CONFLICT OVER BURIAL OF THE DEAD: ANALYSIS OF SOPHOCLES’ ANTIGONE AND ROBERT FROST’S “HOME BURIAL”

We don’t always need giant issues, events, wars, national and international conflicts and catastrophes to reflect upon the culture, history and politics of a society at a given time and place. Routine and domestic issues are potentially possible to become terrific point of reference to debate and reflect larger concerns governing society and cultures. This essay analyzes how a routine, fundamental subject of burial of the dead creates conflicting discourses on relative position of law, religion and passions in different culture and how it leads to generate critical debate on women status, their efforts for identity, man-woman contrary response to death/burial and husband ?wife relationship with reference to two literary texts of Sophocles’ Antigone and Frost’s “Home Burial”.