Anouilh's Antigone

When Creon says life is nothing but the happiness you get from it this raises a much deeper concept than what one might think. The concept that there is nothing deeper to life but the pleasureful aspect of it could totally change the way you live. Antigone wants to believe there is something more. She believes in her own pride. She believes in order and that if she breaks the law she should pay the consequences. Creon sees no value in this. Even though he is at the top of the society he does not care about the strictness of the law. His only reasoning for life is if it will bring him happiness or not, which is completely self-indulgent. Antigone is willing to sacrifice her life or her a brother who is already dead. In a way, Antigone and Creon are polar opposites. The death of Antigone will not increase Creon's happiness in anyway, so it means nothing to him. Antigone believes she must die because simply that's what the law says. Because the situation is so pointless to Creon, he gives into Antigone. This means that Creon's life philosophy loosens his own self control on his life. Whether this is bad or good is a question that will be asked forever.

Jocasta

The character I am acting is Jocasta. The motivation of her actions is the shock when she realizes the situation she is in. She attempted to kill her son earlier in her life. Little does she know, Oedipus is that same son. When this reality begins to come to light, she loses her mind. The prophecy that said that her son would kill her original husband then marry her had already come true. She is on the verge of suicide when I am acting her character.

Antigone New Version

During the 1940s Europe was engulfed in the bloodiest war in history. Also, Facist dictators were in charge of Germany, Italy, and Spain. Basically Europe was torn apart by totalitarianism and war. Millions of innocent people were dying. This sparked a wave of Existentialist writers in France. They considered the idea that life was without any deeper meaning. I think that this play will have existential themes, as well as tragedy.

Antigone

Knowledge Level: Who is Antigone's father? How is Ismene related to Antigone?

Medea #3

In both Medea and Oedipus the catharsis changes but it is there at the beginning of the play for both. At the beginning of Medea pity and fear is felt for the nurse and all those who face the wrath of Medea. By the end of the play pity and fear is felt for Medea and Jason both. Each of them has lost all that have and both of them kind of brought upon themselves. In Oedipus we feel pity and fear for the people of Thebes who are suffering from a plight. By the end of the play this catharsis is narrowed down to Oedipus, who realizes the truth of the conflict, which leads him to gouge his eyes out and his wife/mother to kill herself.

Medea #2

Jason seems to expect the gods to always help him. However, he also mentions their help in his life. He says that Aphrodite saved him in his voyage. This means he is willing to put his whole life in debt to one goddess. This also symbolizes how he fell in love with Medea, because Aphrodite is often associated with love and beauty.

Medea speaks to the gods on a personal level. She is the granddaughter of Helios, which establishes her relationship with the gods. She speaks to Zeus as a "friend", and talks as if they are on her side. Although she does very morally questionable things.

Medea #1

In Oedipus the chorus plays the role of citizens of Thebes. They addressed that problems facing them at hand. They summarized the plot of the play and made numerous references to gods. This chorus lacked an influence on the characters within the play.

In Medea, the chorus are personal friends of Medea. They are sympathetic to Medea, and express sorrow for her. They go deeper into the essence of the play and bring light to the situation. They also have some influence over Medea's actions.