Antigone Essay Writing Strategy

Have you been assigned to write an Antigone essay? It is not surprising because the tragedy “Antigone” written by the well-known Sophocles is too valuable not to include it in the educational curriculum. It is not easy to write an essay on Antigone because this literary work belongs to the genre of the classical tragedy with a lot of things to analyze.

If you want to craft a really worthy paper after getting acquainted with Antigone, you are welcome to check the ultimate guide on what to include in your paper and how to structure it the right way. It is not enough to read this masterpiece once to write a high-quality work. You should conduct research and in-depth analysis to consider the problems discussed by the author from different angles. Do you lack creative ideas on how to get started? Then, don't waste time and have a closer look at the simple but useful tips for Antigone writing below.

How to Write an Antigone Essay: The Most Helpful Tips

Feel puzzled because you have no ideas on how to write an Antigone essay? Good news is that the Antigone paper should be written following the standard essay structure. That means that you should include an introduction, the main body, and the conclusion. An Antigone essay introduction plays a crucial role. You should make it eye-catching and informative.

Check the useful tips for crafting each part of the Antigone paper:

  • An Introduction: You are recommended to provide some engaging background information. It is possible to include quotes. In this case, you need to learn the citation rules. Avoid trite phrases. Conduct research on the interesting facts about the Antigone creation, and write a powerful introduction.
  • The Main Body: Reveal all problems that the author sets in front of the reader. Write 3-4 paragraphs starting each one with a new idea, which should be supported by evidence. When reflecting on your personal opinion, bear in mind that you should base it on the events that are described in the text taking into account the period of time when it was created.
  • The Conclusion: When finishing the essay, summarize all the major ideas presented in the main part, and provide your point of view. Make your conclusion clear and concise for your reader not to have any questions left.

Antigone Analysis Essay: What to Consider

If you need to write an analysis paper, be prepared to have a closer look at the illustration of the eternal rhetorical questions, which people's hearts are pierced with, those dilemmas that make us make choices, after which there will be no return — after all, "the die is cast" as the author of Antigone said.

You should conduct an in-depth analysis of the discussion of the polemic moments that were typical for the epoch of that time providing the parallel glorification of the mind and strength of a man. Pay attention to the language means used by the author. The jewelry skill composition of the work, presentation, the language of the characters, the artist's talent, which is saturated with each line, — all this is the rich tragedy of Antigone, which you should research to impress the teacher with your analysis paper.

10 Antigone Essay Prompts: Ideas to Get Started

If you don't know what to write about being assigned to craft a tragic hero Antigone essay, have a look at the most helpful ideas below.

  1. The author of Antigone pays tribute to a man as a strong and brave inventor who has overcome the obstacles that nature has placed on the human path, the bearer of thoughts that are fast like the wind. Can you find the antithesis to this standpoint?
  2. Does the author consider a human the strangest wonder of the world?
  3. Is Antigone the best work of Sophocles? Why do you think so?
  4. Provide in-depth analysis of Antigone’s character and her relationships with other characters.
  5. Which actual issues are there in work?
  6. Does the author set a problem or provide its solution as well?
  7. What is your favorite scene in work? Explain why you like it the most.
  8. The plot of "Antigone" by Sophocles is associated with the "Seven against Thebes" by Aeschylus. Tell about this connection.
  9. According to Sophocles, mistakes are inevitable for all people. What kind of mistakes?
  10. Sophocles so convincingly depicted in the "Antigone" the moral destruction of Creon that it should appear to everyone more terrible than his physical death. Share your thoughts on Creon’s moral death.

You can as well use these Antigone essay topics to formulate your own original theme.

Antigone vs Martin Luther King: Research the Problem of Civil Disobedience

One of the major themes can be Antigone vs Martin Luther King. You should hit the books and research the problem of the violation of civil rights since the period of time when Sophocles touched upon it and until the fight for civil rights, whose initiator was famous M.L. King. The whole plot of the tragedy is nothing more than the history of civil disobedience. Antigone couldn't leave her brother unburied. In conversation with Creon, she clearly articulates the basic idea of civil disobedience.

Antigone vs Creon: Analyze Main Opposite Characters

Antigone neglected the prohibition and secretly buried Polinik. Antigone was already dead when the king understood that he was wrong. Writing an essay about Antigone without touching upon the relationships of Antigone vs Creon will be incomplete. The whole action of the tragedy is aimed at exposing Creon having the supreme authority.

Authority vs Citizens: The Main Problems the Author Wanted to Draw Attention to

If you are going to consider the relationships of the authority vs citizens in Antigone, you should know that in Athens, the issue of written vs unwritten laws of the state was extremely acute. A large number of supporters attracted the thesis about the subjectivity of the law, which expresses the will of an individual person.

Sophocles showed the formation of Creon's delusion, culminating in the complete exposure of his insolvency. Creon considers his law an expression of the will of the state, which he fully identifies himself with. Antigone was the first who disagreed with him. It is not difficult to guess that Antigone symbolizes citizens while Creon is a representative of authority.