Analysis Of Sophocles ' Play ' Antigone '

In the play Antigone, men view women as a threat to their masculinity and do whatever they have to in order to silence them. However, the women find ways to speak out anyway. Gender has profound affects on the meaning of Antigone's actions. Creon feels the need to defeat Antigone more so because she is a woman. Antigone's rebellion is especially threatening because it upsets gender roles and hierarchy. By refusing to be passive, she overturns one of the fundamental rules of her culture.

Although Antigone shows equality for women and rights, each character in the play has different views and believes. As a tragic hero of the play, Antigone has a tragic flaw and is very brave, as she defies Creon’s law and buries her brother, despite the fact she knows she will have to face consequences. Ismene and Creon on the other hand, do not appreciate

To begin with, the play Antigone has come to be a great representation of anti-feminism showing just how poorly woman in that time were looked down upon. While it creates the mood of how woman were mistreated, it also sheds a light on the choice a woman

Gender and its roles are exposed in the story of Antigone as the central themes. Roles and rules are set and followed by several people in this era, this is appreciated in this text. Ideas of contradiction to these rules were not explored. In Greek mythology, several women held positions of power, but none of these women were human, making the idea of a powerful woman godlike and unattainable, as if to keep woman in their place, which of course, was always under the rule of the superior gender, the male. To challenge a patriarchy with feminism was dangerous, for both sexes were equally protective of it, leaving the challenger desolate in the battle against it. To rely on women to help other women rebel against this social norm was not probable, in the contrary, women held each other accountable for complying to these rules and punished those who didn’t. Women were their gender’s prevalent critics and suppressors, not only because they feared the repercussions, but since they didn’t have the means to rebel against it.

In Sophocles’ Antigone, gender roles are a major conflicting theme throughout the entire play. The setting of the play was written during the Greek mythological days, around 442 B.C. During these days, men were dominant and held all of the power, so women were automatically treated as less. Antigone and Creon portray the conflicting sides between male and female, and Ismene and Haemon portray opposing sides to Antigone and Creon’s actions. Antigone, Ismene, Creon, and Haemon each show differences in behavior due to their sex versus the actions each character chooses to take. Antigone tells Ismene about her plans to bury their brother, Polynices, which is going against Creon’s orders. Antigone and Ismene, have contrasting perspectives on

The play Antigone by Sophocles is a play like no other. There are three major themes or ideas which have a very important role in the play. The first major theme is fate, on how the play comes about and the turn of events that come about throughout it. Another main theme or idea is the pride the characters have and their unwillingness they have to change their minds once they are set on something. The last major theme is loyalty and the practical problem of conduct involving which is a higher law between the divine laws and those of the humans. It is an issue of which law is the "right" law, and if Creon and Antigone's acts are justifiable or not. The issues that Antigone and Creon have between them

Antigone is a women with a lot of pride and extremely progressive character considering the day and age the play was written. The play immediately shows that Antigone is shown as a strong independent female character unwilling to bend to even the highest authority figure in the play, Creon. For start her plan is set “But I will bury him; and if I must die, I say that this” (Act 1, Line 55) shows that she is resolute in her actions, even if it must mean death. The dialogue that she has with her sister Ismene makes Antigone Courage and stature even more pronounced by the difference in attitude Ismene has. Ismene is timid and afraid of what would happen to defy Creon decree while Antigone answers to a higher powers which in this case is the gods.

Sophocles wrote about kings. Mythological, or at least long dead, the regal protagonists of fraction of Sophocles’ surviving work embody the political realities of the ancients’ time. By examining and analyzing the origins and nature of kingship in Sophocles, one can glean a sliver of insight into a civilization that has all but disappeared. Sophocles’s kings were great human leaders, reaching their position through impressive deeds or standing in the community. Although they wielded great power and were dispensers of justice, ultimately, they answered to the gods and were beholden to divine power. The gods oversaw severe punishments for kings that defied them or proved wanting in any way. Both Oedipus the King and Antigone demonstrate how Sophocles’ kings rose to their position on a meritocratic basis, tasked with dispensing justice and protecting their community, and answered to the gods in the end.

