Book Club Guide

Antigone

Key themes

Divine law versus human authority — which takes precedence
The woman who refuses to be silenced
The pride of rulers and the cost it always exacts

About this book

After her brothers kill each other in civil war, Antigone defies the king's decree to bury the brother deemed a traitor, choosing divine law over human authority. Sophocles's tragedy raises questions about conscience versus the state, individual duty versus political power, that remain as urgent as they were in ancient Athens.

Probably written around 441 BC and considered by many scholars Sophocles's masterpiece, Antigone is one of the most performed plays in the classical repertoire. It has been adapted as resistance literature in dozens of different historical contexts.

Discussion questions

Antigone claims that burying her brother is required by divine law; Creon argues that the state's authority must prevail. Whose argument does the play ultimately support — and does it present this as a simple contest?
Creon is arguably the play's most psychologically developed character. How does Sophocles generate both understanding and condemnation for his choices?
Antigone is a woman defying a king in a patriarchal society. How does the play treat her gender — as relevant, irrelevant, or central to the political force of her defiance?
Ismene refuses to join the rebellion and is condemned for it by Antigone. How do you read Ismene — as the play's coward or its realist?
The Chorus repeatedly tries to find wisdom in the catastrophe. What do their reflections add — and what does it mean to have a collective voice that can see clearly but cannot intervene?