that the decisions they make and the consequences that follow are directly tied to whomever or whatever they are most loyal to. So we must be careful in deciding where to place our own loyalty.
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