In the meanwhile the little child at Troezen on the other side of the sea had grown to be a man. His name, Theseus, was in everybody's mouth, for he had done great deeds of daring; and at last he had come to Athens to find his father, King Aegeus, who had never heard whether he was alive or dead; and when the youth had made himself known, the king had welcomed him to his home and all the people were glad because so noble a prince had come to dwell among them and, in time, to rule over their city. The springtime came again. The black-sailed ship was rigged for another voyage. The rude Cretan soldiers paraded the streets; and the herald of King Minos stood at the gates and shouted:

"Yet three days, O Athenians, and your tribute will be due and must be paid!"

Then in every street the doors of the houses were shut and no man went in or out, but every one sat silent with pale cheeks, and wondered whose lot it would be to be chosen this year.

–“The Cruel Tribute,”
James Baldwin

What directly causes the Athenians to hide in their homes?

the return of spring
the arrival of the Cretan soldiers
the arrival of Theseu
the oppressive rule of King Aegeus

1. in creon’s first words to the chorus, what are the “storms” that threatened to destroy the ship of state?   polynices’ invation of the city with foreign armies was the “storms” eteocles and polynices decided to switch the crown every year, but after eteocles’ first year decided not to share it with polynices. polynices joined forces with foreign armies to invade the city and tried to take the crown from his brother, where he and eteocles killed each other   2. examine creon’s opening speech. what are his concerns? how does he feel about the city and its citizens? what are his motivations for banning the burial of polyneices? what would drive creon to place the concerns of the collective citizens over those of his family?   in creon’s opening speech, his concerns are to count on his citizens to rule. in addition, he wanted to give a clear message by not giving a proper burial to polyneices, if creon gave a proper burial to polyneices his people would think that he was an allied to the foreign forces that invaded the city and threatened the peace of his people.   creon placed the concerns of the collective citizens because he has no use for those who put individual concerns over the needs of his people 3. pay attention to creon’s speech at the beginning of the scene. what does creon think someone’s first loyalty should be and what comes second? do you think he is correct under some conditions? do you think he is wrong in some conditions? explain those conditions. creon thinks someone’s first loyalty should be with the concerns of the collective citizens and second comes our individual wants. i think he is correct because true loyalty takes place in the benefits of many not of a few.   4. what news is the sentry reluctant to deliver?   the sentry is reluctant to say that polyneices had a burial. 5. who does the chorus suggest might have done this?   the chorus suggests that the gods have done that 6. what is creon’s reaction and who does creon think is responsible? creon reacted abruptly and thinks it was a man who bribed his guard to bury polyneices