Book List: "Antigone"

The play Antigone by Sophocles reminds me of Shakespeare, without rhymes and poems. It begins with a long-winded discussion between two sisters about the death of their brothers, who killed one another. The King of the city has declared one of their brothers to have an honorable ceremony and burial, but the second brother is to be left out in the street. This order is punishable by death.


The sisters, Antigone and Ismene, determine that in order to give their brother safe passage in the underworld, they must give him a proper ceremony. At risk of death, they bury their brother's body, and are caught. The King, Creon, is troubled with this, because Antigone is engaged to his own son, Haemon. Haemon begged the King to let Antigone go, but he was refused.

A diviner then approaches the King, telling him that killing Antigone will bring on a terrible curse upon him and his family, and the King changes his mind about his orders. By the time he realizes this, Antigone is dead. Haemon, realizing that his father has just ordered his fiance's death, commits suicide. Then, the Queen kills herself, after hearing the news of her son's death.

In classic literature and romance, suicide over lost loved is constant. This theme returns over and over in stories all throughout history, and this is one of them!

Because Antigone was originally written in Greek, the English version is not as charming to read. There is not as much rhythm or rhyme as a Shakespeare play would have, but it still has beautiful thoughts and quotes to pull from; "All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride." "Go then if you must, but remember, no matter how foolish your deeds, those who love you will love you still." And, "Our brothers fought each other to the death and shed upon the ground the blood that joined them."

I love reading classics like this, with all of the 'Thees' and 'Thou Arts,' but I'm glad this one was short and bittersweet!