In the end, I think it is safe to say while Antigone and Lysistrata had very little truth behind them, they each tell us about the lives of Greek women and about Greek society as a whole. In the Antigone, while King Creon thought he was above the Gods and Antigone’s sister like most women would follow his rule. Antigone however, would not do such a thing, she would defy her King in order to obey the true rulers of Greece, The Gods of Olympus. Antigone would also put her family first which in Greek culture at the time was among one of the top importance’s. We then saw in Lydistrata, how one women would stop at nothing in order to put an end to the Peloponnesian war this included putting this woman into situations where a traditional Greek woman would never have partaken. …show more content…
While these two plays have many wrongs and many rights about the women of Greece, the play ultimately show that the women of Greece were shown to have both a certain wit about them and were intelligent despite most of Greek society seeing women as the lowest ranking individual during Classical
The media of the modern world and the Ancient Greek world are actually more similar than they may seem at first. Even though the time periods are centuries apart, they have many of the same elements to them. The play Antigone is about a young woman who buries her brother despite the fact that her uncle, the king, says that it is against the law to do so. The movie John Q is about a man whose son is very sick and needs a heart transplant, but they cannot afford it since they are in a recession. Antigone and John Q are similar because they include fate, they accept their consequences willingly, and they have an unyielding character.
To start, Antigone was written by Sophocles to make the people question their faith in both their religion and their government. Putting a young woman in a position in which she had to choose between staying loyal to her country and staying loyal to the gods, Sophocles showed the men of Athens in their comfortable lives that there wasn’t always a simple solution to all of life’s problems. It is important to note that it was only the men of Athens that were shown because they were the only ones that were able to see this remarkable play because of its depiction of women, specifically through Antigone. In a way, if women had been able to see this play, being
Antigone's representation of feminism broke all the Greece and her strong characteristics defy the inappropriateness of her nature. Antigone has given strong characteristics in her story and because of this she does not stand around while Creon's unjust law insults Polynices. Her boldness, bravery and, unyielding morals are all extremely important to her role in the play. Towards the story by the end, Antigone was punished for her actions; therefore, she was either going to be stoned to death or be locked in a tomb. Between those two choices she got put in a tomb and trapped there with no supplies. The person to do this to her was Creon and his response to this was, “...Take her go, go! You know your orders: take her to the vault and leave her alone there. And if she lives or dies, that’s her affair, not ours: our hands are clean.” (ii, iv, 710) She was buried for doing what was right and what she was obligated to do. She not only prefers this but her bravery, obstinacy and other traits destroy the image of the weak girl who is powerless to everything. Therefore, this is the reason why Antigone represents the epic
In Antigone and Lysistrata the tension between the polis and oikos is reflected in different ways. Antigone prioritizes oikos over polis, while Creon prioritizes polis over oikos. The men in Lysistrata favor fighting for the state over being at home while the women want their husbands with them instead of being at the war. We find ample evidence of different conflicts and similarities in both plays, but the male's prioritizing polis over oikos and the female's prioritizing oikos over polis causes the central tension in Antigone and Lysistrata.
Both Creon of Sophocles’ Antigone and Achilles of Homer’s The Iliad end up allowing the body of their enemy a proper burial. During the time following the death of Hector, Achilles is in a position very similar to that which Creon deals with in Antigone. Both men show similar flaws, and face similar struggles. The difference between the two men is only subtly discernible until the telling moment when each man is faced with pressure to change his stance on the fate of the fallen warrior. Each man’s initial reaction is quite telling of his character, and the motives behind each man’s decision (although the motives are debatable) also help to expose his true nature. In the end, there seems to be a quality within each man which lies above
Gender and its roles are exposed in the story of Antigone as the central themes. Roles and rules are set and followed by several people in this era, this is appreciated in this text. Ideas of contradiction to these rules were not explored. In Greek mythology, several women held positions of power, but none of these women were human, making the idea of a powerful woman godlike and unattainable, as if to keep woman in their place, which of course, was always under the rule of the superior gender, the male. To challenge a patriarchy with feminism was dangerous, for both sexes were equally protective of it, leaving the challenger desolate in the battle against it. To rely on women to help other women rebel against this social norm was not probable, in the contrary, women held each other accountable for complying to these rules and punished those who didn’t. Women were their gender’s prevalent critics and suppressors, not only because they feared the repercussions, but since they didn’t have the means to rebel against it.
wife, and his will to live, but is doomed to live on in his pain. Antigone
The poetic tone of Aristophanes' Lysistrata differs greatly from the poetic tone of the Greek tragedies we have read in class. However, after analyzing this Greek comedy, it seems to share some of the main characteristics of Euripides' Medea. Within these plays, we meet shrewd, powerful masculine women who use the art of manipulation to get what they want from others and to accomplish their goals. This theme of manipulation is employed through various means and techniques. The women of these plays also seem to contradict the stereotypical woman and have characteristics similar to the Homeric Greek warrior.
