Antigone
Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone combines the foolishness of thinking one is wise with the stubbornness of youthful idealism as characters wrestle with familial bonds, cultural traditions and romantic love. The noblewoman Antigone seeks to give her brother Polyneices an honorable burial against the wishes of her fiance's father, who had Polyneices killed for his crimes. This leads to her own burial and the sacrificial death of her fiance, Haemon. The play begins and ends at the grave, which serves as both the setting and a symbol. Whether it be honor, a familial bond, the desperation of a voice unheard, or the unbreakable bond between two young lovers, the grave represents something unique to each character and their identities.
The center
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Instead of letting Creon control her death, however, she takes matters into her own hands and hangs herself with a “noose of fine clothes” (Sophocles 1.4.1222). This shows her contempt for the norms of the society she is living in, and her obstinate refusal to be controlled or silenced. To her, the grave could symbolize freedom and a final stand against oppression. In the finale, the story reaches its last grave. In discovering Antigone’s execution, her fiance Haemon rushes to save her, only to find he is too late. He sees her hanging from a noose and runs his sword between his lungs as he pulls her towards him for a final embrace. His death means the end of his cordiality and civility. He had spent his whole life trying to please everybody, and failed to save the one person he actually cared for. As the messenger describes it, he joined “Her deadly marriage bed, blanketed with rocks” (Sophocles 1.4.1206) and died there with her. In this final act, he solidifies his unconditional love for and commitment to Antigone. This grave symbolizes sacrificial love, the ultimate end both beautiful and