Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the play over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. In Scene 3, Antigone and Kreon argue their points about the burial, alluding to a much larger thematic discussion on God and Man’s Law.

• Do these characters agree or disagree on which category of law is more important to follow? (topic sentence)
• Based on your above answer, provide examples for each character.
• Based on the ending of the play, which law does Sophocles appear to regard as superior?

2. The Chorus, a constant presence in the play, repeatedly returns to the theme of Fate and its Inescapability.

• What is the Chorus’s general position regarding fate? (topic sentence)
• Identify three examples in which the Chorus references the fate and destiny of a character.
• Is there another character that frequently mentions fate, other than the Chorus?

3.