The Greek plays Antigone and Medea both feature a female protagonist who confronts dire circumstances, and, in order to escape them, must resort to an extreme course of action to save herself. In the case of Antigone, the cause of her troubles is a royal edict issued by her uncle, King Creon, which prohibits the people of Thebes from administering her fallen brother, Polyneices, a proper Greek burial: “whoso disobeys in any way, his doom is death by stoning before all of the people.”(pg.92) As such, Antigone’s crusade for justice revolves around her defiance of Creon’s authority, as she does go on to violate the edict, and the consequences that befall on Thebes because of this. Similarly, Medea’s conflict, though inspired primarily by the actions of her
The role of women in ancient greece was very straightforward and limited, but would be considered deplorable by today's standards. There were three places for women in society: housewives whose only purpose is to obey the male figures and raise children, a slave, and hetaria[Yousaf-Duncan]. Women were seen as property and had no rights. The character Antigone in the book Antigone by Sophocles disregards all of the standards and expectations set for them during that time period. This is considered as heinous as she disobeyed a order of the king.
Compared to the way Athenian women were presented in Lysistrata, Aristophanes sticks to the now known facts of their lifestyle fairly closely. In the play’s opening, Lysistrata, our female protagonist, calls women from not only her home of Athens, but as we all the Spartan enemy and other places to meet in and is upset at their untimely arrival. Her neighbor Calonice appears and reassures her they will come eventually, but they are simply delayed due to having to care for their husbands, household, and children. In contrast, Spartan women were educated, participated in sports, and had little to do with the upbringing of their children. In fact, they only had contact with their husbands for sexual relation purposes. When the women finally arrive, Lysistrata inquires how many of their husbands are gone away to war. Some of the women reply their husbands have been gone for months. Lampito, a beautiful Spartan girl, expresses she is unhappy because her husband comes home and no sooner grabs his shield and chargers off again. Though according to our textbook, Spartan women were free to remarry if her husband was gone away to war for too long. Thus begins the flaws in Lysistrata’s plan of how the women will force the men to claim peace.
“No woman shall seduce us. If we must lose, Let's lose to a man, at least. Is a woman stronger than we?” (Sophocles.II.3.539-540) says Creon, King of Thebes and uncle to the disobeying but brave Antigone in Antigone by Sophocles. A patriarchal society is a community in which male domination over women, Sophocles explains the journey of Antigone in getting her brother buried and yielding against the laws of Thebes in a man dominated city. Antigone portrayed in the play is loyal and stubborn, she would do anything that feels ethical and honest to her even if that disregarding the laws created by men. She responds to the standards of King Creon by going against her own blood, not believing that women should subjected to the rule that they
Medea and Antigone are very determined people who will get what they want no matter what. In the play, Antigone defies the king and buries her brother at night. She says “You may do what you like since apparently the law of gods mean nothing to you” to Ismene which clearly states that she is doing it for spiritual reasons. For if she does not, Polyneices will not be accepted into heaven. Medea allows her sons to be killed and purposely kills Creon’s daughter to spite her husband. She is driven by her desire for revenge and her heart has been poisoned by the betrayal from Jason. Love and infatuation also plays a big role in both stories. Antigone’s love for her brother caused her to bury him whereas Medea killed people because of her infatuation
In “Antigone” by Sophocles, a famous ancient Greek tragedian, the main character, Antigone, demonstrates a prohibited action in a strict, male-dominated society. Greek civilization upheld strong values and rules that were designed to enforce orderly behavior among its people. There were state laws created by the King, Creon, and divine laws created by the Gods. Divine law was superior to the king laws, and if that rule was disrupted, eternal consequences could ruin an individual. In this society, men were mighty, powerful, and in control of the kingdom. Women were traditionally treated as an underclass with no voice or power. Women were restricted from performing any masculine jobs, holding high civilization positions, and disobeying men. Although Greek civilization had strict standards for women, Antigone challenges the law through her actions in order to satisfy the Gods because it is what she thought was the right decision.
Sophocles’ Antigone is the third of the three Theban plays written, but has been considered the first; the play was written in or before 441 B.C. In Antigone, Sophocles uses women as a strong and independent figure of the society. This play is the first to display women differently in a male dominated society. He also uses this play to describe women as able to make their own decisions and capable of living without the attention of males. The play Antigone shows the personalities of three women in society: Antigone, the strong, independent one, Ismene, the weak, traditional one, and Eurydice, Creon’s wife and an older traditional woman. Each character represents a woman’s way of living and what is expected and expected of women. Each of these women display many differences, some being the fine line between good and evil and life and death. Going into depth with each female character, the reader could tell that the differences in each character is not displayed in the others. For example, Ismene’s weakness and Antigone’s strong will. Although strength can be important in the play, there is the bravery and the passion