At first glance it would look like Antigone and Whale Rider have almost nothing in common. The two actually have more similarities than it would seem. Whale Rider is a movie about a girl that was born into a long line of chiefs and her grandfather did not accept her because she was a girl so he started training a new chief. Antigone is a story about a woman named Antigone who learned that both of her brothers died and only one was being honored with a proper burial, she set out to defy her father, the king and bury her brother. In the end Antigone hangs herself followed by her betrothed and after hearing of the news the queen killed herself as well leaving the king alone. This leads into the main question, how much do these two stories have in common? The tale of Whale Rider revolves around the fact that Paikea is a girl and she is from a long line of chiefs. Throughout the story Paikea tries to be accepted by her grandfather and to have him train her as a chief but he follows the old ways which does not permit a female chief. Another detail about the movie was that no matter what Paikea did she could never impress her grandfather. During one scene in the movie Paikea had a concert and she had a special surprise set up for her grandfather to see but he did not show up. …show more content…
The main part of the story is that Antigone wants to give her brother a proper burial instead of having him rot like her father Creon wanted to do. The first detail about Antigone was that Antigone could do what she wanted with her fallen brother’s body, she first tried to compel her sister to help her but she would not commit, so she defied the gods and made her father, the king furious. Another detail of Antigone was that because she was a female she was never suspected. Creon never suspected that Antigone because she was a woman and it was thought that a man threatened to defy the
Between the playwright Antigone and the movie Whale Rider there are many differences and similarities Antigone and Paikea have some of the key parts of their personality in common, some of these include loyalty and bravery. Some differences between the two are from different cultures and that they both had different expectations of their leadership.
Antigone is a powerful character, strong-willed, determined and at times self-righteous. She is contrasted by her sister Ismene, who is weak and powerless. Though Antigone is a powerful character, she has no real political power and is dominated by one man, Creon. Creon is both the ruler of the state as well as the patriarch of her family. Antigone was raised by Creon’s house after her own father went in to exile. Antigone is betrothed to Creon’s son, Haemon, further cementing Creon’s power over her. There is one aspect of life that Antigone does have legitimate power in and that is her family, especially her blood line. In ancient-Greek culture the women’s place was in the home, she was responsible for household things and often wasn’t even allowed to leave the house. It is because of this responsibility that Antigone needed to bury her brother Polynices even though it went against the decree of Creon. Antigone also had the gods on her side. It was an unwritten rule of ancient Greek society that the dead must be buried, otherwise bad things may happen. This rule, because it was unwritten and therefore innate, was protected by the gods, specifically Hades, the god of the underworld and family.
The character must decide whether or not to allow the employee’s cousin to work in their restaurant. The cousin must provide for his family through the cold winter or they will become homeless. The character also knows that the law requires him to check the citizenship of all employees and forbids him to hire anyone who is in the country illegally.
Antigone’s views of divine justice conflict with Creon’s will as head of the state. Two brothers fighting against one another in Thebes’ civil war died while fighting one another for the throne. Creon, who had become the new ruler of Thebes, decided that one brother Eteocles would be honored, while Polyneices would be put through public shame. The body of Polyneices was to not be sanctified by holy rites, but was planned to be left unburied on the battlefield for animals to prey on it. Antigone, the sister of the two brothers wants to properly bury Polyneices’ body, but in doing so she would by defying king Creon’s edict. When Creon’s orders the Sentry to find out who had buried the body of Polyneices, Antigone is found to have buried the body of her dead brother. Since she disobeyed authority, her and her sister are temporarily imprisoned. He then wishes to spare Antigone’s sister Ismene and bury Antigone alive in a cave. To some up the foregoing, in honoring her brother she is performing the role of woman and warrior...
