Antigone as a Feminist Icon Male authority is a dominant theme in Sophocles’ “Antigone.” Men occupied the land‚ ruled the towns and assigned the women duties to perform. Antigone‚ however‚ believed that she was just as strong as the men who ruled society during that time‚ which led to her downfall. The goal of the feminist movement has generally been to seek equality between the sexes. Through the women’s movement‚ women have won the right to vote‚ and can now compete for traditionally male
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Sophocles’ drama Antigone‚ he develops his characters to convey that who they are influences what they do. Throughout Antigone‚ Sophocles reveals that Creon is a prideful king who commits to the laws of the city-state. Creon decrees that Polynices‚ who died attacking Thebes‚ is a traitor who can’t receive a burial. However‚ Antigone decides to bury Polynices anyway‚ due to her belief that loyalty to family is more valuable than loyalty to the city-state. Furious that Antigone has knowingly flouted
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Antigone explores a contrast between the behavior expected of women and the reality of their role in society. In this society man equals power. Creon expects men to be the primary actors in society and women to take a secondary and somewhat “obedient” role. Antigone challenges these beliefs as she takes action and presents intimidating challenges to the men around her‚ making her masculine. On the other hand‚ Ismene is entirely of this society‚ the object of all men’s desires. She acts like a stereotypical
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when the sisters‚ Antigone and Ismene‚ returned to Thebes they discovered that their beloved brothers‚ Eteocles and Polyneices‚ had killed each other in battle. When the sisters got together for a secret meeting Antigone tells Ismene that their uncle king Creon had buried Eteocles
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Staying true to personal beliefs and morals can sometimes be problematic to retain when conflicting with the written law. In Antigone by Sophocles‚ Antigone disregards the decree of her uncle Creon‚ King of Thebes‚ which forbids anybody to bury Antigone’s brother Polynices who was killed in battle. Although Polynices is considered a traitor to the land of Thebes‚ Antigone feels that to respect the wishes of the gods she must burry him. She faithfully acts upon her morals‚ even though they oppose
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Antigone‚ by Sophocles‚ is a play with many themes. So‚ I will be talking about ‚ what some critics have said about the themes‚ state laws versus Individual rights‚ Morals‚ stubborness and Love. Antigone and her values line up with the first entity in each pair‚ while Creon and his values line up with the second. Ismene chooses to do nothing under the threat of the law whereas Antigone chooses to act despite the possible penalties. Antigone and Creon are both championing what is right
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Sophocles’ Antigone presents Oedipus’ daughters Antigone and Ismene as a non-conformist and a conformist. In postwar Thebes‚ Antigone must persuade Ismene to help bury their brother Polyneices‚ who is branded a traitor by the new king Creon. In a new decree Creon states that he will not give any traitors a proper burial. Antigone’s indignation over Creon’s decree makes her the non-conformist. Because of her loyalty to her brother she wants to “bury him” even though‚ as Ismene points out‚ “the new
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Through the course of Antigone‚ a play by Sophocles‚ various characters justify their actions based on their own perception of duty. A strong example of one of them is Antigone. In the play‚ Antigone experiences a series of moral tests. She has to choose whether to abide by the laws of Thebes or take her own path and follow moral laws and obey the gods instead of the King Creon. She chooses to go against Creon and follow her own moral laws and bury her brother. All though later punished for her denial
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cases‚ Antigone’s love for Polynices is in favor of the gods’ rule of law over Creon’s rule of law. This separates Antigone from Creon‚ Ismene‚ and temporarily Haemon‚ who support Creon’s rule of law over the gods. Many of these characters are well aware of how their shifting allegiance to one person‚ is in effect giving support to others by association. Haemon’s support for Antigone in turn supports Polynices’ cause and the gods. In this manner‚ love not only causes death but also serves to shift
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Sympathizing with Antigone Very few things in life are entirely one-sided‚ with the clear and unbiased result being obvious. Life in general is much more complex‚ with multiple viewpoints and intricacies being required in order to have a grasp on the reality of a situation. In Sophocles’s Antigone this fact still holds true. Antigone and Kreon are locked in an argument over the burial of her brother‚ Polyneices‚ with Antigone going against the law set up by Kreon and burying her brother. Both
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