I am not afraid of the danger; if it means death,
It will not be the worst of deaths ––death without honor.
- Antigone
I’m ashamed to say I knew nothing about Antigone and ashamed further still that I knew nothing whatsoever about Greek tragedies. I read the English translation by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald from 1939 after a fair amount of research.
It Is a fairly easy read but you become immediately aware that a second and third read will be essential to truly grasp the nuances of the story as well as, assuming near total ignorance, research into some of the quirks of the format; what is and what purpose does the Chorus serve, for example.
I had never considered what and if we owe the dead. Thousands of years have passed since Antigone was first written and performed but there is still a lot to be learned.
I’d highly recommend listening to the episode of In Our Time; lots of interesting observations and explanations as well as historical context and notable performances.