Character/Theme Development

As you read, complete this chart to help you understand how certain characters and events are connected. As
characters act and react to situations, you will notice relationships or conflicts developing. Through these events,
themes also develop throughout the play. For most of the play, you will complete entries for major characters only:
Antigone, Ismene, Creon, and Haimon. However, Scene 5 and the Paen challenge you to explore different characters,
some of which are minor to the play as a whole, but integral to those scenes.

Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?

Prologue, Antigone - Ismene (Sister) doesn’t want - Antigone believes - The Theme of this
Scene 1, to help Antigone bury that even if her is Rules and
Ode 1
Polyneices and doesn’t want brother betrayed order because
Antigone to bury him either her country that he Creon is a very
- Creon (Uncle/king) says is still her brother strict ruler and
polyneices is a traitor and and deserves a when he found
that no one is to bury him proper burial that Antigone was
- Polyneices (Brother) died at going to do so he
war is furious.
Ismene - Antigone is trying to bury - Ismene is scared for
Polyneices but Ismene Antigone to betray
doesn’t want her too because the king because she
it is going against the king doesn't want to lose
- Polyneices Died at war Antigone

Creon - Antigone is trying to bury - Creon is filled with

Polyneices even though anger that anyone
Creon has said no one is to especially one of his
do so family members to
- Polyneices betrayed the go against him
 country and Creon is not
happy with this
- Eteocles (Nephew) has
defended the country Creon
is honoring him
- Sentry is conflicted with the
fact that he doesn’t know
what Creon is doing is right
and Creon is angry that he
would even think otherwise.
Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?

Antigone -
Scene 2,
Ode 2

Ismene

Creon

Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?

Scene 3, Antigone
 Ode 3

Ismene

Creon

Haimon

Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?

Scene 4, Antigone
Ode 4

Creon

Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?
 Scene 5 Creon

Teiresias

Scene of Characters Relationships or Conflicts What motivated the What could be a possible
Play character to react this way? developing theme?

Paen Creon

Messenger

Think about the title of the unit, ​Taking a Stand.​ Read back over your notes on this chart. If you
could choose the most critical theme that Sophocles was trying to develop throughout this tragic
play, what would it be? Which characters helped to develop that theme the most?