Ismene, Interrupted

Abstract

Abstract This article studies the usage of the particle μέν as a discourse marker in the speech of Antigone and of Ismene in Sophocles’ Antigone , focusing on the prologue and the final dialogue between the two sisters. By demonstrating how the discursive practices of the sisters reflect their respective styles of reasoning, particularly through their differing usages of the particle μέν , this article explores how the construction of μέν solitarium can reveal what is left unsaid in order to show how the sisters engage in a coded conversation before Creon in their final dialogue, ultimately working in solidarity to resolve their fates, however tragic.