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oedipus
Sophomore English
Essay Prompts – Antigone
Mr. Linville

You will write an essay, on one of the topics below. Your essay will include at least three examples (quotations) from the play to support your thesis. Please follow APA format guidelines: typed, double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5" x 11") with 1" margins on all sides. Please use Times New Roman font. All essays will be uploaded on turnitin.com. Any essay not uploaded on this site will not be graded.

Paper copies of your essay will be due on Monday, March 19. This essay will be worth 50 points. I know you all will do well. Get to writing scholars!

Option #1 - Fate

Many of the characters in Sophocles’ plays seem to have a desire to break free from the control of the fate the gods have determined for them. Based on what you have read in Antigone, what is Sophocles trying to teach his audience about a human’s ability to control his/her fate? In doing so, analyze how the characters behave as a result of knowing what their destinies will be. What are the effects of discovering their destinies?

Option #2 - Conscience vs. Society

Characters in the play must choose between following what society says is the right thing to do and following what they believe in their hearts to be the right thing to do. Often, choosing to follow the conscience is the more difficult road to walk. In Antigone, identify the difficult choices the characters make and analyze the effects that these choices have on the characters’ lives.

Option #3 - Tragic Hero

Aristotle identifies the tragic hero as a character who falls from a lofty position because of a tragic flaw (hamartia)--normally that flaw is pride (hubris). Identify the tragic hero in Antigone. Analyze the scenes in which the character displays pride and identify the effects that this pride has on the character’s life. How could his/her life have been different if he/she had behaved in a less prideful manner?

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