Antigone and Ireland

A co-production with the Irish Humanities Alliance, UCC School of English, and the School of Law at TCD, the event brought a legal humanities perspective to bear on Antigone / Antigone – the figure and play that speaks across the millennia in ways that continue to trouble the literary and legal imaginations. Antigone’s claim has provided a foundational image of resistance for many writers - her confrontation with her uncle, King Creon, representing a kind of perfect exemplar for dramatic conflict. For legal thinkers, moreover, Antigone’s insistence on burying her brother has acted as a key source for exploring the origin and personality of law, whether this be natural law or positive. The symposium, which was aimed at anyone with an interest in law, literature, or the theatre, included the perspectives of academics, jurists and practising artists. 

Speakers on the day included: Mr Justice Brian Cregan, playwright Marina Carr, writer Carlo Gébler and academic and playwright Darren Murphy.