Friday, January 29, 2016

A close reading of the Parados from Antigone

1. Dirce was a Naiad who was married to king Lykos of Thebes. She was cruel to her niece Antiope however, and as a result she was tied to a wild bull and killed. Since she was a dedicated follower of Dionysus he made a stream flow for her near Thebes. The significance of armies fighting by the waters is that they are near a place where the nymph's loyalty was rewarded. Just as their loyalty to--or against Thebes shall have consequence.

2. "Windy phrases" means that Polyneices used lofty words of glory to rouse his troops.

3. A metaphor in the Parados is "He the wild eagle screaming insults above our land" (lines 94-95). A simile from the passage is "Rose like a dragon behind him" (line 104).

4. The pronouns "them" and "their" in this passage refer to the participants in the battle.

5. A couple examples of personification from this text are "The Earth struck him" and "O marching light."

6. I think "he" in line 100 refers to Polyneices, but I'm not 100% sure.

7. When we hear the word "bray" in line 106 we are supposed to think of horses that Sophocles implies the men resemble.

8. The word "he" in lines 107-110 refers to the gods looking down on the battle.

9. Lines 119-122 tell of the demise of the two opposing brothers in a long raging duel.

10. I don't think that line 124 can be called personification because it refers more to the residents of Thebes than the city itself.

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