Chanya Likitkunawong
'To what extent does both Antigone and Creon's choice impact negatively on other characters.'
Antigone is a play that shows the reader the consequences of actions on not only the ones that made the actions, but also the consequences on bystanders. Due to certain actions made by Creon and Antigone, other characters in the play face an array of tragedies. Most of Creon's actions are driven from his paranoia and pride, viewing himself as the ultimate ruler of Thebes, equal to the Gods, however, Antigone's actions are driven from her devotion to her family and to the Gods and not some "mere mortal" (Creon). Wherever Creon views Antigone as a threat, Antigone views Creon as equal to her.
The extent of which Creon orders Thebes in a tyrannical matter exhibits
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how much fear Creon has as the new King. He tries to bury that fear by proving his power over his 'ship of state'. By implementing "such a brutal death" for Antigone who never "deserved death less" as spoken by the citizens of Thebes, it shows how they (citizens) do not respect Creon's authority enough to follow him blindly, exactly what Creon does not want to hear. When Haemon says this however, he is faced with being labelled as a "traitor", even when he may have spoken the truth in order to not only save Antigone, but to also save his father from criticisms across Thebes. Creon's paranoia is deteriorating to not only himself but other characters in the play. His pride is a defence mechanism that hides his paranoia. Due to his own nephews power-hungry activities, Creon feels the need to prove his power over the state and no longer trusts anyone. As a result of this, he makes irrational actions to fuel his own secureness, labelling all other characters that disagree with his actions as "traitors". This includes Haemon and Tyresius. By concluding that Haemon is a "traitor" and disregards what he has to say, Creon creates a wedge between them which eventually leads to Haemon's death. Tyresius' warnings once again disregarded, is cleared as "fake". Having not believed in his most trusted adviser's prophecies, a chain of tragic deaths follow in its path. Antigone's death lead to Haemon's death which inevitably lead to Eurydice's death, leaving Creon to finally acknowledge his own faults. Antigone persists to bury Polynices' body, against Ismene's wishes.
Ismene's duty to the State (Creon) is greater than her duty to her family (Polynices), this is assumed to be out of fear of losing Antigone as she is the only family Antigone has that remains. However, with Antigone's actions, Ismene is captured as per Creon's orders and is sentenced to death, Ismene accepts this fate. This maddens Antigone, not out of her losing "family" but maddens her out of Ismene's wishes against Antigone's doings. Antigone has "no love for a friend who loves in words alone", suggesting that she no longer has "love" for Ismene as her sister, let alone a friend. Yet, even though Ismene's wishes to be the sister that dies, Antigone ultimately has her tragic death, leaving Ismene alone. It can also be noted that Haemon is Antigone's fiancé, which shows how Antigone's actions were selfish even if she treated the act as devotion to the Gods. The acts are to be considered as selfish as although she did consider herself as a martyr at the beginning of the play during her discussion with Ismene, she did not consider the consequences of her actions on other characters, including Haemon's death and Ismene's
fear. Creon's tyrannical reign is assumed to be a farce for his paranoia and fear of being "betrayed" as he was previously attacked by Polynices and Eteocles, his own nephews which causes him to decree deteriorating actions to not only himself but other characters in the play. Antigone's devotion as a martyr is rather selfish as she did properly consult with other characters, only blindly following what she thought was best for the Gods.
In the play, Sophocles examines the nature of Antigone and Creon who have two different views about life, and use those views against one another. Antigone who is depicted as the hero represents the value of family. According to Richard Braun, translator of Sophocles Antigone, Antigone’s public heroism is domestically motivated: “never does [Antigone] give a political explanation of her deed; on the contrary, from the start [Antigone] assumes it is her hereditary duty to bury Polynices, and it is from inherited courage that [Antigone] expects to gain the strength required for the task” (8). Essentially, it is Antigone’s strong perception of family values that drive the instinct to disobey Creon’s orders and to willingly challenge the King’s authority to dictate her role in society.
