Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “Antigone (The Theban Plays, #3)” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

Read Book* *Different edition

Antigone

(The Theban Plays #3)

Sophocles,

J.E. Thomas (Translator)

3.66 · Rating details · 103,411 ratings · 2,767 reviews

The curse placed on Oedipus lingers and haunts a younger generation in this new and brilliant translation of Sophocles' classic drama. The daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Antigone is an unconventional heroine who pits her beliefs against the King of Thebes in a bloody test of wills that leaves few unharmed. Emotions fly as she challenges the king for the right to bury her ...more

Get A Copy

Paperback, 80 pages

Published December 1st 2005 by Ingram (first published -441)

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Antigone, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Books That Everyone Should Read At Least Once

22,381 books — 98,345 voters

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Greek Mythology

463 books — 487 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.66 ·

Rating details

· 103,411 ratings · 2,767 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of Antigone (The Theban Plays, #3)

Feb 22, 2009 Peggy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: classics, tragedy

Suck on that, Creon. They named the play after her.

flag 421 likes · Like · see review

Jan 19, 2018 İntellecta rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

This drama highlights the differences between state and divine law. Especially interesting is the language. Sophocles has done very well to portray this conflict. Even after 2500 years still a worth reading, profound text.

flag 161 likes · Like · see review

Jun 11, 2016 Sean Barrs rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star-reads, classics, ancient-greece, penguin-l-b-c, plays

Antigone is a real heroine; she stands up for what she believes in. She was faced with a strong dilemma. The law of man, the word of her uncle the king, demands that her brother's body remains unburied in the open with no funeral rights, to be savaged by animals. For King Creon, this is a symbolic justice for a traitor and a rebel, but the laws of the God’s, and the ruling of Antigone’s own mind, demands that she gives him libations (death rights) that all men deserve. She buries the body and fa ...more

flag 150 likes · Like · see review

Jul 01, 2009 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: drama, plays, classics, literature, mythology, academic, 05th-century-bc, ancient

