Antigone and Single Parents

“Indeed! For of our two brothers, Creon

gives honorable burial to one,

but dishonors the other. They say that

he hid Eteocles beneath the earth

with well-deserved pomp and circumstance,

as one honored among the dead below;

but the corpse of Polynieces, who died

so sadly, they say it has been declared

to the citizens that no one may bury

or mourn him, but must see him unlamented,

unburied, a sweet find for birds to feast upon.”

--Antigone, Sophocles’ “Antigone”, 25-25

            Single parents have been a hot topic in communities and legislation for some time now. Governments hold meetings and panels to “speak up” for the single parents. What is ironic, however, is that the single parents can’t physically be there. Individuals attempt to represent single parents, but the lack of physical presence tremendously damages the single parents’ ability to represent themselves.

            So, there’s a huge misunderstanding. The “representatives” arrive and speak out as a kind of proxy for the single parents but what can truly replace the physical presence of the occupier of the “issue” at hand? The bottom line, explains Jane Juffer, is that the body (physical presence) must be accounted for, not just the mind (the value of the mind is a separate discussion, here the discussion pertains to the lack of physical presence).

            I would like to discuss two examples I find particularly relevant to Juffer’s deconstruction. The first is Sophocles’ “Antigone”, the second is the recent tragedy of the ship wreck off the coast of Italy disastrously resulting in the death of two beloved White Bear Lake residents.

            I will first briefly explain the context for the tragedy “Antigone”:

Antigone, the daughter of Oedipus (former ruler of Thebes), is caught in a trap between justice and livelihood. Creon, her power hungry uncle recognizes the death of both Oedipus’s sons (Antigone’s brothers) but only gives proper burial to Eteocles, intentionally leaving the body of Polynieces unburied and unmoved out on the battlefield for punishment to Polynieces treason against his fate.

            A burial is a high part of honor and tradition in Greek culture. To intentionally leave a person unburied is one of the greatest insults one could inflict on another person and their lineage.

            So Antigone, in pursuit of upholding her brother’s honor and in an epic quest for justice, ventures dangerously onto the battlefield to find and bury Polonieces’s body. The risk of her getting caught would result in death by stoning.

            Thousands of years ago, the respect and understanding of the importance and honor of the body was enough to die for.

            Fast forward to present day with the shipwreck tragedy off the coast of Italy, resulting in the death of two Minnesotans. Before anyone discovered the bodies, the family of the couple held prayer services and memorials to commemorate their lives. However, recently, the coast discovered the bodies.

            The Pioneer Press quotes the family after they learned of the discovery:

“We will now be able to move forward and bring them home to rest” – Pioneer Press.

The article also states:

“Erickson said the recovery of the couples’ bodies helps the parish enter the next stage of healing” – Pioneer Press

Undoubtedly, the essence of a person (mind, personality, and spirit) is quintessential to any person’s relationship with them, however, a relationship with a person physically present is different than the memory of their spirit or mind.

            Juffer captures the root of issue with representation of single parents. Single parents need to and deserve to represent themselves rather than have a stranger represent an idea that the stranger is Other to. Unfortunately, Antigone and the Heil family receive some type of closure while single parents remain stuck and misrepresented.

            Bodies are important.