Antigone Word Choice (Journal 15)

In the first argument between Creon and Antigone there are sharp contrasting viewpoints between the two characters. Antigone devoted to helping her brother believes it the right thing to do. Creon on the other hand believes that it is illegal and Antigone should be put to death for it. This conflict brings about a yes/no argument. The two characters are so different Anouilh chooses to have them say they exact opposite thing, yes and no. This also brings about the idea of Creon becoming the king, he talked about how it was hard to decide yes or no on taking up the role of the leader; this can apply itself to Antigone's situation on whether she should have buried her brother or not.

This book was originally written in French and then translated into English; The fact that it is translated means that the authors voice was lost somewhere between the two versions, no matter how minuscule the change is it will still make a difference. In the English version of Anouilh's Antigone there are a lot of vague terms; this could leave the book up for interpretation to the reader/audience. One vague term mentioned was the idea of happiness. Creon and Antigone argue over what it actually means to them. They both come to their own conclusion about the idea and it is very different. This demonstrates how the characters view the situation they are in and also gives us some insight on how that person is. Antigone seems more like a person who does not care about the rules and does what she thinks is right. Creon on the other hand is the king so he has to take a lot of responsibility and cannot please everyone because there are certain things he must do as a king.