Ἀντιγόνη = Antigone, Sophocles
Antigone is a tragedy by Sophocles written in or before 441 BC. It is the third of the three Theban plays chronologically, but was the first written. The play expands on the Theban legend that predated it and picks up where Aeschylus' Seven Against Thebes ends. In the beginning of the play, two brothers leading opposite sides in Thebes' civil war died fighting each other for the throne. Creon, the new ruler of Thebes, has decided that Eteocles will be honored and Po Ἀντιγόνη = Antigone, Sophocles
Antigone is a tragedy by Sophocles written in or before 441 BC. It is the third of the three Theban plays chronologically, but was the first written. The play expands on the Theban legend that predated it and picks up where Aeschylus' Seven Against Thebes ends. In the beginning of the play, two brothers leading opposite sides in Thebes' civil war died fighting each other for the throne. Creon, the new ruler of Thebes, has decided that Eteocles will be honored and Polyneices will be in public shame. The rebel brother's body will not be sanctified by holy rites, and will lie unburied on the battlefield, prey for carrion animals like worms and vultures, the harshest punishment at the time. Antigone and Ismene are the sisters of the dead Polyneices and Eteocles. In the opening of the play, Antigone brings Ismene outside the palace gates late at night for a secret meeting: Antigone wants to bury Polyneices' body, in defiance of Creon's edict. Ismene refuses to help her, not believing that it will actually be possible to bury their brother, who is under guard, but she is unable to stop Antigone from going to bury her brother herself. Creon enters, along with the Chorus of Theban Elders. He seeks their support in the days to come, and in particular wants them to back his edict regarding the disposal of Polyneices' body. The Leader of the Chorus pledges his support out of deference to Creon. A Sentry enters, fearfully reporting that the body has been given funeral rites and a symbolic burial with a thin covering of earth, though no one saw who had actually committed the crime. Creon, furious, orders the Sentry to find the culprit or face death himself. The Sentry leaves and the Chorus sings about honouring the gods, but after a short absence he returns, bringing Antigone with him. The Sentry explains that the watchmen uncovered Polyneices' body, and then caught Antigone as she did the funeral rituals. Creon questions her after sending the Sentry away, and she does not deny what she has done. She argues unflinchingly with Creon about the morality of the edict and the morality of her actions. Creon becomes furious, and, thinking Ismene must have known of Antigone's plan, seeing her upset, summons the girl. Ismene tries to confess falsely to the crime, wishing to die alongside her sister, but Antigone will not have it. Creon orders that the two women be temporarily imprisoned. Haemon, Creon's son, enters to pledge allegiance to his father, even though he is engaged to Antigone. He initially seems willing to forsake Antigone, but when Haemon gently tries to persuade his father to spare Antigone, claiming that 'under cover of darkness the city mourns for the girl', the discussion deteriorates and the two men are soon bitterly insulting each other. When Creon threatens to execute Antigone in front of his son, Haemon leaves, vowing never to see Creon again. Creon decides to spare Ismene and to bury Antigone alive in a cave. By not killing her directly, he hopes to pay the minimal respects to the gods. She is brought out of the house, and this time, she is sorrowful instead of defiant. She expresses her regrets at not having married and dying for following the laws of the gods. She is taken away to her living tomb, with the Leader of the Chorus expressing great sorrow for what is going to happen to her. Tiresias, the blind prophet, enters. Tiresias warns Creon that Polyneices should now be urgently buried because the gods are displeased, refusing to accept any sacrifices or prayers from Thebes. Creon accuses Tiresias of being corrupt. Tiresias responds that because of Creon's mistakes, he will lose "a son of [his] own loins"[2] for the crimes of leaving Polyneices unburied and putting Antigone into the earth (he does not say that Antigone should not be condemned to death, only that it is improper to keep a living body underneath the earth). All of Greece will despise Creon, and the sacrificial offerings of Thebes will not be accepted by the gods. The Leader of the Chorus, terrified, asks Creon to take Tiresias' advice to free Antigone and bury Polyneices. Creon assents, leaving with a retinue of men. The Chorus delivers a choral ode to the god Dionysus (god of wine and of the theater; this part is the offering to their patron god). A Messenger enters to tell the Leader of the Chorus that Antigone has killed herself. Eurydice, Creon's wife and Haemon's mother, enters and asks the Messenger to tell her everything. The Messenger reports that Creon saw to the burial of Polyneices. When Creon arrives at Antigone's cave, he found Haemon lamenting over Antigone, who had hanged herself. After unsuccessfully attempting to stab Creon, Haemon stabs himself. Having listened to the Messenger's account, Eurydice disappears into the palace. Creon enters, carrying Haemon's body. He understands that his own actions have caused these events and blames himself. A Second Messenger arrives to tell Creon and the Chorus that Eurydice has killed herself. With her last breath, she cursed her husband. Creon blames himself for everything that has happened, and, a broken man, he asks his servants to help him inside. The order he valued so much has been protected, and he is still the king, but he has acted against the gods and lost his children and his wife as a result. After Creon condemns himself, the Leader of the Chorus closes by saying that although the gods punish the proud, punishment brings wisdom.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: در ماه آگوست سال 2004 میلادی
عنوان: آنتیگونه (آنتیگون)؛ اثر: سوفکلس؛ ترجمه: نجف دریابندری؛ مشخصات نشر: تهران، آگه، 1391، در 148 ص، شابک: 9789643292775؛ موضوع: نمایشنامه های یونانی از سال 496 تا 406 پیش از میلاد؛
این کتاب در سالهای مختلف توسط ناشرین و مترجمهای دیگر نیز منتشر شده است
آنتیگون، در اسطوره های یونانی، دختر «ادیپ (شاه تبس)»، و «یوکاسته (مادر و همسر همان شاه تبس)» است. برادرانش: «پولونیکوس»، و «اتئوکلس»، در جنگ همدیگر را میکشند. «کرئون» دائی «آنتیگون»، و آن دو برادر است، که پس از «ادیپ»، پادشاه «تبس» میشود. او تدفین «پولونیکس» را، به جرم خیانت قدغن میکند. اما «آنتیگون»، از فرمان شاه سرپیچی، و به او می‌گوید: «تنها از قلب خویش ست، که فرمان می‌برد». «آنتیگون» برادرش را، به خاک می‌سپارد، و خود به دستور «کرئون»، زنده به گور می‌رود. ... از دوستی یونانی، چند سال پیش شنیده، و هنوز سخن ایشان را فراموش نکرده ام، که: «واژه های همین تراژدی کهن را، هرگز کس نمیتواند، با همان زیبایی، که در زبان یونانی ست، به زبانهای دیگر برگرداند.»، انگار یاد حضرت حافظ شیراز ما نیز افتاده بودند. ا. شربیانی ...more

flag 142 likes · Like · see review

Aug 15, 2015 Hannah rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This was a reread for me.

The first time I read this play was in my sophomore year or high school and I remember liking it but I LOVED it this time around.

It's fabulous and now I want to read the rest of the Theban plays.

flag 113 likes · Like · see review

Aug 26, 2017 Kenny rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: scripts, classics, theatre, greek

"Your soul is blowing apart."
The chorus in Anne Carson's translation of
Sophocles ANTIGONE

I love Antigone. I think it is one of the very best of the Greek tragedies ~~ no one of the very best of all tragedies ever written.

Random thought ~~ I suspect there is a play that is part of this cycle that is missing ~~ a play that focuses on the brothers.

This review will not focus on the play itself, but on the wonderful translation by Anne Carson.

