Historical Context for the AntigoneRelates to: AntigoneThe basic subject material of the Antigone is drawn from Greek mythology. Several ancient epic poems known as the Theban Cycle, now lost, dealt with the family history of the house of Oedipus. Aeschylus too composed a trilogy about the tragic history of the Theban family, of which Seven Against Thebes is the only surviving play. There existed different versions of the same myth, as authors chose to focus on different aspects of the material. It is not certain whether any other versions centered around the denial of burial to Polyneikes as the Antigone does, but it seems to have been Sophocles’ innovation. The motif of the irreplaceability of a brother – as opposed to that of a husband or child – points to familiarity with Herodotus’ Histories, in which text we find a similar argument.