Antigone's Passion and Ismene's Rationality

What is the relationship between Antigone and Ismene like? In what ways do they their conversations expose their true characters?

Antigone and Ismene are very different characters. Although they are sisters, the way in which they think and react in various situations is much different. They are both strong and passionate women, but what they are vehement about is not the same, making their ability to agree upon things very limited and their relationship complicated and at times antagonistic. Antigone’s fervent desire to bring justice to her brother’s death is overwhelming to her sister, Ismene, who is insistent about staying in accordance with the rules of the city and the standards of women. Ismene, acting as the mother figure, tries to calm her sister’s impulsive behavior but is unsuccessful as Antigone is unrelenting and uncompromising about her plans to give her brother proper burial rites. During their intense conversations, Antigone’s persistency and stubbornness becomes apparent while Ismene’s submissiveness is undeniable. Antigone exclaims, “Die I must, I’ve known it all my life—how could I keep from knowing (511-12)? . . . If I had allowed my own mother’s son to rot, an unburied corpse—that would have been an agony (520-22)!” Ismene says to her sister, “we must be sensible. Remember we are women, we’re not born to contend with men . . . I must obey the ones who stand in power (74-80).” Antigone holds her ground even after her sister tries to talk some sense into her. “I will bury him myself,” she proclaims. “And even if I die in the act, that death will be a glory (85-86)." Antigone displays her passion toward her beliefs. She feels that if she stands up for what she believes in, then dying for that cause will be good because in doing so, it brings her glory. According to her, to die for what one believes in is the ultimate means of glory. Antigone is carried away with this desire to have a glorious death and to uphold proper burial rites. It even interferes with how she treats her sister. In the mist of staying true to her beliefs, Antigone forgets about those who care about her and instead, focuses on her self without realizing how her actions may affect those around her. It is this lack of knowledge that makes Antigone a tragic character and her sister subject to the implications of her tragic flaws.

It is not until Antigone is caught and given her death sentence, that she starts to have compassion for the ones that care about her, in particular, her sister. Ismene comes forward to Creon saying how she should be punished with her sister because although she did not take part in the act, she feels responsible for her sister’s actions. Also, Ismene does not want to live without her sister because as she explained, “What do I care for life, cut off from you (618)?” Antigone refuses her sister’s desire to die with her. At first it seems that Antigone only wants her sister to live so she bask in all her glory alone but, later it seems more that she does not think her sister should die for something she didn’t do. Antigone shows some this compassion and remorse when she says, “Save yourself. I don’t grudge you your survival (624).” Although Antigone never really regretted her actions or was ashamed of them, in the end, she did realize that she might have gone about it in the wrong way—a way that deeply hurt her sister and her husband. Before her death she proudly says, “if this is the pleasure of the gods, once I suffer I will know that I was wrong. But if these men are wrong, let them suffer nothing worse than they mete out to me—these masters of injustice (1017-1020)!” In these words, Antigone exemplifies the tragic character in that in their tragic moment, when they have been brought down my some tremendous flaw, there is a deep realization or understanding of things. For Antigone, instead of blaming Creon until the end for her death, she accepts that it might just be the fate that the gods have given her.
(700)