Anne Carson is a poet. She is a wordsmith in the highest ...more

flag 114 likes · Like · see review

Sep 05, 2016 James rated it really liked it

Shelves: 1-fiction, 4-written-pre-20th-century, 3-multi-book-series

Book Review
4 out of 5 stars to Antigone, the third in a trilogy of Theban plays written around 441 BC (yes, almost 2500 years ago) by Sophocles. In my junior year of high school, our Advanced Placement English teacher assigned all three Theban plays. This is a mini-review on the final one, Antigone, which was my second favorite -- Oedipus Rex was of course, my favorite. In this Greek tragedy, Antigone, Oedipus Rex's daughter, fights to have a proper burial for her brother. She is str ...more

flag 69 likes · Like · see review

May 05, 2019 David Schaafsma rated it it was amazing

Shelves: plays

Seeing a Middle School Production of Antigone in Munich: The Sophie Scholl Story and Reflecting on How to Foster Youth Resistance in Meaningful Ways: A Meditation

“I am not afraid of the danger. If it means death, it will not be the worst of deaths--death without honor”--Antigone

Antigone: We begin in the dark and birth is the death of us.
Ismene: Who said that?
Antigone: Hegel.
Ismene: Sounds more like Beckett.
Antigone: He was paraphrasing Hegel--The chorus in Anne Carson's translation of
Sophocles’ ...more

flag 69 likes · Like · see review

Jan 12, 2010 Laura rated it it was amazing

Shelves: classic

Antigone is a strong contender in the Plays That Keep You Awake at Night competition. The background of the story reads, no surprise, like a Greek tragedy: Antigone is the orphaned daughter of Jocasta and Oedipus (the mother and father/brother team from Oedipus Rex) who has now lost both her brothers as well — they killed each other fighting over who got to rule Thebes. Uncle Creon, the new king, decreed that the “traitor” brother is to go unburied. The conflict is that Antigone plans to ignore Antigone is a strong contender in the Plays That Keep You Awake at Night competition. The background of the story reads, no surprise, like a Greek tragedy: Antigone is the orphaned daughter of Jocasta and Oedipus (the mother and father/brother team from Oedipus Rex) who has now lost both her brothers as well — they killed each other fighting over who got to rule Thebes. Uncle Creon, the new king, decreed that the “traitor” brother is to go unburied. The conflict is that Antigone plans to ignore Creon’s decree and bury her brother anyway, while Creon says if she does, he’ll have her killed.

While the conflict seems simple enough, it involves two competing arenas, political and religious. Politically, Antigone represents the aristos, the old ruling families, who aren’t as loyal to law as they are to their own families, and Creon represents the demos, or the voting masses, whose primary focus is the interest of the state and the rule of law. In the religious arena, Antigone wants to honor the gods’ laws by burying her brother, while Creon ignores the gods’ laws in favor of his own decrees. So who’s right? What is the balance of power between individuals and the state? The laws of man and the laws of gods? Governing with firmness and listening with reason?

The good news is that Sophocles gives each character a leg to stand on, but only one. Antigone is right to honor the gods’ laws but wrong to disobey the king’s decree, and Creon is wrong to disregard the gods’ laws but right to expect the laws of the land to supplant individual wishes. I’m guessing Sophocles would argue that the play’s success comes from the tension between these ideas as played out by two flawed characters. On the one hand, Antigone is a strident vigilante who doesn’t care that she’s breaking the law. And on the other hand, Creon is an insecure blowhard who doesn’t care that he’s breaking custom and the will of the gods by leaving his nephew’s corpse to be eaten by birds. Neither character is easy to side with, but each has a point.

However, the bad news is that Sophocles clearly sides with Creon — through the airtime he gives Creon (far more than he gives Antigone), through the chorus’s support (who are supposed to state the opinion of the audience), and through the plot itself, which gives Creon the realization of his mistakes and the cathartic “Woe is me” ending. Creon, not Antigone, follows the tragic hero trajectory. Antigone’s real tragedy is simply that she’s a member of a spectacularly dysfunctional family. While the plot vindicates Antigone’s position, Sophocles undermines her character at every turn, and for some reason this drives me bonkers. Obviously nobody would read Pride and Prejudice and **SPOILER ALERT** say, “Poor Wickham got short shrift! Jane Austen was clearly in the bag for Darcy. How unfair!” because those characters exist only as the author created them. Wickham is a scoundrel because Jane Austen created a scoundrel. However, the characters in this play existed before Sophocles and therefore outside Sophocles, so I don’t think I’m a lunatic for being irritated that Sophocles was manipulative in his treatment of them. In his real-life zeal to promote the interest of the polis, Sophocles weakens Antigone’s position by characterizing her as imbalanced and unnatural, which makes the didactic focus of the story political. That was his point, and in keeping with Greek tragedy of the 5th century BC, but it still irks me.
...more

flag 39 likes · Like · see review

May 06, 2012 David Sarkies rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Lovers of Greek Tragedy

