Antigone Journal 4

Page 52

     Creon. Listen to me. They don't know it, but the truth is the work is there to be done, and a man can't fold his arms and refuse to do it. They say it's dirty work But if we didn't do it, who would?
     Page. I don't know, sir.
     Creon. Of course you don't. You'll be lucky if you never find out. In a hurry to grow up, aren't you?
     Page. Oh, yes, sir.
     Creon. I shouldn't be if I were you. Never grow up if you can help it. [He is lost in thought as the hour chimes] What time is it?
     Page. Five o'clock, sir.
     Creon. What have we on at five o'clock?
     Page. Cabinet meeting, sir.
     Creon. Cabinet meeting. Then we had better go along to it.



The author, Anouilh chooses these lines to be the last spoken words by any characters, besides the Chorus. These 15 lines are important to this story because they embody the idea that life goes on after death. In the sense that, the people that knew someone who has passed away, their lives are only affected for a short time. This period is called "mourning". In this case, Creon is already thinking about business and running his city, just moments after learning his wife had committed suicide by hanging, once learning that his niece had just died, along with her fiancee and others. Anouilh is referencing the Vichy Government in this passage when Creon says "it's dirty work. But if we didn't do it, who would?" this type of statement was used a lot during Nazi occupation. When Anouilh wrote this adaption of Antigone, France was occupied by Nazi Germany, and a puppet regime, "Vichy" was put in place. These types of governments would label war jobs as "dirty work", but somebody had to do them. After Creon says "Never grow up if you can help it", he gets lost in thought and is only re-awakened by the chiming of the hour bell. This dozing off while in thought about never growing up shows regret and remorse in Creon. Creon is reminiscing about something that he has done, and it seems as though it has negative connotations.

Antigone Journal 3

The author's warning in the play Antigone is that life and death is absurd. It's not so much a warning, it's more of a message then anything. Anouilh is telling his audience that once someone is dead, you will only impact the living for so long, everything goes back to normal and life continues on. Just like in the play at the very end, "She has played her part."(53) Anouilh is breaking the 4th wall by having the chorus say this. He is making his audience realize that they are indeed, watching a play and it is coming to an end. Later on the same page, "Only the guards are left, and none of this matters to them. It's no skin off their noses. They go on playing cards."(53) Anouilh has this as the closing statement to remind the audience that when they go home after this play, they will most likely forget it fairly quickly. As with the guards, they go on with their life, as does Creon. "Listen to me. They don't know it, but the truth is the work is there to be done, and a man can't fold his arms and refuse to do it. [...] Cabinet meeting. Then we had better go along."(52) Right after the death of his niece, wife, niece's fiancee etc. he just goes on with life. He was affected for a short time, but life must go on. The living must continue living, disregarding the dead after mourning. That is Anouilh's "warning".

Antigone Journal 2

-Polynices gets killed
-Creon makes it illegal to bury Polynices
-Antigone goes to Haemons house
-Haemon and Antigone fight
-Antigone buries Polynices
-Antigone goes home
-Nurse talks with Antigone
-Ismene wants Antigone to not break the law (burying polynices)
-Antigone tells Haemon they will never be married
-Haemon goes away
-Ismene asks Antigone again to not bury polynices
-Antigone shows Ismene that she buried Polynices

Antigone Journal 1

 I picture the opening scene to have a long set of stairs that everyone is sitting on. I pictured the chorus as one guy standing at the top, but moving downstage once the curtain rises. I picture Antigone looking very depressed and having long black hair covering her eyes kind of like The Grudge. Then the three guards would be sitting in a group, I picture them to kind of look like Cronk from The Emperor's New Groove. Then Eurydice and the Nurse I both picture as being kind of background people, not too special. I see Haemon as being very handsome and Creon is old, and resembles the old future Spock from the new Star Trek(Leonard Nimoy). The characters would be dressed in normal older day attire. Kind of like pilgrims but a little more modern then that. I would need a chair, stairs and then the people and lights.