Everett Ethan Everett Ms.

Ward Honors English 10A, Period 4 October 27, 2011

Not one civilization in the past has viewed women comparable, on any degree, to men. Sophocles shows this discrimination in the play Antigone. A great amount of scenes give context clues on how poorly women were treated. Even though females were treated as the inferior being of the two, it didnt stop them from leading an army to battle or command the respect of empires. Women may be regarded as the weaker gender, nevertheless, they to possess the strength and courage of any man. Anitgone and countless others throughout history delineate these qualities. In troublesome situations people tend to look for guidance from a male since they believe men more equipped to lead then females, however in the past and in modern times it has been known for women to rise up and take the leader position from man. Antigone is before Creon after she was caught protecting Polynices corpse from being eaten by wild animals. A few remarks from Antigone start to make Creon feel threatened. Who is the man here, she or I(2.81). Anitgone showing her rebellion openly without fear makes Creon worried for his manhood since Antigone is acting more like a man than he is. A women acting like a man is similar to the case of Hatshepsut putting on the attire of a man when she ruled Egypt. In a way you could interpret Hatshepsuts actions as her trying to prove to her people she can govern just as effective as any man. And she did, many experts today say that Hatshepsuts reign was one of the most prosperous of any pharaoh. Courage and valor are traits that many people regard with high respect when acted upon,

Everett especially by a female. Antigone displays an abundance of bravery when she informs Ismene about her plans for Polynices. I am not afraid of the danger; if it means death, it will not be the worst of deaths/ death with out honor(prologue. 80-81). Antigone is full aware that she may very well die, but she would gladly welcome death then desecrate the honor of her deceased brother. That is courageous when a person does the right thing even though they are in for a bumpy ride. Joan of Arc exhibits courage when she rallies her troops to victory at the battle of New Orleans in 1429. Her courage was more than equal to that of any man. Women have had to endure discrimination of their gender for centuries. Still even today they face sexist issues. When Creon is informed that someone violated his decree about

Polynices, he automatically accuses a man of committing the crime. And the man who dared do this?(1.78). This abrupt accusation that a man did this suggests that Creon doesnt believe a woman would have the temerity to do such a thing. From a vantage point this line can be linked to Rosa Parks when she refused to give up her seat on a crowded bus to a white person. This was huge because one she was an African American and secondly she was a woman. Who would have predicted a black female would not give in to the superiority of the white people in that period of racial tension. Rosa became an icon for black people just off that one brave, courageous act. Women, supposedly the inferior gender, have irrefutably proven that they have just as much courage and strength as men and are able to harness it to mold the future. Women have not stopped breaking the limits set upon them by others in the past, and they most definitely will not stop now.

Everett Work Cited:

Sophocles. Antigone. The Language of Literature. McDougal Little. Evanston, IL: McDougal Little inc., 2000. 1022-1060.

Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 22 July 2004. Web. 10 Aug. 2004. <Www.wikipedia.org/>