Recommended to David by: David Hester

Shelves: tragedy

The family or the state
6 May 2012

This is probably the closest of all of the Greek tragedies to a Shakespearian tragedy. This is due to the end of the play having a huge bodycount and the action of the play is driven by one person's fatal flaw (not that I actually believe in the fatal flaw argument, but that is beside the point). However it is not Antigone who has the fatal flaw in this play but rather Creon, the king of Thebes. Unfortunately we cannot really look to Oedipus at Colonus to see th The family or the state
6 May 2012

This is probably the closest of all of the Greek tragedies to a Shakespearian tragedy. This is due to the end of the play having a huge bodycount and the action of the play is driven by one person's fatal flaw (not that I actually believe in the fatal flaw argument, but that is beside the point). However it is not Antigone who has the fatal flaw in this play but rather Creon, the king of Thebes. Unfortunately we cannot really look to Oedipus at Colonus to see the beginning of Creon's downfall because this play is not the final part of a trilogy, at least in the Aeschylan sense of a trilogy, though it is noticeable that when the copyists chose seven plays of Sophocles to preserve for posterity three of the Theban plays were kept which in a sense formed a trilogy, and in this trilogy we see Creon go from being a loyal servant of Oedipus to a ruthless tyrant that believes that he is the state and that his words are not to be disobeyed.

First I will discuss the term Harmatia, which is Aristotelian in origin, at least from his text on drama (The Poetics). I shall also look at the action of the play and finish off by discussing the main theme, which is the struggle between loyalty to one's family and loyalty to one's state. Well, no, I will finish off by looking at Creon's character, and how his actions bring about such a sticky end.

The concept of Harmatia is regularly found in the Bible where it has been translated into our word sin. Now, as I think about the concept of Harmatia I am somewhat torn between suggesting that Harmatia and sin are two different ideas, or that our modern understanding of sin does not exactly weigh with how the modern church translates and preaches it. The modern church preaches sin as being rebellion against God (of which we are all guilty), and then goes on to bombard us with what constitutes sin. However, to the Greeks, or at least to Aristotle, Harmatia is a fatal character flaw. Now that concept does not alienate sin because sin, in an of itself, is a fatal character flaw that we have inherited from Adam and Eve. This fatal character flaw of ours is our desire to live independently, and we see this more and more as we meet with people and associate with them. I also see it rampant throughout the church as people try to push God into a box and tell him what sin is rather than letting him demonstrate sin to them.

I say this because the list of sins seems to get longer and longer and we, as humans and those of us who call ourselves Christian, seem to think that sin is made up of our actions as opposed to our desire to rule ourselves. I guess the best explanation is that our actions, especially our selfish actions, are merely a symptom of this character flaw of ours. The Bible is correct when it says that the wages of sin is death, because as we see, especially in Antigone, that Creon's Harmatia leaves him desolate and alone, and as he says from his own lips, it is as if he were dead. Now, the Greek concept of death, the absence of life, and the removal of ourselves from this world, is somewhat different to the Biblical concept of death. In fact our modern understanding of death is more in line with the Grecian view. However the biblical view is that death is more to do with the break down of our relationships, particularly our relationship with God, than it is with the absence of life. To the Bible life is defined by relationships, and when we drive our relationships apart we are little more than dead. In fact it has been suggested that higher suicide rates occur among truly lonely people than it does among people who are surrounded by friends. That, though, is only speculation. However, consider this: even when we are surrounded by friends we can still be alone, especially if these so called friends of ours only seek us out for company and, in their self centred view of the world, seek to only have us by their side to make them feel good and important than really doing anything that is remotely friendly.

Now, the play itself is set after the Theban war, where Etocles and Polyneices killed each other after Polyneices attacked Thebes with his army to remove his brother and set himself up as king. Creon, by default, becomes king and his first order of business is to give Etocles a state funeral while leaving the body of Polyneices exposed. To be exposed was the worst thing that you could do to a corpse in the Ancient Greek world. A proper burial meant that you would at least have a half decent afterlife, while being exposed suggests that you would be left wondering the earth as a ghost, and a tormented one at that. Antigone, the sister of Polyneices, is horrified at this and seeks to bury him, much to Creon's displeasure, so he orders her executed. However the play is not as simple as that because Creon's son is in love with Antigone, and when he finds her dead, he kills himself, and in a fit of grief over the death of her son, Creon's wife also kills herself.

Now one of the main themes that comes out of this play is the struggle between one's loyalty to the state and one's loyalty to one's family and the dilemma that one will face when the state passes a law of which you do not approve. The question that is raised is: do you dishonour the state by breaking the law and honouring your family, or do you dishonour your family by upholding the law even when the law is unjust. In a way, there was nothing wrong with Creon's law, since Polyneices was a traitor, and treachery is seen as one of the worst crimes to commit (even today, though the definition of treason has become very ambiguous in the globalised, interconnected world). However, he was still family, and not only that, Etocles' ascension to the throne was dubious at best. The entire war was not so much about a deposed monarch seeking reinstatement, but rather a family quarrel between two brothers.

