نمايشنامه هاي انگليسي Antigone

[shirin71]

Antigone
by

Sophocles

SCENE SUMMARIES AND NOTES
Note: Since this particular play has no divisions into acts and scenes, sections have been created and are designated by line numbers. Breaks have been inserted at the points when an important character enters or exits.
Lines 1-99
The Prologos or Expository Scene
Summary
The play begins with Antigone’s words addressed to her sister, Ismene. Antigone tells Ismene that their uncle, King Creon, has decreed that Polynices, their older brother, not be given a proper burial. Eteocles, their younger brother, has been buried with great honor as a hero, but Polynices’ body has been left to rot in the open, so that carrion and dogs can feed on it. Creon has ordered that no one should mourn for Polynices, and anyone who tries to bury him will be stoned to death.
Asserting that she will not betray the memory of her dead brother, Antigone invites Ismene to join her in the dangerous task of burying Polynices. Ismene advises her against breaking Creon’s law. She reminds Antigone about the ruin that has fallen upon their family. Creon, Ismene believes, will order their deaths if they decide to bury Polynices. Ismene holds the conventional belief that being a woman, she cannot challenge Creon’s decree.

[shirin71]

Antigone does not force Ismene to help her. She decides to perform this task alone, and she thinks that it is a great honor to do so. She believes that she has a “duty towards the dead,” and she accuses Ismene of making weak excuses. She tells Ismene not to fear for her (Antigone’s) life.

When Ismene promises to keep Antigone’s plan a secret, Antigone asks her not to do so. Antigone would much rather have her deed made known to the world. She expresses her wish to die a noble death. Ismene admits that Antigone, though unwise, is unmatched in “faithful love.”

[shirin71]

Notes
In the opening scene of the tragedy, the audience is introduced to the protagonist, Antigone. She is busy planning a proper burial for her dead brother. She appears strong-willed and is determined to break Creon’s law, even on penalty of death. In contrast, Ismene lacks the will to defy Creon. She is concerned only about her own survival and Antigone’s life. She considers Antigone’s plan to bury Polynices to be “fool-hardy.” While Ismene wants to live within the bounds of the laws of the state, Antigone is willing to break them in order to do what she thinks is morally right. She believes that she owes a duty to her brother. She describes her action as a “holy crime,” emphasizing that the law of the gods must take precedence over the law of the king. Antigone believes that she owes obedience to the divine law that demands a ritual burial for any human being.
The reader (or audience) is also given information regarding Creon’s proclamation when Antigone informs Ismene of the edict. Sophocles thus draws the audience (who, like Ismene, is ignorant of the situation) immediately into the center of things. Events are revealed naturally and chronologically.

[shirin71]

Antigone plays the part of a messenger in this first scene as she informs her sister about recent happenings in Thebes. One also gets an insight into the contrast between the two sisters when Ismene speaks the following lines: “We need must bear in mind we are but women,/ Never created to contend with men.”
For Ismene, womanhood is weakness, and she submissively subscribes to the conventional view that women must obey men. Antigone, on the other hand, does not wish to please any man, least of all Creon. She is not the “hapless maiden” that Ismene describes her to be in this scene. Ismene realizes that despite her sister’s apparent lack of wisdom, there is in her (Antigone) a devotion to duty and a strong bond of familial love that remains faithful to the very end.

[shirin71]

Towards the end of the scene, the sisters are still at odds with each other. Antigone cannot force Ismene to join her in breaking Creon’s law, nor can Ismene coerce Antigone into altering her decision regarding the burial of Polynices. In a way, Antigone’s desire to bury her dead brother is almost a death-wish. So that she can die an honorable death, she does not want her action to be kept secret. Here again, the two sisters are polar opposites of each other. While Antigone wishes to die heroically, Ismene chooses to live a meaningless and cowardly life, in conformity to Creon’s law. This fact is made more evident in a later scene when Antigone tells Ismene that she (Ismene) has, in fact, chosen life over death. However, Antigone prefers to die nobly rather than live a life of timidity and subjugation to conventional authority.

