The Limits of Rescue

This thread follows the increasingly narrow chances to save Antigone and the point at which rescue becomes impossible.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Concealment Offered

Concealment Offered A possible escape Creon tells Antigone to go to bed and pretend she has been ill. Protection with a condition He will make the guards disappear if she stops speaking about the burial. The first rescue requires secrecy and recantation.

A Warning About Time

A Warning About Time The opportunity narrows Creon says he can save her only if she stops immediately. Antigone refuses She insists she will go bury Polynices again. The available interval for mercy is measured in minutes, not days.

Torture Rejected as Leverage

Torture Rejected as Leverage A threat without effect Creon suggests that pain could force Antigone to beg and later resume her act. Antigone sees through it She argues that suffering would only delay her next attempt. Force cannot produce the voluntary surrender Creon needs.

The Crowd Closes the Route

The Crowd Closes the Route Reputation becomes constraint Creon says the city knows what Antigone did and will reject special treatment. A political point of no return He refuses the Chorus’s suggestions to invent madness or send her away. His efforts to rescue her disappear beneath the demands of legitimacy.

Rescue Arrives Too Late

Rescue Arrives Too Late A cry from the cave The Messenger reports a voice within the tomb and Creon orders the stones removed. The deadline has passed Antigone is already dead when the opening is forced. Creon’s action comes only after the consequence he feared has become real.

Immediately after Antigone’s arrest

During Creon’s attempt to persuade Antigone

As Creon’s persuasion turns physical

After Antigone’s words become public

After Antigone has been sealed in the tomb