We still face these dilemmas today, though not to the same extent. The question of whether the drug laws are just is one of them (and I do believe that they are, even though they can be considered to be an outworking of the Nanny State). While it is true that people should be left to make their own decisions, we demonstrate time and time again that we are actually not capable of doing so, therefore the state actually does need to step in to protect us from ourselves. Then there is the war that the state embarks on that many members of the state disapprove of, and as a loyal soldier to the state, do you obey the state by embarking on a quasi-legal adventure, or do you uphold your morals by refusing, and face punishment or even gaol.

Creon mentions a number of times that he, as the king, is the state, and thus his laws are to be obeyed. However, ironically enough, the Chorus objects to this. Now the Chorus does play an important role in Greek tragedy, and usually represents what the Greeks call the 'Oklos', or the crowd. Crowd is actually a rather bad translation as my understanding of the Oklos is that it is a crowd that acts as a single entity and has a single mindset. Now, this is not always the case in Greek tragedy as at times the Chorus will split and then argue with itself, in a way representing division amongst the people. It is a shame that we do not actually see Choruses in plays any more (or not playing a major role as they did in Greek drama).

Now Creon, having become king, has pretty much become corrupted by power. Yet I am not entirely convinced that it is corruption at such an early stage of his reign. In a way, he is the new king, and he wants to stamp his authority on the city, or, as the Greeks called it, the Polis (I won't go into details of the meaning of this word as I have already spent too much time translating Oklos). For him to be disobeyed will suggest that he does not actually have the character to be a king. A king that is not obeyed and not respected is not actually a king because he has no authority. As such Creon wants to make sure that his authority sticks so when this law is broken he is forced to act. However, he is not caught in a dilemma deciding whether it is right to punish Antigone or not - he has already made up his mind, set the path that he wants to travel, and travels down it. However, it ends very, very badly for him, and this is emphasised at the conclusion when the prophet Tiresieus arrives and passes on the message from the gods. He has acted against the proper way and is now to be punished and there is no way to escape from it.

I recently watch a production of this play and have written blog post on some of the ideas that came out of this production. ...more

flag 33 likes · Like · see review

Jul 05, 2014 Jennifer (Insert Lit Pun) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: western-canon-starter-kit

Wait, no, THIS is my favorite of the Oedipus cycle. My love is fickle. How did I not remember how good this was? The extended speeches are just as incredible as those in the other two plays, but what Antigone has over them is lightning-quick back-and-forth arguments that made my heart pound just from how good they were. I’d also forgotten how interesting the character of Antigone is (she milks that walk to her death for everything it’s worth), and how much Sophocles plays with gender stereotypes ...more

flag 30 likes · Like · see review

Jun 11, 2019 Sara rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, fiction, plays-poetry, mythology

I really enjoyed this. It’s easy to read (minus a few of the long chorus paragraphs), and Antigone is the heroine of Greek tragedies I never knew I needed. She’s got a backbone, a level of principles high above those around her, and she’s not afraid of anyone. Least of all King Creon. Honestly, she’s so ahead of her time, I did not expect the high levels of sass I got while reading this, and it’s surprisingly funny in places too. The overall short length stopped this getting too ‘bogged down’ to ...more

flag 29 likes · Like · see review

Sep 10, 2014 Jonfaith rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: the_plays_the_thing

Owen Bennett Jones recently wrote on the Islamic State in the LRB. "Every time a Jihadi movement has won power it has lost popularity by failing to give the people what they want: peace, security and jobs." When I read that I thought about poor King Creon. I have always felt disturbed by the vice of fate in this play which steadily traps and crushes. It was Creon's hubris which caught my attention this time. Doesn't he have a mandate? I imagine him simply incredulous. Why this dissent? Subsequen ...more

flag 26 likes · Like · see review

Sep 16, 2017 Trish rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, greece, horror, theatre, family, fiction, literature, mythology, parenting, one-for-the-ages

I am not well-schooled in tragedies--the Greek tragedies, that is--but when I learned that one of the books I intended to read for the Man Booker award this year was based on the story of Antigone, I thought now was a good time to have a look.

This is the first I have encountered of the play, I loved it. It is filled with terrific emotion and common responses to tragedy, as well as wisdom unbound. The personalities are strong and salty...and act on their promises.

Those of you who know the story w ...more

flag 27 likes · Like · see review

Sep 27, 2014 Liz Janet rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites

“All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride.”

