In the speech we chose, Ismene is trying to convince Antigone to follow Creon’s order, and to not bury Polynices. She begins her argument by bringing up their tragic family history, about how their father “gouged out his eyes with his own hands” (Line 64), or how their mother died “mutilating her life in the twisted noose” (Line 66). Then, their brothers, “both shedding their own blood, poor suffering boys…” (Line 68). This use of their vividly horrifying history is an example of Pathos. Ismene is trying to appeal to Antigone’s emotions by bringing up the shortcomings of their family, comparing it to their own fate if Antigone chooses to bury Polynices.
There was also an Ethos strategy when Ismene mentions how they’re “ruled by much stronger
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To begin with, Ismene is trying to calm her sister down in her speech, stating “Why rush to extremes? It’s madness, madness” (Lines 80 & 81). In this speech of Antigone, however, we see her trying to incite anger and guilt in Ismene. This is shown when Antigone asks Ismene if she’s going to be a coward and not help, or be worth her royal blood and help Antigone bury Polynices. Another major difference was the use of Polynices as a persuasive method. Ismene, despite the argument being about her brother’s burial, didn’t bring him up in the conversation; instead, she only talked of the hopelessness of breaking the rules. Antigone, on the other hand, called Polynices a lovely treasure, and the unfairness of the conviction was a main point in her argument. They also differed in the way they spoke of the State. Antigone sarcastically speaks of Creon’s leadership and decisions, whereas Ismene says they’re ruled by much stronger hands when referring to him. Their persuasive techniques are similar, however, in that they use a very strong Pathos argument as a base, even if the content is different. Overall, while Antigone represents passion and stubbornness, Ismene is a character of both sensibility, but also fear, as shown by the way they