Question

The Greek chorus in Antigone not only comments on the action of the play and relays background information, but it also gives the audience a sense of the relationship between Creon and his subjects. Select the excerpt that shows the chorus’s insight into Creon’s effect on his subjects.

CHORUS Each left behind his armor bright, Trophy for Zeus who turns the fight; Save two alone, that ill-starred pair One mother to one father bare, Who lance in rest, one 'gainst the other Drave, and both perished, brother slain by brother. . . .
CHORUS God of Thebes, lead thou the round. Bacchus, shaker of the ground! Let us end our revels here; Lo! Creon our new lord draws near, Crowned by this strange chance, our king. What, I marvel, pondering? . . .
CHORUS Son of Menoeceus, thus thou will'st to deal With him who loathed and him who loved our State. Thy word is law; thou canst dispose of us The living, as thou will'st, as of the dead. . . .
CHORUS What strange vision meets my eyes, Fills me with a wild surprise? Sure I know her, sure 'tis she, The maid Antigone. Hapless child of hapless sire . . .

Answer 1

God of Thebes, lead thou the round.
Bacchus, shaker of the ground!
Let us end our revels here;
Lo! Creon our new lord draws near,
Crowned by this strange chance, our king.
What, I marvel, pondering?

Answer 2

CHORUS Son of Menoeceus, thus thou will'st to deal With him who loathed and him who loved our State. Thy word is law; thou canst dispose of us The living, as thou will'st, as of the dead. . . .

Step-by-step explanation:

In these lines, the chorus suggests what the nature of the relationship between Creon and his subjects is. In these lines, the chorus speaks to Creon. We learn that Creon is someone who loved the state. This is confirmed by Creon's actions throughout the play. We also learn that Creon's word "is law" and that he can dispose of the living and of the dead as he sees fit. This power to act, a well as his interest in preserving the law is what causes his clash with Antigone in the first place.