I have always found this play, and any of Sophocles’ tragedies, as comedies. Apparently I have a very bad sense of humour. But there is nothing more hilarious in literature than poetic justice. It is not as funny as Oedipus Rex, but it is quite funny still, since Antigone sticks it up to Creon. Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, and she has also now lost h ...more

flag 23 likes · Like · see review

Aug 11, 2017 Paul Fulcher rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2017

I read this in preparation for reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie from this year's Man Booker longlist.

And I read in a different translation to the edition shown here, one sticking more literally to the original Greek, including not translating terms where it felt there was no satisfactory equivalent. This was important in clarifying some of the key themes, but rather puts the onus of interpretation back on the reader (and this reader is no expert in ancient Greek philosophy).

A number of things ...more

flag 18 likes · Like · see review

May 11, 2009 Cassandra Kay Silva rated it it was amazing

Shelves: theatre, books-of-antiquity

This was of course some of the most fluid and beautiful writing I have come across in a long time. I have wanted to read this play for years and finally ran across a copy of it. The words were an absolute song and the bits by the choir thrown in were terribly fun to act out in your mind. I would love to see this on stage. I am not sure if the plot was exactly my favorite but the words alone were enough to rock me into a happy lull of entertainment and contentment.

flag 17 likes · Like · see review

Jun 27, 2015 Joey Woolfardis rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015, masculine, bookshelf, champion, translated, greek, bce5

There's barely anything in the world as hilarious and amusing as a Greek tragedy. Oedipus is, in many ways, the daddy, but daughter Antigone holds her own as well. So much to think on, so much to learn, so much to laugh at. Those silly incestuous Greeks.

Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest | Shop | Etsy ...more

flag 15 likes · Like · see review

Jul 22, 2015 Viji (Bookish endeavors) rated it really liked it

Shelves: classics, close-to-heart, plays, sophocles

What a work it was.!! The copy I have is by Penguin Little Black Classics series,and I was delaying reading it since the print was tiny and set in a style I didn't like. But now I realize what a stupid I was to have delayed reading such a piece of beauty...

Moralizing isn't everyone's forte. Too many have written such a lot of works on the topic that the moment one starts reading something on it,the natural reaction is 'not again.!' This book is a bit different in that genre. It moralizes,it tal What a work it was.!! The copy I have is by Penguin Little Black Classics series,and I was delaying reading it since the print was tiny and set in a style I didn't like. But now I realize what a stupid I was to have delayed reading such a piece of beauty...

Moralizing isn't everyone's forte. Too many have written such a lot of works on the topic that the moment one starts reading something on it,the natural reaction is 'not again.!' This book is a bit different in that genre. It moralizes,it talks of morals of men and God.. It goes on to lengthy arguments,though not much in terms of rationality,on many occasions.. Antigone and Creone and Haemon and Tiresias puts up their own arguments. But nowhere do feel a sense of boredom. Sophocles has given strength to each character,no matter which part he argues. Each one of them talks as if there is fire in their words,a fire that can't be quenched by the other person's arguments.

'It's a dreadful thing to yield..
But resist now?
Lay my pride bare to the blows of ruin?
That's dreadful too.'

The fear described in these words,the fear of knowing the right but refusing to go back on one's actions because of pride,it's a folly we all are guilty of. Pride is a sin,but it is the most humane of feelings. It is impossible not to feel it,if for nothing then for one's lack of it. We all hold on to our words and actions like its a part of us. We would rather die than take back our words. We say-a man is only as good as his words. And this King is no less human in that... But see where that pride takes him..

In the beginning,Creon tells Ismene,
'Don't even mention her-she no longer exists.'

And in the end,he tells his attendants,
'I don't even exist-I'm no one. Nothing.'

But we don't have to be bothered of all these,do we.? Pride is something we can't avoid.. I'm proud of my books and so are you of other things.. But let aside moralizing.. The book is a masterpiece...

When injustice is the law..

I might sound stupid for bringing Che into such a regal and archaic setting,but I guess I'm not. The dilemma portrayed here,the choice between the law of the land and the moral laws one hold within,is something that every human faces. To bend or to resist is the question. And Antigone makes her choice courageously. She refuses to submit to the law of the land which she calls injustice,and decides to court death for a law she holds to heart,the law of God. The classic dilemma between law of customs and law of intuition. But it would be somewhat gray to call it law of intuition since there is no pure law of intuition,all our ideas are colored by our genes and circumstances. Antigone's act of defiance is inspiring. And that is what makes this work so fiery.

