Antigone Summary

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Deborah Arredondo Fine arts survey 5th period Summary of “Antigone” Summary… A brave and proud young woman named Antigone is the product of a really messed up family. Her father, Oedipus, was the King of Thebes. He unknowingly murdered his father and married his own mother, Queen Jocasta. With his wife/mother, Oedipus had two daughter/sisters and two brother/sons. When Jocasta found out the truth of their incestuous relationship, she killed herself. Oedipus was pretty upset too. He plucked out his eyeballs. Then, he spent his remaining years wandering through Greece, being led by his loyal daughter Antigone. After Oedipus died, his two sons Eteocles and Polynices battled for control of the kingdom. Eteocles fought to defend Thebes. Polynices and his men attacked the city. Both brothers died. Creon which was Antigone's uncle became the official ruler of Thebes. Creon buried Eteocles's body with honor. But because the other brother was perceived as a traitor, Polynices's body was left to rot, however, leaving human remains unburied and exposed to the elements was an affront to the Greek Gods. So, at the play's beginning, Antigone decides to defy Creon's laws. She gives her brother a proper funeral. Her sister Ismene warns that Creon will punish any who defy the law of the city. Antigone believes that the law of the gods supersedes a king's decree. Creon doesn't see things that way. He is very angry and sentences Antigone to death. Ismene asks to be executed along with her sister. But Antigone doesn't want her by her side. She insists that she alone buried the brother, so she alone will receive punishment and possible reward from the gods. As if things weren't complicated enough, Antigone has a boyfriend: Haemon, the son of Creon. He tries to convince his father that mercy and patience are called for, but the more they debate, the more Creon's anger grows.

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