extract b

Question 1

Intro

Answer 1

I will now begin my second body of work, An extract from the play Antigone by Sophocles, which begins on line 1242. The extract is written in poetic form, which creates a sense of pity towards Creon. This immerses the reader heavily into the sense of guilt that Creon faces following the death of his wife Euridyce and son Haemon.

Question 2

Point 1 p1

Answer 2

In the poem,
Sophocles builds on Creon’s failing spirit on line 6 of the poem “ Ah, you have killed a man already dead!” The use of the interjection “ah” brings attention to the following: “ you have killed a man already dead” Sophocles uses this as an ironic metaphor, as it’s logically impossible for a dead man to die however,

Question 3

Point 1 p2

Answer 3

this conveys how Creon’s psyche has not only been shattered once, following the suicide of his son. But twice following the death of his wife.
This reinforces following the death of loved ones Creon’s mind and soul has been fundamentally shattered as a result of the consequences of overstepping his place as a leader to consolidate power.

Question 4

Point 2 p1

Answer 4

This is reinforced on line 1259 by “What, then, what fate Still lies ahead of me?” The use of repetition creates an emotional response by creating a sense of pity towards Creon. The repeated use of “what” alludes to his immediate shock.

Question 5

Point 2 p2

Answer 5

Hence, when coupled with the use of Enjambment Sophocles presents Creon’s mind as failing with his thoughts trailing off and being unfinished. Therefore, Sophocles conveys how the ramifications of Creon’s desire for power affects his mind.

Question 6

Point 3 p1

Answer 6

Finally, on line
Sophocles emphasises Creon’s guilt over his actions, following the consequences he faces. “ In misery, I see her corpse before me! ” Sophocles uses personification of the abstract noun ‘misery’ to convey how far the effects of his greed for power have taken him.

Question 7

Point 3 p2

Answer 7

However, another way to see this is that even when faced with the death of his wife, Creon still holds an inherent egotistical nature. Sophocles conveys this through the pronoun “I” which emphasises how Creon only views this as his suffering despite his actions causing the death of others.