The play starts off with Antigone discussing what happened with her brothers Polyneices and Eteocles, with her sister, Ismene. Antigone wants her sister to come and help her give their brother Polynices a burial because she was not given one. Ismene decides not to help her sister becuases she is scared of the law Creon declared. Anyone who buries Polyneices will be punished. Croen is surprised to find out that Antigone buried Polyneices because she is a woman. To make an example out of her and to not lose his pride as a king. Antigone later dies and Hamaon, Creon’s son kills himself because Antigone was his soon to be wife. Since Hamaon died Creon’s wife killed herself because she could not bear to lose her son. The play Antigone is a Tragedy
Antigone, as a character, is extremely strong-willed and loyal to her faith. Creon is similarly loyal, but rather to his homeland, the city of Thebes, instead of the gods. Both characters are dedicated to a fault, a certain stubbornness that effectively blinds them from the repercussions of their actions. Preceding the story, Antigone has been left to deal with the burden of her parents’ and both her brothers’ deaths. Merely a young child, intense grief is to be expected; however, Antigone’s emotional state is portrayed as frivolous when it leads her to directly disobey Creon’s orders. She buries her brother Polynices because of her obedience to family and to the gods, claiming to follow “the gods’ unfailing, unwritten laws” (Sophocles 456-457). CONTINUE
After studying the critical excerpts following Antigone, I found two to be beneficial to the understanding Antigone. When first reading this play I found I could relate to Antigone and the way she stood up for what she believes in. Going against any King during this time, and facing death, to act upon what she believed to be right was pure admiration in my eyes. There was one part of the play, however, that I had a little trouble relating to Antigone. Before she is led to the tomb of her death, Creon and Antigone have one final conversation where Antigone is explaining her reasoning for the defiance of her king’s laws. She speaks as if speaking to her dead brother Polyneices saying, “Had I been a mother of children, and my husband been dead and rotten, I would not have taken this weary task upon me against the will of the city” (Sophocles 1587). I believed Antigone to have stood up for the rights of what was right by burying her brother with the sacred ash and water, as any blood relative would in my opinion do for another; however, if this were the case then why would she have not done for her children or her beloved husband what she fought so hard to do for her brother?
Antigone’s desire to bury her brother proves her devotion to her family. She is a young girl who wants to respect her elders. In Ancient Greece, many girls were married off at a young age, and Antigone is not married. She is also not like a typical girl because she tells Ismene “From mine own He has no right to stay me.” (Sophocles 3), which refers to Creon. Going against the wishes and desires of her own uncle to value her immediate family is a trait she possesses. Antigone’s life is not all about her and would risk her own to make sure they are respected. She would rather respect the people she cares deeply for, whether they are dead or alive, than to live a life filled with guilt. This makes her independent because she will do what is necessary, despite who is or is not behind her, to complete her goal. Being focused helps her to find what she wants and creates her determination against Creon and Ismene for Polynices’ burial.
Antigone is determined to bury her brother because of her loyalty to her family and to the gods. She believes that no mortal, such as Creon, has the right to keep her from her own. Even if Antigone must die during the burial, she will not disgrace the laws of the gods. She believes that she has to please the dead much longer than she has to please the living.
We come to know of Antigone's plan to bury her brother in the prologue. She confides to Ismene that she knows of Creon's edict, but that she intends to defy it. At Ismene's protests of not defying the king's orders, Antigone states that there are higher obligations to the dead and the gods. She points out (lines 85 - 91): "I will bury him myself, and even if I die in the act the death will be a glory. I will lie with the one I love and loved by him - an outrage sacred to the gods! I have longer to please the dead than please the living here: in the kingdom down below I will lie forever. Do as you like, dishonor the laws the gods hold in honor." Antigone feels it is her duty to bury her brother and is in her view fulfilling a higher law. She believes that she is acting according to her religious duty and that she cannot dishonor the laws the gods have established. Here Antigone appears to be a selfless and compassionate individual, willin...