Freedom must come from within. Those who think they cannot break loose from the chains that restrain them, will remain powerless. Similarly, greek women had a limited amount of freedom. The rules that were set, were extreme and unfair. Rather than rebel, many women found themselves helpless and incapable of changing society. In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, it is made evident that Creon and Antigone both have opposing views on gender roles. Antigone is faced with a difficult decision that involves going against the male establishment in society. This establishment is personified by her uncle Creon. He believes that men are essential in this society and women are secondary. Antigone, on the other hand, had a high praise for the Gods. She felt that the laws of the gods should be obeyed above all others,especially when in respect to family. Antigone finds herself on an uphill battle for freedom. She is able to challenge society by following the rules of the Gods as opposed to the rules Creon has set. This enables her to highlight the faults in society along with the struggles women go through to cope with the shackles society has put on them.

For centuries men have been finding ways to gain control over everything and everyone. One group that has been oppressed by men throughout history are women. Men have placed rules and regulations upon women making them seen as unequal and inferior. Was it fear? Was it the hunger for power? Was is the highness of superiority? Whatever the reasons were, men had to be seen as the highest being next to whom they worshiped. In the play Antigone by Sophocles, the audience is exposed to the roles of men and women in an ancient Greece society known as Thebes. Although ancient Greece was a male-dominant society where women had as much freedom as a slave, Sophocles’ main character in the play, Antigone, is an example of a brave, strong-minded woman who goes against the limitations that were unfairly set upon women during that time to do what she believes is right. In this play, gender roles assists in the process of portraying the story since it affects some of the decisions of the characters and helps lead the story into the climax.

The theme of Antigone is still relevant in today's society, for issues in democracy, religion, and protest still arise today. Antigone believed Creon was overstepping his bounds as the King by preventing her freedom as a citizen to bury Polynices in accordance with religion, and protested against him, just as similar conflicts arise around the world today. Sexism is another relevant topic found in Antigone which is an issue today. Throughout the play, it is inferred that women are inferior to men. Ismene says, "We must remember we are women, and women are not meant to fight with men. Our rulers are stronger than ourselves…" In another scene, Creon says "No woman shall rule me while I'm alive." The idea that women are a lower class than men, is a conflict that is prominent throughout all world history in many societies. It is still relatable in essence, despite being written 2,500 years ago.

Through the play Antigone, Sophocles expresses the understood role of women in Greek society by Ismene and Creon, and how Antigone was capable of breaking both molds. Ismene represents the idea that women are supposed to be weak and feeble. Creon represent the fact that women were supposed to be used for nothing but childbirth. Sophocles manages to break this tradition by making Antigone a strong and different character than all of the rest in the play.

In Sophocles’s Antigone, which centrals around themes such as bravery in the face of death, civil unrest, and unyielding dedication to divine justice, it is easy to understand how Ismene’s character is often called cowardly, docile, and indecisive. However, if one were to take away Antigone as a comparison, Ismene may appear in a different light. She survived her tragic upbringing through rational thought and a sort of optimism that others will do the same, while still managing to keep her love for her family intact. Though not as glorious or as charismatic as Antigone, Ismene is a sympathetic character in her own right, not merely a passive doll who does as others says.

Have you ever experienced wanting to know who someone was? Well, over the summer, two of my close guy friends were telling me many stories about a teammate and a friend of theirs. After hearing many of their stories I decided I wanted to meet their friend, who is named Mark. My friends, Daniel and Noah, told me that it was a bad idea. They explained to me he was “special” and slightly “crazy”. I doubted them and still pushed to meet him. After a while, they finally gave in. Mark and I met over text and in the beginning he seemed very nice. Although, after just a couple days of texting him I began to see that my friends were telling the truth. Mark began to become creepy and would never leave me alone and also claimed that he liked me. I

Antigone had a very strong theme that portrayed and represented feminism in a very unique way. The way we think of feminism in society today, and the way feminism was portrayed in the play was very different, yet very similar in the ways that women are fighting for the things in which they believe in.