Friday, November 15, 2013

The Chorus of Antigone: Do these old dudes know what's up?

              Oh great Creon, what a battle it has been that I, the Chorus, have witnessed today. The traitor Polynices rose against our city, but was struck down by his own brother’s sword. And now, “You have given your judgment for the friend and for the enemy. As for those that are dead, so for us who remain, your will is law” (132). You are right to condemn Antigone. She buried Polynices despite your edict to the contrary, and defying you in such a way is unacceptable. I am entirely devoted to my lord, for you are king indeed, and what you say is the law of the land. You merely seek to protect our fair Thebes as you see fit, and if you desire for such rebellion to be punished, I respect your authority. Poor Antigone had no right. That girl “shows her father’s stubborn spirit: foolish not to give way when everything’s against her” (139). My lord, to this disobedience you cannot turn a blind eye.
                Oh, but what is this? Now thy son Haemon appears, declaring that the people of Thebes pity Antigone. They consider it most unjust for her to die for such an honourable action as providing her brother with a proper burial, just as the gods have declared it. Now I am conflicted, for “There is something to be said, my lord, for his point of view and for yours as well; there is much to be said on both sides” (145). Oh supreme gods of Olympus, I do hold thy timeless will in high regard. Indeed, “For what presumption of man can match thy power, O Zeus, that art not subject to sleep or time or age” (142). Who are we, as mere human beings, to contradict a tradition from authority such as that? Though I have such great admiration for our dear king, can I really condone punishing young Antigone for simply doing what she considered honourable and just? I look at her, and it “is a sight beyond all bearing, at which my eyes cannot but weep” (148). Oh Creon, perhaps the words of Haemon should not be ignored. The law of the eternal god’s is higher than your law, is it not? Surely resisting the gods is a foolish act to commit, and is not beyond repercussions.
                Truly, now the prophecy of Teiresius has confirmed our thinking. He has spoken, and our lord is to be punished for his pride with the deaths of his beloved wife and son. At this time, “If you would be advised, my good lord Creon... Release the woman from her rocky prison. Set up a tomb for him that lies unburied” (155). We were wrong to think anything profitable would come from ignoring the gods. Far greater is their wisdom, surpassing anything that we could ever know. I am so sorry, dear Creon, but “Alas, too late you have seen the truth” (160). I believe now a great lesson has been learned by all because of the pride of our lord, and what a tragedy it has been.  

2 comments:

  1. I know very few people who have the ability to take obscure and seemingly unimportant characters and make them valuable to the plot. You, Madi, are one of them. Surprise, surprise :) I know you weren't thrilled about being assigned the Chorus but from this blog no one would ever know! Way to nail the diction of these character(s) and shed some light on its/their thought process!!

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  2. Writing from the perspective of the Chorus is a challenge, but you're typically good at rising to the challenge. Great incorporation of quotes throughout-- you highlighted the Chorus' key points of waffling! I always wonder what they must be thinking when Haemon says that the people of Thebes disagree with Creon because THEY are the people of Thebes that Haemon references. So were they hiding dissension all along? Or were they, as you and Sophocles portray more visibly, genuinely undecided and ultimately swayed towards Antigone's side? Nice job reviewing their journey from Creon's side towards Antigone. This is the journey of the play!

    This line caught my attention because of where you put the apostrophe: "The law of the eternal god’s is higher than your law." If we're talking about the plural gods of the Greek pantheon, then we'd want to put the apostrophe after the "s" to show plurality. But I wondered if you had done that intentionally, to remind us all as readers that, in our reality, there is just one eternal god? Intentional or not, it made me think!

    Diction was a tiny bit inconsistent with "you"s and "thy"s mixed together, and one or two typos. All in all though, nice job!
    14/15

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