Author(s): Åengül KOCAMAN
One of the most important works of Sophocles, one of the writers of Greek tragedy, is Antigone. Bri efly stated, his brothers Polynices and Eteocles fight for power. According to the will of their father Oedipus, although he ordered them to govern Thebes in turn, Eteocles did not abide by it and did not hand over the administration. The army of Polynices comes to Thebes and wants the right. The two brothers kill each other. Consequently, their Uncle Creon seizes power and in accordance with his judgement, when Eteocles is buried, Polynices is prohibited from being buried as he attacks his country. That's what Antigone's rebellion is for. He thinks that Polynices should be buried according to traditions like Eteocles, and he fights for his own war. Antigone, who believes that the soul of those who are not buried will be uncomfortable forever, goes against all the laws and throws earth on his brother's corpse. Antigone is one of the strongest and oldest theater play ever written from Ancient Greece. Antigone, who gave his name to the play, inspired many writers as a symbol of virtue and resistance. From Brecht to Cocteau, Anouilh is adapted by many authors. In other words, the play written by Sophocles about two thousand five hundred years ago has never lost its actuality. For the play written during World War II, it is frequently commented that he handled, by his rebel identity, the resistance against Hitler in occupied France. It is not surprising that he wanted to draw attention to human existence issues during a great war like World War II! Antigone questions “being happy” in a world where there are the facts such as hypocrisy, injustice and especially the fate of death.
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