Before Antigone was taken away to die, she cried out: "What law of the mighty gods have I transgressed?" (1013). Faced with death for upholding divine law, Antigone might have expected a miraculous rescue, proof of the gods' protection. Instead, she leaves the city feeling utterly abandoned by the gods.
In this scene, the blind prophet Tiresias makes clear that the gods are not indifferent to Antigone, although her name is never mentioned. While the gods do not intercede for Antigone directly, Tiresias' ritual augury reveals that her cause — the burial of her brother — is just. The gods, offended by Creon's refusal to bury Polynices, threaten the life of his own son. Given this prophetic warning, the pious response would be to bury Polynices immediately, and — although this is never mentioned — free the woman who upheld the law of the gods. The moral victory, muted as it is, goes to Antigone.
