Antigone: Gender Conflict Essay

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.

As the tragedy concludes, the chorus issues its final words: "Pray for no more at all. For what is destined for us, men mortal, there is no escape," demonstrating how justice remains impartial to the prejudice of men; those who make imprudent judgments will ultimately suffer from the consequences of their actions. In Sophocles' Antigone, these prejudices notably surface in the form of paternalism as demonstrated through Creon's government, highlighting the importance of gender roles throughout the play. Therefore, analyzing the motif of gender roles and its effect on the definition of justice through the perspectives of Ismene, Antigone, and Creon enables the audience to understand how Sophocles' macroscopic analogy to humanity's

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.

Full of drama and tragedy, Antigone can be used to relate to current conflicts. One such conflict is that between Haemon and his father Creon. Haemon looks up to Creon with honor and pride, but as conflict arises, that relation is disassociated and new feelings grow. The first conversation between them is what initiates the downfall of their bond. While it seems that Creon is the most important person in Haemon’s life, Antigone is in fact the one that has won Haemon over.

In Homer’s The Odyssey, Sophocles’ Antigone, and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata, women resist the patriarchy through virtuous mean. Virtuous mean is when citizens determine deficiency or excess in relation to social norms. In The Odyssey, Penelope opposes the patriarchy by tricking the suitors. She knows they won’t leave until she marries one or Odysseus comes back. She cannot force them to leave because it goes against the social norm of the law of hospitality but she sees that they are acting in excess by overstaying their welcome and courting a married woman, something that also goes against the social norm. In Antigone, Antigone resists the patriarchy by disobeying her king and burying her brother because she knows what she is doing is right.

The opening events of the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, quickly establish the central conflict between Antigone and Creon. Creon has decreed that the traitor Polynices, who tried to burn down the temple of gods in Thebes, must not be given proper burial. Antigone is the only one who will speak against this decree and insists on the sacredness of family and a symbolic burial for her brother. Whereas Antigone sees no validity in a law that disregards the duty family members owe one another, Creon's point of view is exactly opposite. He has no use for anyone who places private ties above the common good, as he proclaims firmly to the Chorus and the audience as he revels in his victory over Polynices. He sees Polynices as an enemy to

Beliefs are not always based on facts that you would find in a textbook-they are something that one believes is true. When I first read Sophocles’ play Antigone, my initial impression of Creon was that his beliefs of the law and the state were rational because of his role as a ruler. But as the play progressed, I began to disagree with his behavior and his values because he only focused on his own moral beliefs rather than considering the beliefs of other people, which could have resolved conflict. Throughout the play, the theme of authority of the state and religion is represented through the individual beliefs of

     Antigone, by Sophocles, is a story about the struggle between Antigone, who represents the laws of the gods and Creon, who represents the laws of the state. The play takes place circa 442 B.C. in the city-state of Thebes. The story revolves around the burial of Polyneices. Polyneices led an army against his brother, Etocles, the King of Thebes. They killed each other in battle and the new king, Creon, made a decree that only Etocles was to be buried because Polyneices was his rival. Antigone, sister of Polyneices and Etocles, feels that she needs to bury Polyneices in accordance to Zeus’ law, but this went against Creon’s decree. Also, Antigone has to bury Polyneices without the help of her sister

Vera Nazarian, author of The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration, said that “A woman is human. She is not better, wiser, stronger, more intelligent, more creative, or more responsible than a man. Likewise, she is never less. Equality is a given. A woman is human.”

Human nature dictates that conformity is a safer choice than expressing individuality. When placed in a situation where one must either remain silent or speak their mind and face severe consequences, there is much less risk in taking the first option. Sophocles, an Athenian tragedian from the fifth century BC, confronted this theme throughout one of his most popular works: Antigone. In the play, the title character must decide if she should honor her brother and die, rather than saying nothing and leaving his dead body unburied outside the city walls. In the present day, most Americans don’t experience such extreme circumstances, but this battle between conformity and individuality directly reflects the

According to CollegeTimes, four in ten businesses worldwide have no women in senior management. This is because many countries are still not comfortable with women in the position of power. The leadership in Sophocles’ Antigone and Euripides’ Medea is the exact same way. Comparatively, not one women in these books has a leadership role. At one point, Creon, a character in Medea, even says he would never let a women rule above him. Through the degrading actions men take against women and women’s exaggerated reactions and emotions, women in Medea and Antigone are viewed as powerless and inferior to men, illustrating the voice that women lose when diminished by men in the Hellenistic society.

The foremost character I will be examining is Antigone. Antigone is a fledgling female, perhaps about fifteen years of age, who is Greek. She practices the customs of Greece which include worshipping of the Greek Gods and exemplifying their beliefs. Her ethnic background is not stated directly in the play, but I believe she is Caucasian. She is the daughter of Jocasta, and the sister to Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.

Characterization is perhaps the most vital aspect within a work of literature. It takes mere words on paper and brings them to life, transforming these same words into walking, talking characters who exist in their own written world. However, throughout the history of literature, as well as any forms of media, women have been marginalized. Women are subject to a lack of characterization and/or typical female tropes, suggesting that they cannot progress mentally, reach their own realizations, as well as have their own identities. In addition, women are commonly showcased as flat characters, fulfilling typical gender roles and only serving to progress the plot for more dominant male characters.

A woman who rebelled against a distinctively patriarchal, male-dominated Greek society. A woman who defied the orders of the King to follow her heart. A woman who acted in accordance with her sense of right and wrong. A woman with great reverence for relationships and an even greater allegiance towards family values. Such a woman deserves applause. A rebel. A legend. An example. A woman. Antigone.

Antigone’s story was one of the first portrayals of feminist behavior. Her ability to stand up for what she believed in gave women hope that they would also be able to. As a frontrunner in the feminist world, she once again displayed her heroine characteristics in taking action as opposed to sitting back and letting things happen in the way that it was expected in those day. She went up against King Creon and showed no sign of backing down even though it ended up becoming the cause of her death. She was prepared to take full punishment for burying her brother because she knew she was committing a crime. She stood up for what she believed in and did not fight against the King or even her fiancée, who was the son of the king, to get out of