Exploration notes on : Plots and Sub-Plots of "Antigone".
The play opens in semi-darkness (the sun has not yet risen). Last night the sons of Oedipus, Eteocles and Polyneices killed each other - one defending, one leading the attack on the city of Thebes. Their sisters Antigone and Ismene are discovered oustside the palace, where Antigone tells Ismene the news that only Eteocles is to be buried properly. Polyneices is to be left out on the battlefield as food for the crows and dogs. Their uncle Creon (new ruler since the death of Eteocles) has decreed that anyone caught burying him will be put to death. Antigone says she will bury him anyway - Ismene refuses to help her sister, because she feels that it's not fitting for a girl to defy authority.
Antigone goes off defiantly to bury the body; Ismene slinks back into the palace. As the sun floods the stage, the Chorus - men who were too old to fight - march in, celebrating the great victory of the Thebans against the Seven who came to capture their city. But they don't know that Eteocles, the king, and his brother Polyneices, leader of the Seven, have killed each other in a duel - and that the kingship has passed to Creon, the boys' uncle. Nor do they know of Creon's edict - that Eteocles' body is to be buried with full honours, while Polyneices is to be left out on the plain.
The Chorus, their victory song complete, notice Creon approach. We realise they are the king's counsellors, summoned to receive instructions from their new ruler. He begins to outline his philosophy of kingship. The ship of state has survived a fierce pounding. A king is like a father, and the state is like a family. He must have no favorites, and the safety of his...
More Drama
essays:
Exploration notes: Plots and Sub-Plots of "Lysistrata".
... convinces the women to return to the Akropolis by espousing a prophecy that describes their victory if they remain chaste. The male chorus tells a story of a mighty hunter known for his celibacy and misogynous behavior. Both choruses exchange insults ...
Doctor Faustus - Christopher Marlowe The Plots of Doctor Faustus This essay examines the ways in which the humorous sub-plot and the tragic main plot of Doctor Faustus interact.
... and the humorous subplot interact through Faustus and his practical jokes. This effects the play by making it more enjoyable of spectacle. Since Faustus degrades himself to spending his time tricking commoners, it enhances the play's tragic side. Before being ...
Twelfth Night: elements of comedy and irony
... but to allow for empathy. Therefore to have a comedy of complete lightheartedness there would be no balance and hence no avenue for audience interaction. Without light we would have no darkness and for this reason Shakespeare has had to incorporate ...
Exploring the plot and subplot of The Castle, Howard Barker.
... and better than the castle being build by the crusaders. Meanwhile there are several complicated relationships going on between some of our characters. First there is the marriage between Stuckly and Ann, Stuckly is clearly still in love with his wife ...
Illusion and Reality in "A Streetcar Named Desire" (Williams) Is illusion necessary to life? Discusses the role of illusion in the play.
... see her dirty or tired. Blanche believes that she is too old so she uses the darkness to shield herself. Soon, she meets a friend of Stanley's, Mitch, and eventually she starts to think that maybe he is the one ...
Antigone or Creon the protagonist in "Antigone", written by Sophocles
... gods? Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus. Oedipus, once the king of Thebes, unwittingly killed his father and married his mother. Four children, Polyneices, Etocles, Antigone, and Ismene were ... opens, Antigone is speaking with her sister, Ismene, about Creon's (present king of Thebes) decree ...
Form And Structure Of A Dolls House By Ibsen
... to the one we are condemning her for heightening dramatic irony. The fourth (shown above) is overtly bypassed and instead of denouement and reconciliation there is a confrontation and expectation. Ibsen demands both an emotional and intellectual response form the audience ...
Compare and contrast Brecht and Stanislavski's notions of acting and the role of the actor in the theatre
... , which in 1990 (thirty-four years after Brechts death) was transformed into a public corporation with an enormous city subsidy and a collective management team of well-known directors. Brechts work is based on the concept that theatre is a means ...