Antigone+Analysis

**Quote 1:** “Life was your choice, and death was mine!” Line 610 **Relevance:** This quote shows Antigone’s self-righteousness and her desperation to be a martyr. One can also see her lack of sympathy for Ismene’s pain, which demonstrates that her loyalty may not be completely to her brother, but that instead she is looking for some sort of attention. She refuses to listen to her sister’s pleas and is completely set in her decision at this point.
 * Antigone **

**Quote 2:** “There //is// a certain reverence for piety. But for him in authority, he cannot see that authority defied; it is your own self-willed temper that has destroyed you.” Lines 924—928 **Relevance:** Here, the chorus is responding to Antigone’s self-pity in an almost taunting manner. The so-called “authority” displays that Creon has his reasons to not want to bury Polyneices and Antigone is ignorant of this. In reality, it is Antigone who made the choice and as such should not be complaining about her fate.

**Quote 3:** “Oh, oh, no! shout it out. I will hate you still worse for silence—should you not proclaim it, to everyone.” Lines 99—101 **Relevance:** This quote emphasizes that Antigone is trying to create an image of herself in the public eye – “shout it out” – and it appears that if she took the act of burying her brother secretly, it would not mean as much to her. If this act was solely about loyalty to her brother, it wouldn’t matter whether or not the public knew about what happened.

**Comment on the Significance of these Quotes:** These quotes present Antigone as a character who, although respects and loves her dead brother and wants the best for him even in death, is motivated also by a desire for public recognition and an image of martyrdom. Her character is emphasized through the contrasting nature of the quotes signifying transitions between stubborn self- righteousness and passion, self-pity, and a need for attention.