Summary

The elders sing an ode affirming the power of the gods over people, from generation to generation, as in the family of Oedipus.

Analysis

The elders mark the moment of Antigone’s condemnation with a somber look back to the doom that has followed her family for generations. Like Antigone herself, in the first scene, the chorus points to the power of Zeus as the source of the curse. No one can oppose the will of the gods, the elders chant. Their pious sentiment brings into question Creon’s insistence on his own will, and begins to foreshadow a doom that will bring him down as well.

Glossary

Olympus the home of the gods.