Sophocles believed in democracy and he thought that one person having too much power was bad for its citizens. Throughout the play we see constant clashes between Antigone and Creon. When Creon discovers someone has tried burying Polynices he is furious and he demands they find who tried to do this so they can pay with their life for disobeying him. Antigone however does not care what Ismene has to say and tells her she would rather Obey the law of the gods rather than the law men have established. In the play, Throughout there interaction in the play, Ismene tries to convince Antigone to stop from continuing with her plans. Ismene however constantly tells her sister she will not disobey the law and dishonor the king. Antigone tells Ismene what she plans and doing and she wants Ismene to help her give their brother the burial he deserves. When Antigone hears of this she goes to her sister Ismene and asks for her help. Creon had made it a law that whoever disobeyed him and would dare to give Polynices a proper burial was going to pay with their own life. Creon had ordered that his corpse will remain outside and it has been forbidden from being buried or mourned by anyone. Meanwhile, Polynices was considered a traitor and will be punished even in death. Creon, recognizes Eteocles as a loyal soldier who fought until his death for his city, therefore, he is given a proper burial with honors. Both brothers were fighting for the throne of Thebes and their deaths made their uncle king the new king. The play Antigone, starts with the a war in Thebes coming to an end after both of Antigone’s brothers, Eteocles and Polynices have murdered one another. Although, many did not agree with his political view points.Īntigone is the continuation of the storyline, Oedipus which was actually written after Antigone. Pericles is known for helping improve the democracy in Athens. Women were legally considered to be minors and therefore, women were excluded from participating in the direct democracy of Athens. A direct democracy meant citizens were able to vote on rules and laws. Athens developed the first democracy in the world and the form of government that was created by the Athenians was called a direct democracy. In the 5th century the king of Athens, was Pericles who was an influential Greek statesman, orator, and a general in Athens. Many individuals began to write Greek tragedy plays and many of these authors were influenced to write these plays based on what was going on in Athens. During the 5th century, Ancient Greece was going through the Golden Age also known as the Classical Period and during this period there was the development of art, philosophy, architecture, and theatre. Antigone is believed to have been written in 441 BC by the famous tragedy playwright author, Sophocles who lived in the city-state of Athens.
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