Antigone’s Legacy: Duty, Defiance, and Divine Will
The Aftermath of War: Antigone’s Defiance
The tragedy unfolds at dawn, the day after the war’s end. Oedipus’s two sons, Polynices, who led the Argive army against Thebes, and Eteocles, who defended the city, have killed each other in battle. Now, Oedipus’s two daughters, Antigone and Ismene, stand on stage.
Antigone implores her sister Ismene to help her bury Polynices, defying Creon’s recent mandate. Creon, the new ruler, has decreed that Polynices, as a traitor, must be left unburied as punishment. Ismene, however, claiming to have always been fearful and indecisive, refuses to help. When she promises not to reveal Antigone’s plan, Antigone insists that she not remain silent, preferring her defiance to be known.
The Chorus and Creon’s New Rule
A New Day for Thebes
The Chorus, composed of old and noble Theban elders, arrives, greeting the new day—a day of victory and, above all, peace after the horrors of war. They have been summoned by the new government but are unaware of the reason.
Creon’s Unjust Decree
Creon makes his appearance. Before announcing his first official provision, he expresses confidence that these noble Theban elders will serve him as faithfully as they did his predecessors, Laius and Oedipus. He then declares his ban on performing the sacred duty of burying Polynices, the “brother traitor.” Instead, he demands obeisance for Eteocles, who defended the city. The Chorus recognizes the gravity of this law, which directly contradicts religious laws. Yet, weighing their options, they submit to the order, convinced that no one would sacrifice their own life by violating it.
The Law is Broken: Antigone’s Act of Piety
However, the Chorus is mistaken. A soldier, tasked with monitoring Polynices’ corpse, arrives to announce that someone has contravened the law and performed funeral rites in his honor.
Antigone’s Arrest and Ismene’s False Confession
Later, the guards bring in Antigone. She is the one who violated Creon’s decree, remaining faithful to the sacred duty of the dead. Creon questions her, asking if she covered Polynices’ body. Antigone boldly affirms, “Yes, it was I, and no one else.” Creon, disbelieving, suspects Ismene’s involvement, noting her distress. He orders Ismene to be brought before him. Ismene, having had a change of heart, falsely confesses to her uncle Creon that she aided Antigone, despite not having participated in the act.
Haemon’s Plea and Creon’s Unyielding Judgment
After sending both sisters to a cell, Haemon, Creon’s son and Antigone’s fiancé, arrives. Creon’s intransigence now borders on blindness; he fails to perceive that his condemnation of Antigone also deeply affects Haemon. The Chorus points out that this could impact the future of the kingdom through his heir, warning of the inflexible deaths that Creon’s order might cause. But nothing sways the ruler’s opinion. He decides to release Ismene, while Antigone is to be sealed alive in a cave with a small amount of food, “so that her death may not splash the city” with direct guilt.
Antigone’s Final Lament
Antigone’s entry, on her deadly path to destiny, reveals a changed woman. She has lost her initial pride and security. Rebuked by Creon and abandoned by everyone, including the Chorus, her farewell monologue is not a song of triumph but of profound sadness, nostalgia, and desolation. She relinquishes a duty she bore in solitude, no longer driven by the pride of victory.
Tiresias’ Prophecy and Creon’s Regret
The arrival of the blind prophet, old Tiresias, announcing dark forebodings, fills Creon with concern. At first, Creon refuses to accept his mistake, but his certainty crumbles. Frightened, he attempts to prevent the full execution of Antigone’s sentence.
Tragic Consequences: Death of Haemon and Eurydice
However, it is too late. When Creon reaches the cave, he finds Antigone has hanged herself. Clinging to her waist is his son, Haemon, who, in despair, charges his sword against his father but then turns it upon himself, plunging it into his own chest and dying. Returning to his palace with his dead son, Creon discovers that his wife, Eurydice, unable to bear Haemon’s death, has also taken her own life.
Creon’s Realization and the Power of Divine Law
This is the tragic burden that remains for Creon. For punishing his niece, Antigone, for burying Polynices—who died in battle against his native city, Thebes, of which Creon is now the main representative—he loses his son and heir, Haemon, and his wife, Eurydice. Many lives had to be sacrificed before, inevitably, Creon realized his grave error: that a person, no matter how much political power they wield, is always subservient to the gods and the laws written by them.