In this book, Wm. Blake Tyrrell and Larry J. Bennett examine Sophocles'
Antigone in the context of its setting in fifth-century Athens. The
authors attempt to create an interpretive environment that is true to
the issues and interests of fifth-century Athenians, as opposed to those
of modern scholars and philosophers. As they contextualize the play in
the dynamics of ancient Athens, the authors discuss the text of the
Antigone in light of recent developments in the study of Greek antiquity
and tragedy, and they turn to modern Greek rituals of lamentation for
suggestive analogies. The result is a compelling book which opens new
insights to the text, challenges the validity of old problems, and eases
difficulties in its interpretation.