ANTIGONE WEBQUEST
An Introduction to Greek Tragedy
Welcome to the Antigone WebQuest!

Before beginning your exploration into the
world of Antigone, you must first become
acquainted with Sophocles and The Greek
Theater.

The following pages will provide you with
the information you need.
Task 1

Take detailed notes of the following
information pertaining to Greek Theater.

Notes will be collected and graded, so
they need to be detailed.
The Greek Theater
Theater was a celebration in ancient Greece that
was held in honor of Dionysos (the god of wine).
During these celebrations, Athenians gathered to
watch competitions between playwrights. It was
these competitions that Sophocles often won. The
plays performed at these festivals usually exposed
arrogance which emphasized reverence for the
gods and included tragic events. Although violence
and disrespect were central to the plot of most
tragic plays, violence was never depicted on stage.
Instead, these events occurred off stage.
Tragedy
Tragedy is a work of literature that results
in a catastrophe for the main character.
 In Greek drama, the main character was
always a significant person, a king or a
hero, and the cause of the tragedy was a
tragic flaw, or weakness in his or her
character.

Typical Structure of a Tragedy
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Ancient Greek playwrights used a consistent
format for most of their productions.
A Chorus is used to divide the scenes (similar
to how a curtain does in present day
performances) through a song that
comments on the action of the previous
scene.
The Choragos is the leader of the chorus,
and serves as another character in the play

The typical structure of a tragedy is as
follows:
– Prologue – exposition which provide background to the
conflict
– Parados or parode – Opening song or ode
 Strophê – the chorus sings a stanza while moving from
right to left while singing
 Antistrophê - the chorus sings a stanza while moving
from left to right while singing
 Epode – included in some odes as a final stanza
– Paean – a thanksgiving to Dionysos
– Exodos – final exiting scene
Meet Sophocles
(496-406 B.C.)
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Sophocles was born and raised
in Athens
He is regarded as one of the
world’s greatest playwrights.
He frequently won 1st place at
the Dionysian festivals, which
were competitions between
playwrights.
During his life, he wrote over 100 plays, but only 7 have
survived.
Among these 7 are: Oedipus the King, Oedipus at
Colonus, and Antigone.
Now that you are familiar with Greek
Tragedy, you are ready to begin your next
task…
Task 2
You are a detective assigned to investigate the death
of Antigone.
 Before you can understand her death, you must first
become aware of the circumstances surrounding her
life.
 Continue your notes as you obtain background
information about Antigone’s family life, and the
society in which she lived, by following the trail of
clues linked to her death.

Task 2 Cont.
-Detailed Instructions-

Write a well developed summary to explain who
the person(s) are and the situation in which they
were involved (at least 1-2 paragraphs for each
of the links on the following pages):
1. Oedipus’s Early Life
2. Oedipus’s Exile
3. The death of Eteocles and Polyneices
Family Life – Antigone’s Dad

Antigone, is part of a trilogy about the
royal family of Thebes. The trilogy
includes; Oedipus the King, Oedipus at
Colonus, and Antigone

Follow the two links below to learn more
about Antigone’s father, Oedipus:
– Oedipus’s Early Life
– Oedipus’s Exile
That was quite informative, but it was lacking something very
important: the emotion, the pain, Oedipus’s experience of
finding out the truth and of his self-inflicted punishment.
Follow the steps below to acquire a better insight into what
this was like for him:
1. Go get a
gray literature book.
2. Turn to page 465 and find line 1354.
3. Read lines 1354-1406.
4. Write a brief (at least one paragraph) personal response to
the excerpt.
5. We will discuss this passage as a class, so be prepared to
share-out your thoughts, feelings, and questions.
A Tragedy between Brothers

As if the tragedy surrounding her father’s
life and exile was not horrific enough,
Antigone must now face the death of her
brothers.

Click here to learn more about Eteocles
and Polyneices
Task 3
 Continue
your notes to include each of
the five elements listed pertaining to
Greek Society.

Use appropriate headings for each section

Notes will be collected and graded, so
they need to be detailed.
Greek Society

Religion

Government

Funeral Rites

Role of Women
–only read “Introduction” and then
and then read
some quotes about women in the time
scroll down to “Antigone” section—

Hubris and Hamartia– Find the definition
Task 4
Use the information on the following
pages to fill your STUDY GUIDE…
Template provided by teacher.
 Title:
Antigone
 Author: Sophocles
 Publication Date: 442 B.C
 Setting: The city of Thebes –
Ancient Greece
 Genre: Drama/Tragedy
Name:
Relationship to Personality:
Others:
Situations:
Antigone
Daughter of
Oedipus, sister of
Ismene, niece of
Creon
Timid
Ismene
Daughter of
Oedipus,
Antigone’s sister
Also in conflict
over the laws
of the gods vs
laws of man
Creon’s wife,
mother of Haimon
Obeys her
duties as the
King’s wife
Wife of the
King
Eurydice
Strong, firm in Main character,
her beliefs
in conflict over
the laws of the
gods vs laws of
man
Name:
Creon
Haimon
Teiresias
Relationship to Personality: Situations:
Others:
Husband of
Firm in his
Eurydice, father of
belief,
Haimon
unbending, an
absolute ruler
Son of Creon and
Eurydice,
prophet
Recently
became King
of Thebes
Level headed
Engaged to
Antigone
Wise
He is a very
respected
blind prophet
Task 5
Using information you’ve gathered thus far, create
a FAMILY TREE for Antigone.
The family tree must include…
1) all relevant family members in her “dramatic” life
2) a description of each person (their role in the plays, defining
characteristics, brief history, etc)
3) a key explaining connecting lines
ex. Direct relation
Married - - - - - Engaged
4) Your personal creative touch!
Congratulations!

You have just completed the Antigone
WebQuest.

You are now ready to begin your reading
of the play.