Antigone | Historical Context

Antigone Historical Context

Fifth Century Greece and Its Influence

The fifth century B.C. in Greece was a time of great advancement in philosophy, art, and government. Great writers such as Aristotle, Aeschylus, and Sophocles wrote plays, philosophy, and political tracts that would influence the world for thou sands of years to come. Democracy was being established, and the first doctors were taking the "Hippocratic Oath," written by Hippocrates the Great in 429 B.C.; this oath is the same oath taken by contemporary doctors. The Golden Age of Athens (480-404 B.C.) was in full swing during Sophocles's lifetime, and it was during this period m history that many ideals of the modern Western world first appeared.

Bronze Age of Greece

Antigone takes place in Bronze Age Thebes; sometime during the 1200s B.C. Sophocles uses the legends of the family of Oedipus (Antigone's fa ther) in order to explore social and political issues of his time. Attending the theater was a civic and religious...
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