"Antigone doesn't think, she acts, she doesn't "reason," she feels."
Throughout the play, Anouilh focuses on the idea of action. Antigone makes the decision to bury her brother, as Creon has denied, and she sticks with it, even though this will surely mean her death. She is driven by emotion more than logical thought.
Nurse: Where have you been?
Antigone: Nowhere. It was beautiful. The whole world was grey when I went out.
Anouilh concentrates on neutrality in both the language and in what the audience sees on stage. The stage is bare, and the grayness that Antigone depicts sets up the neutral feeling.
Antigone: Save your tears, Nanny, save them, Nanny dear; you may still need them. When you cry like that, I
become a little girl again; and I mustn't be a little girl today.
Antigone has already made the decision to bury her brother, and she accepts her consequent death. She is the only one who knows, at this point.
ISMENE. I thought about it all night long. Antigone, you're mad.
ANTIGONE. Am I?
ISMENE. We cannot do it.
ANTIGONE. Why not?
ISMENE. Creon will have us put to death.
ANTIGONE. Of course he will. HE WILL DO WHAT HE HAS TO DO, AND WE WILL DO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO. HE IS BOUND TO PUT US TO DEATH. But we are bound to go out and bury our brother. That's the way it is. What do you think we can do to change it?
Antigone looks down on her sister, Ismene, who refuses to help her. Ismene was against crossing Creon to bury their brother, and does not support Antigone's actions or her stubborn nature. Ismene values living more than Antigone. Antigone is not merely duty driven, but emotionally driven. Each sister thinks they understand the situation better than the other.
ANTIGONE. Haemon! You took a solemn oath! You swore! Leave me now! Tomorrow the whole thing will be clear to you. Even before tomorrow: this afternoon. If you please, Haemon, go now. It’s the only thing left that you can do for me if you still love me. [HAEMON exits] Well, it's over for Haemon, Antigone.
Antigone would rather accept the responsibility of burying her brother against king Creon's wishes, rather than living a happy life with the man she loves. It is hinted at that Antigone might be pregnant, and the reader knows that she has slept with Haemon before their wedding. Although pregnancy is never confirmed or denied, the idea stresses how important Antigone believes her task to be.
"The play is on. Antigone has been caught. For the first time in her life, Antigone is going to be able to be herself."
Antigone has never been able to make decisions for herself. Anouilh is interested in the idea of choice, which plays a vital role in the work. Perhaps Antigone is so stubborn in her decision to bury her brother because it is the first real decision that she has been able to make for herself and see through.
CREON: Life is nothing more than the happiness that you get out of it.
ANTIGONE. Happiness...
CREON. Not much of a word, is it!
ANTIGONE. What kind of happiness do you foresee for me? Paint me the picture of your happy Antigone. What are the unimportant little sins that I shall have to commit before I am allowed to sink my teeth into life and tear happiness from it! Tell me: to whom shall I have to lie? Upon whom shall I have to fawn! To whom must I sell myself? Whom do you want me to leave dying, while I turn away my eyes?
The discourse between Creon and Antigone makes up huge portion of the play. Creon has spent a long time trying to convince Antigone that she does not have to die, even thought she has disobeyed him. Antigone is about to give into Creon when he mentions "happiness". Antigone is not able to see happiness in her future and cannot comprehend what is meant by it. Instead of convincing Antigone to return to her room, Creon has convinced her to stick with her original intention of dying for her actions.