Within these lines, Antigone reveals that she holds herself sanctimonious over her king by admitting his punishment is “nothing” compared to the “agony” she will face if she leaves her brother unburied. She also conveys a nonchalant attitude towards the repercussions of her action when she mocks Creon accusing him of being a “fool.” Although Antigone is aware that others such as her sister, Ismene and her fiancée, Haemon—the son of Creon, may suffer because of her act of civil disobedience, she is unwilling to abandon her protest to negotiate in a peaceful manner. This conduct implies that she does not completely comprehend the seriousness of her action or understand the weight of her crime rendering her approach inconsistent with King’s theory.
Choosing to follow authority and the law is admirable and important in order to have a stable society; however, prioritizing family over all is imbedded in humanity. Family is part of one’s identity and greatly affects one's morals and opinions. If a person solely lives a rigid life, following authority over family, then compassion and the ability to be flexible is lost. Sophocles poses if authority or family is superior through the characters Antigone and Creon as their actions and opinions drastically contrast. Creon puts more importance on his rule and the law, while Antigone emphasizes the devotion to her bloodline and the gods. Antigone, although depicting that authority and the king’s rule is important, puts more importance
Jodi Picoult once said “Some lessons can’t be taught. They simply have to be learned.”; in life what defines a person is what they become after they go through a series of trials and tribulations. Oedipus The King tells the story of a king who tries to outrun his fate and in the end self-banishes himself out of guilt leaving the kingdom of Thebes to Creon. The play starts with King Laius, who appoints Creon to rule in his kingdom while he consults the oracle at Delphi. Enraged by the death of King Laius, the gods cast a plague upon Thebes, which is the Sphinx, who starts to destroy the city. Terrified by the destruction of the kingdom, Creon states that anyone who might solve this riddle,
At the beginning of the play, Antigone brought Ismene outside the city gates at night for a top secret meeting. Antigone wanted to bury her brother Polyneices' body because even though he died in dishonor he was her brother. Ismene refused to disobey the king which is also their Uncle Creon, and she failed to talk Antigone out of doing the act herself. "Consider, sister, how our father died,/hated and infamous; how he brought to light/his own offenses..Then, mother...did shame/violently on her life, with twisted cords. Third, our two brothers, on a single day...Each killed the other, hand against brother's hand." (Antigone, Lines 59-65) In this quote, Antigone justified her reasons for going against the law describing how her parents went through so much, how their father was banished and due to this their mother had committed suicide because her reputation went down to the drain, even after all that their two brothers went into battle against one another and died in the process. Ismene was sympathetic, but still she was noble and afraid of Creon so she did not offer her help to Antigone.
In the story of Antigone, which was written by Sophocles, the main characters of the story were Antigone and her uncle Creon. Despite that they were relatives, there were some conflicts between them. The story ended by the death of Antigone, haiemon her Fiancé and his mother, while Creon stayed alone after he had lost his son and wife. From the story no doubt there are some similarities and differences between Creon and Antigone.
Although Antigone has a bad reputation with Creon, and possibly Ismene, for being insubordinate, she stays true to her values throughout the entire play by following the law of gods, not so that she could appease them, but because she admired its value of honor and respect to loved ones that have passed away. This devotion and determination to give her brother a proper burial shows the true essence of her being: that loyalty to family is in fact hold above all else.
She reminds Antigone that they are the only family members left and pleads with her not to commit such a crime, but Antigone refuses to accept the logic in her sister’s argument and will not be swayed, even though the idea of her death clearly upsets her sister. Ismene later has a change of heart and wishes to die alongside her sister in order to honor the dead as well, she even confesses to Creon, but Antigone rejects her idea of being a martyr, saying that her own death “will suffice” (Sophocles 136). Ismene then imagines life without her sister. The idea of losing the only kin she has left on Earth terrifies Ismene. She pleads to Antigone, “what life is dear to me bereft of you?” (Sophocles 136). Ismene would rather die than live without Antigone. In deciding to give her life for her brother, Antigone neglects her sister, and acts selfishly. She therefore should not have signed herself over to death as it has severely negative effects on her only living
Antigone utilizes her moral foundations, her religious roots, and the events of her past to form a sophisticated argument. Despite being unable to convince Creon to reverse her punishment, Antigone is able to convince the people of Thebes that she was right in her actions. After Antigone’s death, and the deaths of several others, Creon reflects on this monologue and realizes the honest truth behind Antigone’s actions and words.
