Symbolism + Metaphors

Symbol

1. Birds feasting on Polynices’ Corpse (Scavengers)

“His corpse carrion for the birds and dogs to tear”

“ a lovely treasure for birds that scan the field and feast to their heart’s content”

• Creon’s decree leaves Polynices’ body exposed to the elements, where carrion birds (like vultures and crows) are free to eat his flesh.

• Being eaten by birds is a sign of shame and dishonor.The image of vultures and crows desecrating Polynices' body reflects the inhumanity of Creon’s law, as it goes against religious customs.

• This is seen as a violation of divine law, as proper burial rites were sacred in Greek culture.

Symbol

1. The “Mother Bird” (Protector)

“Like a bird come back to an empty nest”

“Peering into its bed, and all the babies gone...”

“Not ashamed for a moment, not to honor my brother, my own flesh and blood.”

Antigone is compared to a mother bird returning to find her nest empty (when she finds Polynices' body left unburied).

• This highlights her maternal, protective instincts toward her brother and her sorrow at his dishonor. 

• Highlights her role as a nurturing yet tragic figure, driven by duty and emotion.

• The mother bird symbolises devotion and grief, reinforcing Antigone’s role as a loving but doomed figure.

Consequence of Antigone being the “Protector”

Consequence of Antigone being the “Protector”

“I am agony!”

“This is my reward.” 

“Denied my part in wedding songs.”

“Your passion has destroyed you.”

“Attacks on power never go unchecked.”

Symbol

Birds as Omens of Divine Will (Agents of Prophecy)

“Every bird I know will hover at my hands.” Line 1104

“Barbaric, a mad scream!”

“Talons flashing, ripping, they were killing each other – that much I knew – the murderous fury whirring in those wings made that much clear!”- attacking each other, nature being in a state of upheaval/ overturning of nature- things that aren’t supposed to happen within nature, begin happening

Tiresias, the blind prophet, describes birds behaving unnaturally, fighting and tearing at each other, signaling that something is deeply wrong in Thebes.

• This foreshadows chaos and destruction, signaling that the gods are angry with Creon for refusing to bury Polynices.

• The unnatural behavior of birds represents disorder in Thebes and divine displeasure.

• The loud cries of birds suggest that nature itself is rebelling against Creon’s rule.

• Serves as a warning from the gods that disaster is near, that when divine laws are broken, the natural world responds.

Metaphor:

1. The Ship of State 

Creon frequently compares Thebes to a ship that he must steer safely through rough waters. - “The ship of state is safe.” page 67

He sees his rule as necessary to prevent the city from sinking into chaos.The ship represents the state, while the stormy waters symbolise political instability and external threats. “Our country is our safety. Only while she voyages true on course.” -pg 68

Highlights Creon’s authoritarian mindset—he believes absolute control is the only way to maintain order. 

Ironically, his rigid rule leads to destruction rather than stability. “It is you - your high resolve that sets this plague on Thebes.” pg 111

‘I go to wed the lord of the dark waters’=Antigone likens death to falling into ‘dark waters’=she has fallen from the proactive ship of Thebes, and now goes topward her death.

Metaphor:

Dirt/Dust

“Great dust storm” : (Some dust may have fallen onto the body of Polynices. God’s portraying the message that burial is in fact symbolic and a crucial element intertwined with the afterlife.)

• ‘If I had allowed my own mother’s son to rot, an unburied corpse-that would have been an agony!’

• ‘What greater glory could I win than to give my own brother a decent burial.’

• “ I will bury him myself “

  Metaphor of dirt (or soil) is deeply symbolic, representing burial.

  Dirt is tied to the idea of how the body returns to the earth, completing the natural cycle of life and death. Antigone’s desire to bury her brother symbolises her refusal to let the state or Creon dictate the natural process of life and death and reflects her resistance to the political power of the state and its laws. The dirt becomes a symbol of her determination to follow the divine law and familial duty over the king’s decree.
  

Metaphor: The storm and the tree

• “Bend or break” - L800 - Haemon warns Creon in this line that people who are too obstinate to change will ultimately perish. It implies that adaptability leads to survival and resistance to failure 

• “You’ve seen trees by a raging winter, how many sway with the flood…not the stubborn - they’re ripped out, roots and all” L798 (Trying to explain to Creon how his stubbornness with cause his downfall as he will be “ripped out”)

• Haemon warns Creon that a tree that refuses to bend in a storm will snap and break, while one that yields will survive.

• The storm represents fate, divine power and inevitable change.

• The rigid tree symbolizes Creon’s stubbornness, while a flexible tree symbolizes wisdom and adaptability.

• This metaphor highlights the danger of inflexibility in leadership.

• Suggests that wisdom comes from compromise, something Creon fails to recognise until it’s too late.