Comparing Women In Antigone And Things Fall Apart

For thousands of years, women have consistently been degraded and perceived as less than equals. Although women make up half of the population, their treatment has been degrading, belittling, and simply unjust. In Antigone and Things Fall Apart, a Greek play by Sophocles and a novel by Chinua Achebe, respectively, the discussion of women in their individual societies goes to show the fact that they have been and continue to be consistently oppressed, despite the significant time and culture difference. Little progression towards equality is made within or between the two. The role of women in both Antigone and Things Fall Apart are different, yet circle back to the overarching theme of inequality in society through diverse perspectives and environments. Antigone, the eponymous character, is apart of the royal family in Greek society. Her uncle and interim king, Creon, decrees a rule that no one shall bury the body of her brother, Polyneices, as he is considered a traitor of Thebes. Despite the decree, Antigone still plans to bury her late brother. When asking her sister, Ismene, if she will join her in burying the body,
When discussing the crime, the guard states “He sprinkled dry dust on it, with all the sacred rites” (246-247). Creon’s immediate response is “What man has so defied me?” (248). The conversation continues with the assumption that the criminal was a man, using the pronoun “he” and the word “man.” The two men simply cannot fathom a woman executing such a controversial crime. A woman should know her place in society, and therefore would never defy the law. Only a man would be able to engage in such actions. The last person they expected it to be, Antigone, simply because she is a woman, was the exact person who committed the crime. The male perspective of women in Greek society is evidently biased, as they think of themselves as greater and more