What specific characteristics does the use of Ismene as a foil character?

Answer and Explanation: The personality traits that make Ismene an effective foil for Antigone is her timidity and her sense of civic duty.

What does Ismene represent in Antigone?

Both Ismene and Antigone represent filial duty in Oedipus at Colonus, but Ismene takes the less heroic role. Unlike Antigone, Ismene, it seems, has a nearly normal, stable life. She does not serve her father’s needs or share his danger daily, as does Antigone.

What is Ismene known for?

Ismene in Antigone is the sister of Antigone and the youngest daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta. She is a loyal but cautious sibling. In contrast to Antigone’s headstrong personality, Ismene is reasonable and understands her place.

What are the characteristics of Antigone and Ismene?

Antigone had unwomanly strength and extraordinary courage. But towards the end she became distinctly womanly, although she courted death for a noble cause. Ismene was womanly all through, although, in the course of time she gathered ample strength. In The Oedipus at Colonus we left Ismene as a helpless girl.

What is Ismene’s tragic flaw?

Ismene’s tragic flaw is that she’s too fearful to stand up to her uncle Creon. While she is loyal to Antigone by keeping her secret, she is not strong enough to help her honor their brother.

Why is Ismene weak?

The weakness that Ismene has in Antigone is that her fear of suffering in her temporal existence outweighs her desire to please the gods in heaven. She will not face the punishment that would come to her in this life for breaking the law, even though she thinks the law against burying her brother is unjust.

What does the name Ismene mean?

knowledgeable
The name Ismene is girl’s name of Greek origin meaning “knowledgeable”. Sister of Antigone and daughter of Oedipus in Greek mythology, Ismene’s name is unlikely to make it in modern times because of its teasability factor.

How does Ismene change from the beginning of the play to the end?

Ismene has changed because in the beginning she wasn’t willing to help her Sister bury Polyneices because she didn’t want to go against the law and when they are going to execute Antigone she wanted to die with her and she finally realizes her sister was right.

What is Ismene’s motivation?

What is Ismene’s motivation when she refuses to help her sister Antigone bury their brother? The fear of Creon, and the power of the state. What is the augury? An omen that teiresias saw that showed him Creon’s future.

What was the fate of Ismene?

The 7th-century BC poet Mimnermus accounts that Ismene was murdered by Tydeus, one of the Seven. In this account, Ismene and her lover Theoclymenus met outside of the city during the siege. Tydeus had been told their whereabouts by Athena, and apprehended Ismene while Theoclymenus escaped.

What kind of person is Ismene?

Ismene. Blonde, full-figured, and radiantly beautiful, the laughing, talkative Ismene is the good girl of the family. She is reasonable and understands her place, bowing to Creon’s edict and attempting to dissuade Antigone from her act of rebellion. As in Sophocles’ play, she is Antigone’s foil.

Why did Ismene change her mind?

Why does Ismene change her mind about her brother’s burial? She does not want to abandon her sister and wants to protect her.

Is Ismene a hero?

Ismene’s great fall from nobility, her mistake of not helping her sister bury Polynices, and the great suffering she has to endure after having to watch her sister die are some characteristics of a tragic hero, although she does not quite fit the part because these are mostly cause her father’s curse; she does not …

How old is Ismene in the play?

between 13 and 17 years old
Ismene is likely between 13 and 17 years old, despite Sophocles never mentioning the age of Ismene or her sister Antigone in the play Antigone. Some scholars argue that Ismene is the older of the two sisters because of her obedient behavior regarding the laws set forth by Creon.

Is Ismene older than Antigone?

Ismene is Antigone’s younger sister. She too is a loyal sibling, but she’s more cautious than Antigone, and fears the consequences of defying their uncle Creon. Eteocles is the brother of Antigone, Ismene and Polyneices.

Who is the villain in Antigone?

King Creon
Lesson Summary

King Creon can be the antagonist or the victim in this play. He is the antagonist in that he refuses to honor Polyneices and the gods by burying Polyneices, and when Antigone tries to bury her brother, Creon sentences her to death.

Is Ismene alive at the end of Antigone?

Ismene does not die in the play Antigone, but is one of the few key characters to survive.

Who is Ismene married to?

Argus
ISMENE SUMMARY
ParentsAsopus
HusbandArgus
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