A read that was thoroughly entertaining. ...more

flag 14 likes · Like · see review

Feb 23, 2016 Mel Bossa rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 0011-theatre, 0012-to-buy, 0004-greek-myth-related

Well, this resonated deeply with me. Especially the relationship between Antigone and her flighty and untrustworthy sister Ismene. Man, that part when Ismene now suddenly wants to stand at her sister's side after the King Creon has sentenced Antigone to be immured, really pissed me off and brought up all kinds of feelings of injustice and indignation. As with Electra, Antigone is a woman alone facing the self-righteousness of an elder king unwilling to lose face or learn anything new he hasn't s Well, this resonated deeply with me. Especially the relationship between Antigone and her flighty and untrustworthy sister Ismene. Man, that part when Ismene now suddenly wants to stand at her sister's side after the King Creon has sentenced Antigone to be immured, really pissed me off and brought up all kinds of feelings of injustice and indignation. As with Electra, Antigone is a woman alone facing the self-righteousness of an elder king unwilling to lose face or learn anything new he hasn't sought out himself. Sophocles's play was meant to be an examination of the budding democracy rising against the old tyranny, and again, he chose a woman to embody that "bud". And what better way to destroy the idea of freedom than to brick it up and starve it?

A brief summary of the play for those who aren't familiar with the story. Antigone is Œdipe's and Jocaste's daughter and those two were mother and son, remember? After Œdipe found out that he hadn't escaped the oracle of his birth and in total ignorance had killed his father and married his own mother, he stuck needles in his eyes and Jocaste hung herself. Antigone, Ismene and their two brothers Polynice and Étéocle are taken in by their uncle Creon who has now become king after Étéocle's death. Antigone's story begins after her brother's deaths. The two men offed each other over Polynice taking the "enemy Argos" side after he was exiled by his brother who refused to share the throne with him. Okay, so they killed each other and now Antigone is betrothed to Hemon, son of Creon. But there's one little thing keeping her from finding peace in her already fucked up life: Creon has decided that Étéocle would get a Greek burial, but Polynice's body would be left out to rot and be eaten by the vultures.

Antigone knows that Hades will not accept her brother in the world of the dead if he isn't properly cared for before leaving the world of the living. She decides to disobey the king and in the night, begins the burial of her brother. Ismene bitches and moans and tells Antigone she's crazy for taking such a risk, but Antigone will not back down on this. She's striving for the realm of greater ideas and understands that while the laws of men come and go, what right is right no matter what the patriarchy dictates. Anyhoo, needless to say she sends Creon in a state of self-important rage and he proceeds to monologue himself into a corner and has to make do on his threats to have her immured and starved.

Then everybody he loves takes the high road and dies with her and Creon is left with nothing but his throne.

It's a Greek tragedy, yes, but in real life, Creon often gets what he wants and the Antigones of the world are still screaming behind high walls.

...more

flag 13 likes · Like · see review

Feb 14, 2012 Jenny rated it really liked it

I'm sticking with my original rating on this one. I enjoyed reading it again. Unfortunately, my students didn't seem to connect to it. The translation I remember reading as a student was much better--the one in our anthology is very complex and takes away from the simplicity of the Greek language. The ideas become lost in "thees" and "thous." I don't know why the translator felt the need to mimic Shakespeare. However, my students wrote very interesting and (some) nuanced responses to my question I'm sticking with my original rating on this one. I enjoyed reading it again. Unfortunately, my students didn't seem to connect to it. The translation I remember reading as a student was much better--the one in our anthology is very complex and takes away from the simplicity of the Greek language. The ideas become lost in "thees" and "thous." I don't know why the translator felt the need to mimic Shakespeare. However, my students wrote very interesting and (some) nuanced responses to my questions about Anitgone, Ismene, Creon, and Haemon. Maybe they're getting more out of it than they think or want to :)
My appreciation for this play lies in an interest in Ancient Greek literature and culture but also in the play's language and ideas. I love the conflict between Antigone and Creon, the conflict of "heaven's laws" versus the state. Being a woman of faith myself, I can appreciate Antigone's desire to bury her brother according to the gods' rituals even though it means disobeying her uncle, King Creon, who imposes the law that anyone who buries Polyneices will die. Antigone chooses a noble and honorable death doing something she believes in over life in subservience to a king that she can't fully respect. I also appreciate the topics of fate and wisdom--the end theme as I understand it is that only by wisdom (acceptance, in this case) can we be comfortable with Fate, who does what she wants without regard to person. If we constantly fight against Fate, against the gods, we will always struggle. If we accept their ways and allow what happens to happen, we are wise and will find happiness and peace. It's an interesting concept to convey through this "ill-starred" family (Antigone is, of course, the famed Oedipus' daughter, which means that her mother is also her grandmother, and that all her siblings are also her cousins; my students liked this part...).
I highly recommend this play, but it makes the most sense in context, so read Oedipus Rex first and Oedipus at Colonus next, if you can, before you read this one. ...more

flag 14 likes · Like · see review

Sep 07, 2019 Sue K H rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 1-classics-grp-read

"Please, be different this once.
Believe in what someone else says for once.
Whenever a man supposes that he alone
has intelligence or expression or feelings,
he exposes himself and shows his emptiness.
But it's no shame even for a wise man
to learn and to relent."

