Antigone

Roles

• Haemon - Young Adult (20-35), Male

About this piece

Haemon tries to persuade his father not to execute Antigone

Summary

Antigone is the sequel to Aeschylus' Seven Against Thebes. In Aeschylus' play two brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, faced each other in battle for Thebe's throne and they both died in the battle. Creon, the new ruler of Thebes, declares that only Etiocles will be buried and Policeices' body will be left in the battlefield. Antigone, the sister of the two dead brothers, decides to defy Creon's decree and bury her brother. When Creon finds out he sentences her to death, even if she is his son's (Haemon) fiance´. Haemon tries to persuade him to change his mind to no avail. Antigone is buried alive in a cave. After listening to the advice of a blind prophet, Tiresias, and considering the negative reaction of the people of Thebes for his harsh sentence, Creon changes his mind. It is too late though, as Antigone and Haemon have taken their own lives. Hearing the news, Creon's wife, Eurydice, takes her life as well. Creon blames himself for what happened to his family, realizing that is his punishment for acting against the gods. In this monologue Haemon tries to persuade his father not to execute Antigone. Even if he respects his father, Haemon argues, he should be reasonable and listen to his own citizens, who strongly oppose the execution even if they don't dare to contradict their king.

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