2.  Theater was a celebration in ancient Greece  Festivals were held to honor Dionysos, their god of wine  During these festivals, citizens gathered to watch competitions between playwrights  Plays were derived from well known myths  Only three actors performed on stage in Classical Dramas

3.  The role of the chorus was to sing and chant, sum up the action after every scene and to say out loud what the audience should be thinking  The Choragos, unlike the chorus, could speak with the actors  The stage in an ancient Greek theater was called a skene  A tragedy tells the story of the downfall of a dignified, superior character

4.  Dramatic irony is when there is a contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader or audience knows to be true.  Situational irony is an event that occurs that directly contradicts the expectations of the characters, the readers, or the audience.  The catastrophe is the action at the end of a tragedy that initiates the denouement or falling action of a play. tragedydenouement

5.  Who is Antigone’s father and what is he most famous for?  What does Creon think makes a good ruler?  Why does Creon forbid the burial of Polyneices?  What is one thing that both Creon and Antigone have in common?  Why does Ismene refuse to help Antigone?  Who does Creon initially think buried Polyneices and why does he think they did it?

6.  Who does Choragos initially think buried Polyneices?  The chorus represents the court of Creon.  What is Creon’s greatest fear?  What metaphors does Haemon use to explain why Creon shouldn’t be so stubborn?  What is Creon’s punishment for killing Antigone?  What are some of the themes of Antigone?

7.  Who says the following line? “The time is not far off when you shall pay back corpse for corpse, flesh of your own flesh…”  Who says the following line? “Think about how much more terrible…our own death would be if we should go against Creon and do what is forbidden!”  Who says the following line? “If I am young and right, what does my age matter?”

8.  Who says the following line? “I have been a stranger here in my own land: all my life the blasphemy of my birth has followed me.”  Who says the following line? “If we must lose, let’s lose to a man, at least. Is a woman stronger than we?”  Who says the following line? “We threw the dice, and the bad luck fell to me. So here I am…Nobody likes the man who brings bad news.”

9.  Who says the following line? “There is no happiness…but in submission to the gods. Big words are always punished, and proud men in old age learn to be wise.”  Know which characters are alive and dead at the end of the play. If they are dead, know how they died.