The play Antigone by Sophocles is a play like no other. There are three major themes or ideas which have a very important role in the play. The first major theme is fate, on how the play comes about and the turn of events that come about throughout it. Another main theme or idea is the pride the characters have and their unwillingness they have to change their minds once they are set on something. The last major theme is loyalty and the practical problem of conduct involving which is a higher law between the divine laws and those of the humans. It is an issue of which law is the "right" law, and if Creon and Antigone's acts are justifiable or not. The issues that Antigone and Creon have between them are what ties this whole play together. The themes are also developed with the use of their issues between each other and what they believe in. "Freedom of religion was encouraged to be exercised in the city-states and man was focused on more than the Gods or heavenly concerns. These new ideas and beliefs, though good in intention, often conflicted with one another and created complex moral dilemmas. In the play, Antigone and Creon battle a philosophical war concerning their ideas"(Arrowsmith 296). Antigone represents the laws of the Gods while Creon represents those of the humans.
This play, Antigone, was titled after one of the play’s main characters; however, the title could have been “Creon”, due to Creon’s influence throughout the play. Creon was a major influence to the play’s plot as it involves Creon within a majority of the scenes, from beginning to end. Throughout the play Creon’s tragic countdown is expressed, beginning with him as king of Thebes to the death of his beloved family. Antigone is merely portrayed as a rebellious nephew, as she consistently defies Creon. Antigone is expressed within the play consistently; however, the play portrays decisions proclaimed by Creon, which displays Creon’s tragic flow. Being titled “Antigone”, does not accurately express the play’s content as Creon’s tragic fate is actually being described and represented.
Antigone if she is caught. As the play moves on there is a building of this fear and pity that is felt for many of the characters that finally is resolved at the catastrophe. At that point the reader learns that Creon, the king, has lost his wife, his son, and his niece Antigone, all because he was too stubborn to give in as well as to afraid that if he did give in that he would be judged as an easy king. In a way this ending brings the two emotions together. The reader feels pity for Creon because of his great loss, but at the same time he feels a bit of fear because he wouldn’t want this type of tragedy to ever occur in his life.
However, Ismene is not strong enough to stand up for her own beliefs. The courage to stand beside her sister eventually comes to Ismene. Sophocles suggests in the Prologue, that perhaps she is simply not as hot-blooded as Antigone. When Creon arrests Antigone and Ismene, Antigone is told that she will be executed. Ismene also asks to be executed with her sister Antigone. Ismene’s request angers Antigone, since she doesn’t think that Ismene should get credit for something she didn’t do, only knew about. While Ismene also loves her father and brothers, she realizes that fighting has only brought death to her family, and she does not see the point of continuing the
Antigone feels as if Ismene is betraying her and their family since she will not consent to help her bury their brother. Towards the end of the play, Ismene changes her mind and tries to claim that she helped Antigone bury Polyneices so that she can die with her sister. Antigone became furious, “Don’t try to share my death or make a claim to actions which you did not do. I’ll die, and that will be enough” (Sophocles 625). Antigone is upset that Ismene wouldn’t help her in the first place, but she wants to take the blame now. She feels as if Ismene has been disloyal to her and their family; therefore, she does not forgive Ismene for what she has done. This is considered a symbol from when Ismene denied Antigone. Now Antigone is denying Ismene. On the other hand, Creon adores Ismene for staying true to him and his rules. Creon realizes that she was very obedient and appreciates that. At the end of the play, he decides to spare Ismene instead of killing her with
Antigone’s own excessive pride drives her to her defeat. Her arrogance and strive for self-importance blinds her to the consequences of her actions. Ismene, Antigone’s sister, rejects to take part in the crime leaving Antigone all on her own. Ismeme declares “why rush to extremes? Its madness, madness” (Sophocles 80). Ismene fails to comprehend the logic behind her siste...