LRJ #2

Yang Thao

Ms. Peifer

English 10 IB

11/23/08

LRJ #2

Images that are used throughout the play of Antigone, was the picture of Antigone burying his brother not caring about the law of Thebes. “Nay, be what thou wilt; but I will bury him: well for me to die in doing that. I shall rest, a loved one with him whom I have loved, sinless in my crime” (Sophocles par.15). The imagery of Antigone’s generous action is constantly used as a sign to show others the right thing to do even if it’s defying the law of the king.

In this story, Creon’s fatal flaw was defying the prophecy of his downfall if he killed Antigone. He still killed Antigone and it caused others to suicide one by one. Not only was losing his family a fatal flaw, cut he also lost respect of his citizens. They would no longer view him as a good king but as a tyrant who murdered his family.

“Woe for the sins of a darkened soul, stubborn sins, fraught with death! Ah, ye behold us, the sire who hath slain, the son who hath perished! Woe is me, for the wretched blindness of my counsels! Alas, my son, thou hast died in thy youth, by a timeless doom, woe is me!-thy spirit hath fled,-not by thy folly, but by mine own!” (Sophocles par.334)

Creon completes anagnorisis at the end of the play when it was too late to do anything about it. He then realizes his stubbornness, and his cruelty done to Antigone. “Ah me, this guilt can never be fixed on any other of mortal kind, for my acquittal! I,even I, was thy slayer, wretched that I am-I own the truth” (Sophocles par.345).

The peripeteia happens when Creon meets with Teresias and Teresias tells Creon of his bad fortune. That’s when all things come into play, leaving Creon to witness his downfall.

“Then know thou-aye, know it well-that thou shalt not live through many more courses of the sun's swift chariot, ere one begotten of thine own loins shall have been given by thee, a corpse for corpses; because thou hast thrust children of the sunlight to the shades, and ruthlessly lodged a living soul in the grave; but keepest in this world one who belongs to the gods infernal, a corpse unburied, unhonoured, all unhallowed” (Sophocles par. 306)

The catharsis happens after Creon hears of his son and wife committing suicide. Creon wails and begs to be put to death fast and easily because he knows it’s his decision and fault that caused all this mess.

Women in this story were described as weak, and they couldn’t do anything about laws and decisions that were be made by men. “Nay, we must remember, first, that we were born women, as who should not strive with men; next, that we are ruled of the stronger, so that we must obey in these things, and in things yet sorer” (Sophocles par.17)

Their voices were also ignored greatly by Creon and he refuses to listen to Antigone because she was a women. “While I live, no woman shall rule me” (Sophocles par.138).

From this and many quotes, it was clear that during this period of time women couldn’t give out there thoughts or they had no power and it was a male dominated society.

Sophocles. “Antigone.” The Internet Classics Archive. Trans, R.C.Jebb. 04 oct 2000. classics. Mit.edu.23 Nov. 2008.

Sophocles.”Antigone.”