نمايشنامه هاي انگليسي Antigone

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To retract from his own law would mean to accept defeat in his very first political maneuver. So Creon steers his steady course towards the catastrophic decision to have Antigone buried alive in the cave. He makes this rash decision in a fit of rage and on the spur of the moment. He refuses to heed the advice of his son, Haemon, and the warnings of the seer, Tiresias. Creon fears that he would lose face if he retracts his own (unjust) law.
Creon recognizes his error only after Tiresias’ fatal predictions and the Chorus’ subsequent admo ment. At last he yields to the voice of basic humanity and decides to reverse his earlier rigid stance. (This is known as “peripeteia.”) He knows he cannot “fight with destiny,” so he quickly buries Polynices and then hurries to Antigone’s cave. But his decision comes too late.
Creon falls into a state of dire panic in his last moments on stage. His wife, Eurydice, has taken her own life on hearing of Haemon’s death. Thus, Creon is left to brood alone over the tragic consequences of his own fatal decisions. He lives on as an infinitely sadder but wiser man (his “anagnorisis”).

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CHARACTER ANALYSIS
THE USE OF THE CHORUS IN GREEK PLAYS
General Information
Greek tragedy contained two basic elements: the dramatic spoken exchanges between two or three lead characters (usually in iambic trimeters) and the choral song in lyric meters, sung to the accompaniment of music (mostly the flute or lyre). By the early fifth century, Aeschylus and Phyrnichus invented many graceful and dignified steps for the Chorus to perform, as they recited or chanted their lyrics.
The word Chorus comes from the Greek word “choros” which means “dance.” At first, the Chorus was an important part of public religious rituals and was later included in public performances of Choral lyric poetry. As early as the 7th and 6th centuries B.C., the performances of tragedy in Attica (an area around Athens) were part of religious festivals, like the Dionysia, and included the use of a Chorus. It was later featured in comedy as well

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The original choral lyric was called the “dithyramb.” It was sung and danced in honor of the god Dionysus during his festivals. In Antigone, the final Chorus before the close of the play is an apostrophe (an address or speech) to Dionysus: “O God of many a name!...” Sophocles follows the archaic Attican tradition in assigning a dithyrambic Chorus to the singers in what is their final major utterance on stage. From being a separate literary genre, the choral lyric thus came to be incorporated as part of tragedy and comedy.
The Chorus sang or chanted the lyric passages of a drama to the tune of a flute with stylized choreography. The grave and dignified dance of tragedy was distinct from the more abandoned dances of comedy and was denoted by the term “Emmelia” which means gracefulness

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Like the main actors in a play, the Chorus was masked, as the surrender of individual identity was an intrinsic part of all Dionysian ritual. In tragedy, the Chorus always performed in character as a group of people involved in and commenting on the main action of the drama. Sophocles uses the Chorus in Antigone as a group representing the ordinary people of Thebes. Through them he is able to show public reaction to the crises of unfolding events, particularly, to the actions of the leaders and how these affect people’s lives. All through the play, one observes how the Chorus is concerned with public welfare, peace and the internal security of Thebes, which ensures their own survival

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Occasionally, the leader of the Chorus, known as the “coryphaeus” or “hegemon,” got singled out from the rest of the group. He was sometimes allowed to converse briefly with the other characters on stage or to utter a solo speech addressed either to the rest of the Chorus or directly to the audience. This gave him the possibility of partaking in the main dramatic action. Although Sophocles permits the Chorus-leader in Antigone to utter a few separate dialogues, they are not of major significance. His only important utterance is the last one, in which he sums up the moral of the tale at the close of the play:
“High boastings of the proud Bring sorrow to the height to pu pride: A lesson men shall learn when they are old.”
The Chorus was often trained by the poet himself, who, in this capacity, was called the “chorodidaskalos.” The members of the Chorus were selected and backed financially by a prominent private citizen called the “choregus.” The Chorus originally consisted of twelve members, and Sophocles is known to have increased the number to fifteen

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CHARACTER ANALYSIS
THE CHORUS IN ANTIGONE
There is something of the effect of Grand Opera in Greek tragedy, chiefly due to the rich musical experience that the proper use of the Chorus could create. Through the intricate choreography employed, the Chorus also created spectacular effects in the grand sweep and dignified pattern of its on-stage movements. In fact, much of the dramatic force of a play like Antigone springs from the sharp contrasts provided by the musical choral passages and the high rhetoric of the purely dramatic parts.
The Chorus in Antigone consists of a group of ordinary Theban citizens, people loyal to their state and their gods, to the law and the common human values of family and society. Through the Chorus, Sophocles is able to represent public reaction to the crises of unfolding events in his play. He demonstrates the response of the common people to the various actions of the high and mighty in their state and how it impinges upon them.

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The Chorus is chiefly concerned with public welfare and the security of Thebes. The members of the Chorus serve as well- informed commentators on the events and characters around them, and they often express their somewhat conventional views on social, political, moral and religious issues that tend to affect their lives. They also lay the foundations for the occurrence of the unfolding incidents of the play by outlining the background to the present actions. Therefore, the Chorus’ initial role is to present the exposition of the play.
In Antigone, Sophocles uses the Chorus mainly to examine in fuller detail, all the ramifications of the central dramatic conflict. To a large extent, the tragedy is seen and presented to the audience through the observant eyes of the Chorus. This entity observes the turn of events from close quarters and hence has much authority to review or comment on them. The Chorus provides a kind of emotional and mental foil (contrast) to the central figures

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The Chorus assumes different roles at different times. This is necessary for the progress of the tragic action of the play. It was considered undesirable in Greek tragedy to present scenes of war and violence on stage. Hence, at first, the Chorus gives one a graphic picture of the battle of the seven against Thebes, which culminates in the dual deaths of Polynices and Eteocles. Here, their function is purely narrative as they provide the expository details.
A skilled dramatist like Sophocles would try to involve his audience more fully in the tragic events unfolding on the stage. This becomes possible if the audience can identify closely with the Chorus. Sophocles gives the Chorus many traits common to an audience: concern for public safety, fickle-mindedness, and conventional attitudes to most public matters regarding family, society and the state. At times, the Chorus empathizes with Antigone, but at others, it realizes that support for Antigone’s cause could mean a continuity of the recent instability in Thebes

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The Chorus also assumes the role of courtiers in Creon’s court. The members of the Chorus listen respectfully to Creon’s every word and pay heed to his commands. Disobeying Creon’s edicts could spell disaster for them, as they well know.
Also, the Chorus sometimes takes on the role of elder citizens of the state, providing Creon with some wise counsel. The elders try to influence his behavior by guiding him on the basis of their wide experience of common life. They suspect something untoward may happen after Haemon’s confrontation with Creon, saying: “How angrily he went, my lord,/ The young, when they are hurt, grow desperate

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As representatives of the people of Thebes, the Chorus is unable to make up its mind as to who is right and who is wrong. The Chorus is sincerely concerned for Antigone in her doom, but it is caught in the vice-like grip of fear that Creon spreads through his powers as ruler. The members of the Chorus are truly shaken by the disturbing events: first by the civil war and dual deaths of Polynices and Eteocles, then by the discovery that Antigone has defied the edict preventing Polynices’ burial, and then by the king’s cruel decision to kill her: “It is determined then that she must die.” They strongly believe that fate has a hand in the ensuing tragedy. They believe Tiresias’ predictions and warn Creon not to go against the will of the gods.
As Antigone leaves for her execution, the Chorus comforts her and reassures her that her act will bring her great honor. Yet it also reminds Antigone that “a self-willed passion” was the reason for her “overthrow