Family drama? Check. Heartbreaking tragedy? Check. Defiance in the face of injustice? Check, check, check. Indeed, Antigone falls right in line with all the plays in Sophocles’ trilogy—powerful, strange, and rife with educational value.

Antigone explores numerous complex ideas involving morality, religion, and politics; however, the heart of this play is the concept of civil disobedience. You may want to provide a background lesson on ancient Greek burial rites and religion so that students can better understand Antigone’s dilemma and ultimate betrayal. Antigone buries her brother, even though this action is forbidden by law, and she dies standing up for what is right. For this reason, she can be compared to significant fictional characters like The Book Thief's Liesel Meminger or even real-life historical individuals, such as Martin Luther King Jr. or Malala Yousafzai. Connecting Antigone’s circumstances to those of familiar figures will help students relate to and glean inspiration from the play.

Antigone is one of three Theban plays by Sophocles, the others being Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus. While these plays were not written in chronological order, they can be taught together in a more in-depth unit on Greek tragedy.

Learn more about Antigone below!

Antigone

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Summary of Antigone

Key Facts

• Publication Date: 442/441 BC; 2005 (Literary Touchstone Classics edition)
• Length: 80 pages (Literary Touchstone Classics edition)
• Recommended Grade Band: 9-10

The play opens in Thebes after Antigone’s two brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, have died fighting for opposing sides. Antigone’s uncle, King Creon, allows Eteocles a proper burial. However, he decrees that Polynices, whom he considers to be a traitor, will not be given burial rights and that anyone who buries him will be killed.

Antigone, unlike her sister Ismene in whom she confides, believes that burial traditions are the unwritten laws of the gods. She violates Creon’s decree by giving Polynices proper funeral rites. She is caught in the act and punished for violating the king’s law. To avoid her fate of being entombed alive, Antigone hangs herself.

Content Warning: Antigone contains incidents of violence and suicide.

What Your Students Will Love About Antigone

• Antigone’s loyalty to her brother and her brave rebellion against orders
• Discussing the philosophical ideas presented in the play

Potential Student Struggles With Antigone

• Difficult language and syntax
• Keeping track of all the characters

Learning Objectives for Antigone

• Identify civil disobedience as the central idea of the play and elaborate on its moral complexities.
• Define the role of the Chorus, and cite examples of Choral odes from the text that demonstrate some of the play’s themes.
• Discuss how gender plays a role in the struggle between Antigone and Creon.
• Identify and discuss the traits of a tragic hero in ancient Greek drama, and determine whether those traits apply to Creon and/or Antigone.
• Trace Creon’s character development from a prideful ruler to a humbled man.
• Analyze the role of fate as it applies to Antigone and Creon and their respective families.

Literary Elements in Antigone

• Apostrophe
• Dialogue
• Foreshadowing
• Imagery
• Personification
• Proverb
• Sarcasm
• Symbolism
• Theme
• And more!

Major Themes in Antigone

Responsibility — Antigone feels torn between her duty to the state and responsibility to her brother.

Related Works:

• The Price of a Child, by Lorene Cary
• Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich
• The Stranger, by Albert Camus

Civil Disobedience — Antigone defies the orders of Creon, the highest authority in Thebes, by giving her brother a proper burial.

Related Works:

• The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak
• Animal Farm, by George Orwell
• Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer

Fate — As in many Greek tragedies, the characters in Antigone feel influenced by destiny.

Related Works:

• Hamlet, by William Shakespeare
• Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles
• The Odyssey, by Homer

Other Resources for Antigone

• There have been several film adaptations of Antigone, the most notable being the 1961 movie Antigoni, directed by Yorgos Javellas and starring Irene Papas. The film is available in Greek with English subtitles. (Watch clip)
• Religious Death Rituals & Burial Customs of Ancient Greece
• Sophocles’ Biography
• Animated Play Summary: Antigone by Sophocles
• The Oedipus Trilogy Timeline