At the beginning of the play, Antigone is upset about a decree Creon, the king, made (190). The decree states that her brother, Polyneices, was not allowed to be buried, because Creon believes that Polyneices was a “traitor who made war on his country” (211). Antigone has a very strong love for her brother and the gods, therefore she believes Polyneices deserves a proper burial according to the laws of the gods (192). Antigone says to Ismene that she [Antigone] will go against Creon’s decree-which states that if anyone buries Polyneices they will be killed (190). Antigone is extremely angry with Creon for creating the decree, to the point where she decides to make a big deal about the burial, instead of lying low and doing it in secret (192). Antigone even tells Ismene to “Tell everyone!” that she [Antigone] buried Polyneices when everyone finds out, and not keep it a secret-although Ismene doesn’t listen (193). Antigone’s decision not to do the bur...
In Sophocles' Greek tragedy, Antigone, two characters undergo character changes. During the play the audience sees these two characters' attitudes change from close-minded to open-minded. It is their close-minded, stubborn attitudes, which lead to their decline in the play, and ultimately to a series of deaths. In the beginning Antigone is a close minded character who later becomes open minded. After the death of her brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, Creon becomes the ruler of Thebes. He decides that Eteocles will receive a funeral with military honors because he fought for his country. However, Polyneices, who broke his exile to " spill the blood of his father and sell his own people into slavery", will have no burial. Antigone disagrees with Creon's unjust actions and says, " Creon is not strong enough to stand in my way." She vows to bury her brother so that his soul may gain the peace of the underworld. Antigone is torn between the law placed against burying her brother and her own thoughts of doing what she feels should be done for her family. Her intent is simply to give her brother, Polyneices, a proper burial so that she will follow "the laws of the gods." Antigone knows that she is in danger of being killed for her actions and she says, "I say that this crime is holy: I shall lie down with him in death, and I shall be as dear to him as he to me." Her own laws, or morals, drive her to break Creon's law placed against Polyneices burial. Even after she realizes that she will have to bury Polyneices without the help of her sister, Ismene, she says: Go away, Ismene: I shall be hating you soon, and the dead will too, For your words are hateful. Leave me my foolish plan: I am not afraid of the danger; if it means death, It will not be the worst of deaths-death without honor. Here Ismene is trying to reason with Antigone by saying that she cannot disobey the law because of the consequences. Antigone is close-minded when she immediately tells her to go away and refuses to listen to her. Later in the play, Antigone is sorrowful for her actions and the consequences yet she is not regretful for her crime. She says her crime is just, yet she does regret being forced to commit it.
Antigone deals with this turmoil because she tries to perform the noble act of loyalty to her brother, Polyneices, as well as her loyalty to her family. Polyneices was slain by his own brother, Eteocles, in a battle where both were killed by each other’s sword. King Creon sentenced Polyneices to be left dead and Eteocles to be given an honorable burial. Antigone is faced with the decision to let her brother, Polyneices, lay dead in the street to be scavenged by animals or to be buried in a proper and decent manner so as to be accepted by the gods. She is in a position that gives her no rights as a woman, sister, niece or future queen. Her decision to bury her brother demonstrates her loyalty to her family, the gods and to all women. Her motivation drives her decisions far more than that what the laws of state have implemented.
Antigone expresses her use of free will when she decides to disobey Creon and let her pride control her while the Monster is fated to receive rejection by both his creator and the societal world. While these two characters both had the opportunity to choose correctly and make life a positive place, neither of them ended up doing so. However, the reasons behind the endings are different. Antigone and her goals led her to make the decision to disobey and die, as many others died around her as results of her decisions. The Monster, on the other hand, did not have much of an option on how people would react to his presence and appearance. Both Antigone and the Monster had good intentions, but these intentions did not always play out. Antigone says, “I was born to join in love, not hate - that is my nature” (Rudall 28).
In Antigone, I believe that Antigone had a right to bury her brother because he was her blood and Antigone did not care whether or not that Creon wanted her to bury him, all that Antigone cared about was honoring her family and doing what she believed in, even if it meant that she had to face death in consequence. Antigone knew that the god’s laws were more important to her in the afterlife than any laws that a mortal, or in particular, Creon had set for Antigone. Antigone wanted to ensure her brother Polyneices, and herself a good afterlife.