Creon's Attitude In Antigone

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Attitude is everything. In Antigone by Sophocles, one of the characters makes the remark, “Think all men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride” (line 34-36 scene 5). Pride is being shown in many ways throughout the play. Sophocles emphasizes different ironies to bring out Antigone’s arrogance. Creon’s intelligence, but also to show his irresponsibility and foolishness.
Sophocles demonstrates Antigone and Ismene's argument to show a vast amount of verbal irony. Antigone is being arrogant and snobby when she exclaims to Ismene, “You can prove what you are: a true sister or a traitor to your family” (prologue, lines 27-28). Antigone’s hubris provides verbal irony …show more content…

Sophocles depicts intelligence along with foolishness and irresponsibility to teach the world the importance of following the laws to avoid the consequences. “When laws are kept, how proudly the city stands! When laws are broken, what of the city then?” (Ode 1, line 21-22). This is situational irony because when one is smart and follow the laws things will go correctly. Creon has the incentive of taking charge and figuring out who is going against his law. On the other hand, when one disobeys the laws acting foolish and irresponsible things are bound to go wrong. Creon going against the laws gets him in a hard spot in his life losing everyone who is close to him. Creon’s stubbornness is implied when he states in scene 2, line 88, “The inflexible heart breaks first.” This shows situational irony because he himself states that the inflexible will break, when he is extremely inflexible when it comes to the law he has created. Sophocles purpose of this is to show when one goes against the gods (laws) one is destined to lose. Thus, causing Creon to live a hopeless life after he lost everything due to his inflexibility of his

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