Hear hear! These are the words of Haimon after his father sentenced his fiance to death for defying an order on moral/religious grounds. I absolutely loved this play. It's still a common problem in our society, where people (not only those ...more

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

Aug 11, 2017 Neil rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017

I read this in preparation for reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie which is one of the books on this year's Man Booker longlist.

I've come out of it with a mental picture of Creon with blonde, wispy hair and an overactive Twitter account. And then I came across this:

https://www.uvapolitics.com/editorial....

In this article, we read the following quote:

But how can a person be called illegal? Is not the purpose of the law to protect persons and establish conditions in which they may flourish? Readin ...more

flag 11 likes · Like · see review

Feb 23, 2017 Amal Bedhyefi rated it it was amazing

Antigone is definitely one of my favorite heroines !
Strong , brave , daring , courageous but most importanty honest , sincere , loyal and she stands up for what she believes in.
Her situation was hopeless and tough . She had to choose between being obedient to her uncle the king's rules who demands that her brother's body remains unburied with no funeral saying that's the right thing to do for a traitor and a rebel , and choosing to honor her brother .
Eventually , she buries the body and faces t ...more

flag 11 likes · Like · see review

Oct 09, 2018 aliceinbagend rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2018, i-read-for-school, 3-stars, plays, these-books-are-really-good-btw, short

How did I not know this existed until now? Also, I love how they had strong female leads back then.

flag 11 likes · Like · see review

Oct 05, 2014 Huda Aweys rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: beauty, philosophy, politics, literature, ego-lower, classics

My review in English first then in Arabic-ريفيو بالانجليزي في البداية يليها ريفيو بالعربي
Antigone, Oedipus's girl of his mother! Thebes's girl .. legend's girl .. complexities's girl ..
who inherited the legacy of all those, cumbersome legacy .. make she reject .. make she impetus to die, in order to complete the legend, and for.. the rift in Thebes extends and expands and grows ..
Antigone Oedipus's girl, who inherited his pride and stubbornness and as, his walked to Destiny (as he and she were ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Sep 08, 2012 Alan rated it really liked it

The immortality of Antigone is ensured because of the agelessness of it's themes. Antigone struggles to bring to light that the law is not necessarily right. Creon struggles to enforce his rule and make sure that all live lawfully.
These characters are mirrors of ourselves in a long-lost time when ancient people had the same problems as modern men and women. Are you a good and just person if you are a law-abiding one? Can there be a moral landscape outside of the law? Could the law be wrong? Ant ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Mar 20, 2020 Amy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: plays, greeks-and-romans

Who needs Romeo and Juliet? Give me Haemon and Antigone any day for the dramatic and unnecessary deaths of romantic youths!

In all seriousness, I thoroughly enjoyed this play and was reminded of what skill the Greek playwrights had that however many years later, I was still left chuckling and slightly heartbroken by the end.

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Oct 05, 2018 Lea rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, plays, read-in-english, ancient-greece

I remember hating Antigone when I had to read it in High School, so I was surprised that it wasn't too bad actually.

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Jan 07, 2017 Paula W rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This short play was highly recommended to me by a friend when she found out that I was reading classics. I nominated this for a group read several times, but it never won in the voting. I am so glad that I decided to go ahead and read it.

In direct opposition to religious doctrine, King Creon declares that no one can bury the body of the slain traitor Polyneices. It just has to lie out there and be eaten by dogs and birds in front of the entire city. But Antigone, Polyneices's sister, is having ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Catching up on Cl...: Antigone - Sep 2019 - No spoilers	18	67	Aug 28, 2019 06:08AM
Goodreads Librari...: Cover request for Sophocles I	2	16	Jan 28, 2018 07:26AM
Around the Year i...: Antigone, by Sophocles	3	21	Feb 22, 2017 08:21AM
Brain Pain: Discussion Four - Antigone by Sophocles	6	29	Feb 27, 2016 02:26PM
Goodreads Librari...: Combining Editions of Sophocles' Antigone	2	17	Aug 02, 2014 03:25AM
Antigone analysis, themes, trivia, audio, video	3	120	Feb 25, 2014 09:19PM

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Genres

Classics

3,847 users

Plays

2,710 users

Drama

897 users

Fiction

752 users

Academic > School

722 users

Academic > Read For School

373 users

Fantasy > Mythology

341 users

Plays > Theatre

324 users

Literature

225 users

Young Adult > High School

210 users

See top shelves…

About Sophocles

Sophocles

1,410 followers

Sophocles (born c. 496 bc, Colonus, near Athens [Greece]—died 406, Athens), (Greek: Σοφοκλής; German editions: Sophokles, Russian: Софокл, French editions: Sophocle) was an ancient Greek tragedy playwright. Not many things are known about his life other than that he was wealthy, well educated and wrote about one hundred and twenty three plays (of which few are extant). One of his best known plays ...more