This tightly written play leaves us with a lot to think about. I touch on a few points in the episode, but there’s a lot more that we can talk about, even more than in the prompts below.
Discussion Prompts
- Creon states that Polyneices’s goal was spilling blood and selling the people of Thebes into slavery. Given what we know about the myth, that Polyneices and Eteocles had agreed to share the crown but then Eteocles refused to give up the crown when his turn was over, what do you think about Creon’s assessment of why Polyneices attacked Thebes? What does this tell us about why we should (or perhaps should not) trust Creon as a leader?
- What are your thoughts on the role of the chorus as passive supporters of Creon? How does this speak to us as members of a representative democracy today?
- Who would you cast as the sentry? Why?
- In one of his speeches, Creon talks about how money is the root of all evil. If you were adapting this play for today, how would you handle this section in light of the role of money in politics today? (As a reminder, I live in the US. If you live elsewhere, this might not be as big of an issue in your political system.)
- Elizabeth Bobrick writes about how Antigone presents the dangers of extremism. Who is the extremist in this play? Antigone? Creon? Both? Why? What does this teach us about life today?
- Is it important that Antigone is a woman? Why or why not?
- Which sister is right? Antigone or Ismene? Why?
- What are your thoughts on the relationship between Antigone and Ismene?
- Why do you think the Chorus prays to Dionysus (as opposed to another god) for Thebes to be healed?
Triumvir Clio's School of Classical Civilization 