[shirin71]

Lines 100-154
The opening Chorus (or Parodos)
Summary
After the initial debate between Ismene and Antigone, the Chorus enters for the first time in the play. It describes the beginning of a new day which dawns over the seven gates of Thebes and the fountain of Dirce. According to the Chorus, this is the “brightest” and “fairest” day that Thebes has seen. The Chorus then gives an account of the battle recently fought at the gates of Thebes between the two brothers, Polynices and Eteocles. The soldiers from Argos, who had supported Polynices, hurried away from the battle because they were losing to the Thebans, led by Eteocles and Creon.
The Chorus next relates how the warriors of Argos came to wreak destruction on Thebes: the man of Argos bears “sharp menace” within his breast and is covered in armor. The Chorus describes the sights and sounds of the furious battle, as the spears fired by the enemy, “(y)awned wide around the gates that guard (their) homes.”

[shirin71]

The Chorus believes that the king of the Greek gods, Zeus, and his son, Ares, the god of war, were both on the side of Thebes. Zeus hurled down fire on the enemy, and Ares fought in open battle against the foe. During the battle the seven champions of the Argive army were matched against seven champions of the Theban forces. The two brothers, Polynices and Eteocles, were paired against each other and were killed when they met in combat.
Afterwards the Chorus sings a song about victory and peace. It wishes that the memories of this battle would be wiped out of people’s minds and that thoughts of peace would reign once more over Thebes. The Chorus plans to indulge in “holy dances of delight” and visit every shrine to give thanks to the gods for this newly found peace.

[shirin71]

Notes
In its first appearance the Chorus gives further information about the background of the play. The Chorus represents the people of the city celebrating the victory of Thebes over the Argives. It vividly describes the battle between the two brothers and is conventional in outlook, displaying a strong faith in the gods. Zeus and Ares are said to have fought for Thebes. The Chorus exults in Thebes’ victory, and at the same time, it prays for a lasting peace. Joy gives way to ecstasy as the Chorus pays tribute to Bacchus with “dances of delight” lasting through the night.
Sophocles uses a wide array of imagery in this opening Chorus. The rays of the sun are compared to the weapons of war that the Thebans used to drive away the Argives. In an extended metaphor, the man of Argos rises “on eagle wing,” hoping to bring ruin to Thebes. Like an eagle, the enemy screeches “sharp menace from his breast” and has a “plumed crest” crowning his helmet. His body is described as wrapped in armor of steel. Thebes, on the other hand, is the “serpent struggling to be free” of the predator. Therefore, the Chorus provides a graphic account of the recent battle.

[shirin71]

The gods are seen to be taking sides, and they support Thebes. It is Polynices who comes “breathing madness at the gate.” The battle hangs in the balance until Ares, the god of war, hurls himself among the Argives and fights for Thebes.
At the end of the battle, the Chorus claims that Pallas Athena, the goddess of war (and victory), descended upon Thebes as a heavenly omen of Thebes’ victory. Hence, to give thanks to the gods, the Theban chorus visits every shrine “in solemn round.” It concludes its opening sequence by performing a ritual dance on stage. The Chorus pays homage not only to the gods of war and victory, but also to Terpsichore, the Muse of dancing and choral singing.
The Chorus echoes the common citizen’s desire for peace and stability, instead of war. Ironically, the peace for which the Chorus offers such gratitude will soon be disturbed by Antigone’s revolt against Creon.

[shirin71]

Lines 155-225
The First Episode or Creon’s Opening Speech
Summary
The leader of the Chorus announces Creon’s arrival and informs the audience of Creon’s newly acquired power. The leader wonders why Creon has called for a conference of the elders of Thebes.
Creon enters and assures the elders that the kingdom of Thebes is, once again, “on a smooth course” after the terrible battle between the two sons of Oedipus. Creon has specially selected the audience of elders from those among the Thebans who are loyal to the throne of Laius. Creon stakes his claim to rule the land as the next of kin of the slain ruler, Eteocles. He believes that a good leader should use his power to maintain order.