Tragic Errors and Politics of Guilt

Abstract

This article aims to evaluate the implications of the ongoing fascination with the figure of Antigone in contemporary literature. For this purpose, three main themes of sacrifice, transgression and Hegel’s Philosophy of Right are discussed. The fourth and final part of the text discusses the relation between tragedy, desire and guilt. The main interpretative attitudes towards Antigone ignore the conjunction of politics and social forces in deference to the image of a transgressive figure. In opposition to a politics of debt and guilt, in conclusion I introduce the concept of desiring production and its object.