Question: Please reread the following passages.

Translate them into your

own words and explain what you think Sophocles is trying to tell us. Also
explain what you think about the character's comments.

1) Chorus lines 377-416, pages 76-77

Chorus:

Numerous miracles and terrible things exist, however neither is more

amazing or dangerous than the human species.
This species guides the silver sea during winter strong winds while being
covered by tall waves. The most mighty of the gods, he begins to move the
lifeless, never-ending back to the land while on earth by turning the mower
constantly and riding the horses from year to year.
He captures birds and transports them in troops. He also captures wild
animals. All of the creatures that are born to live in the ocean are
struggling in his handmade traps. He is clever, after all. He has developed
techniques to control animals that roam in mountain fields, including ways
to bring down crazy horses and tough mountain bulls and capture them.
He has taught himself how to speak, how to think quickly when making
plans, and how to have a decent life in a city. He has learned the ability to
hide in a forest and escape from poking arrows. He always moves toward
the future with the means necessary to meet every requirement.
Except for death, which he cannot escape despite his best efforts to find
a cure for a disease with no chance of success.
He crawls sometimes into evil and sometimes into doing good because of his
clever planning and skill beyond hope. His city will be proud if he respects
both the law of the country and the gods' obligation to justice. However, if
he becomes arrogant out of confidence, the city is not for him. If things
go wrong, he won't be my friend and won't ever enter my thoughts.

Question: What do you think Sophocles is trying to tell us? Also explain
 what you think about the character's comments.

Answer: I believe Sophocles is attempting to convey the idea that, despite

a man's seeming talent, he will turn evil if he disobeys the gods and rules
independently of their will. Creon, the king of Thebes, is the person whom
the chorus is mainly talking about. The Chorus then discusses the benefits
of men and the wonderful things they have accomplished on earth, such as
learning horse riding and hunting animals. The Chorus acknowledges that
men have a variety of skills, some of which are used to do good things, but
also sometimes to do wrong and make poor choices. Then the chorus begins
to discuss how, despite the fact that King Creon possesses great power
and is capable of achieving anything he sets his mind to, he is misusing that
power. He does not even fear God, and he has no regard for human rights.
He simply established laws that were in his favor and did not establish any
laws in line with the gods. The chorus also states that a man turns into a
monster when he has no regard for God and no sense of justice or fairness.
The only punishment available for him is death. The only way he will be able
to realize the value of treating others honestly is through his own death,
especially those who trusted you and wished for you to pass laws that
would benefit them. The chorus goes on to say that the city will progress
if the king, Ceon and the citizens follow the laws of the gods, but if they
disobey the gods' orders, the city would collapse and fade away. The
events that are taking place as a result of Creon's refusal to let Polynices'
proper burial, which is required by the gods, may be hinted to by this.
Creon, on the other hand, considers the city's importance to be more
essential than the gods who govern the universe. In terms of the character
comment, I believe the chorus in this situation is simply speaking for the
common people. Sometimes the voice of the common person is not normal;
it is making a strong claim that cannot be rejected. Although the Chorus
may have stated some relatively ordinary things, these are actually some
statements that have the power to transform an entire country.

2) Antigone lines 499-524, page 82

 Antigone:

Which law? I never heard it was Zeus who made that announcement.
Additionally, it wasn't justice. This law wasn't established by the gods
below for human use. And I never imagined that you, a simple human, could
violate the unbreakable unwritten laws of the gods because of your
statements. These laws weren't created yesterday or today. They remain
forever, and nobody is aware of their origin.
No man could intimidate me into speaking about the punishment that would
face me if I broke such a law. Whether God or whether you announce my
death, I will obviously die regardless. But if I pass away before I'm too
old, so much the better since those who suffer like I do are happier to be
dead. Thus, the pain would not be great if that were how my life ended.
Agony would follow if I choose to leave my mother's son's corpse unburied.
I won't experience pain this way. Yet you! Do you believe I was foolish?
That kind of thinking is foolish.

Question: What do you think Sophocles is trying to tell us? Also explain
what you think about the character's comments.

Answer: Sophocles tries to make the point that the laws of the gods are
unchangeable and not composed by humans in this particular portion.
Antigone claims in this specific passage that only the Gods have the
authority to alter the laws that they have created. These laws, according
to her, were made in the past and will last forever even if they are not
currently recorded. Creon does not have the authority, according to her, to
break the laws of the gods or to elevate his own law above those of the
gods. Antigone knew she had to die, whether Creon announced it or God did
it, but she wanted to leave everyone feeling good about what she had
accomplished before she passed away. She says it isn't worth it at all to
follow the rules Creon has established for everyone. Since everyone
eventually will experience pain, it would be preferable for her to pass away
rather than share their pain. In response to the character comment, I
believe Antigone is a courageous young woman. She is not afraid to stand
up for what is right and wrong. Although I truly wouldn't describe her as
religious, I believe that she also pays the gods the necessary respect. She
didn't think twice to inform the king that whatever he was doing was
unacceptable. For this, people have to suffer now and in the future.
Additionally, she forewarned him that no one possesses the authority to
alter the laws of the gods, and that everyone should stick by them rather
than changing them.

3) Creon 529-554, page 83

Creon:

Remember that the hardest mind slips first; the strongest iron, tempered
and fired until it is extremely powerful, breaks easily and smashes into
pieces. And a little ring may undoubtedly calm the savagest horse. Pride
has no place in a slave's life when the Masters are there. When she
disobeyed the law, this girl was already a perfect expert in arrogance. And
now, she adds insult to the wound by talking and hinting about what she has
accomplished! Listen, I'm not a guy if I don't punish her for getting the
upper hand.
She and her sister must pay the whole price and die for their crime,
regardless of whether they are my sister's child or even closer at my
family's Zeus temple. Yes, I do believe they have equal responsibility for
planning this burial together. Take her outside. She was absolutely insane
when I last saw her there; she was screaming mad. Before the crimes a
thief committed in the shadows are exposed, it's often his behavior that
exposes him.

Question: What do you think Sophocles is trying to tell us? Also explain
what you think about the character's comments.

Answer: Sophocles is attempting to convey Creon's viewpoint in this piece,

which is that he must decide what to do with Antigone and her sister since,
in Creon's opinion, they both contributed to the crime. How angry or
irritable Antigone is at the moment is irrelevant, he argues. The truth is
that when fire is applied, even iron will eventually push itself to bend. As a
result of her prior offenses, he claims that she now requires punishment.
In the end, Creon makes the comparison between Antigone and slaves in
order to emphasize the fact that a slave has no authority and is helpless
when serving a master. Afterward, he brought up Ismene, adding that she
is also a criminal and will be punished. Ismene, according to him, also
contributed to the crime because of the way she presented herself and
behaved. When it comes to the character comment, I believe Creon is
simply acting like a terrible monarch and someone no one would regard to
be their leader. He is indifferent to everyone and simply enjoys accusing
them. Whatever he wants to say or do, he does. He doesn't look deeply
into the issue and tries to find a solution.