Prologue

At the play opens, the chorus offers brief introductions to the play's main characters: the beautiful Ismene; her sister Antigone; Antigone's lover and cousin Haemon; and Ismene's uncle and Haemon's father, Creon.

The chorus also chronicles the fight between Antigone's brothers, Eteocles and Polynices a momentous battle that occurred before the play' s opening over control of the region of Thebes. After the brothers killed each other, Creon assumed control of the throne. To restore order, he has ordered a grand funeral for one brother, Eteocles. Considered a treasonous rebel for challenging his brother's rule, Polynices is left to rot as a warning to other rebels.

Antigone and Her Nurse

The nurse discovers Antigone sneaking back into the house at four in the morning. When confronted, Antigone merely reveals that she has had a rendezvous. Ismene enters and debates with Antigone the wisdom of going against Creon's...