The Evil of Disobedience Disobedience of the law leads to punishment if a person is caught. When the law is broken, negative repercussions tend to come out of that situation. In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, the protagonist, Antigone, plays a large role in the events that take place when she disobeys and commits her crime against the state. Antigone is to blame for the madness that occurs after burying Polynices because she knowingly defies Creon’s orders and disobeys the law of the land. Antigone is stubborn and will not accept that her brother will not be given a proper burial so she takes it upon herself to bury Polynices and breaks the law. She plots the burial of her brother in a conversation with her sister, Ismene. She continuously …show more content…
Ismene acknowledges her desires, however, she also says to her, “But what more, my poor girl, in times like these / could I do that would not tangle the knot further?” (41-42). She feels as if the only thing worse than the loss of her two brothers would be the loss of her sister in the act of committing a crime. Ismene attempts to warn her that she feels as if this action would only make the situation worse for her and her family, which is immediately disregarded. She does not want to listen to her sister because she knows that she will not like what she has to say and will not take no for an answer. Antigone, showing her defiance of the king’s wishes says, “He has no right to keep me from my own” (50). She does not acknowledge that the king has power over her. He does have the power to keep her away from her brother because he is the authority who has to protect the kingdom. While this may not follow the law of gods or be favorable to them, it is still the law of the city in which Antigone …show more content…
When Antigone is caught and brought to Creon the guard tells him, “I saw her burying the very corpse you / forbade” (412-413). Creon is baffled why his son’s own future spouse would go against his commands. He does not want to punish her like he had promised would happen to anyone who had buried the body, however, he knows that she was the one who defied him. Creon realizes the magnitude of her disloyalty to him when he
Therefore, she will do something to find her brother and sister. As show from her maybe she will sacrifice her life in search for her siblings. Furthermore, it i...
She ponders the importance of what her sister were fighting for, and in the end, whether or not their relentless efforts were made in
In both plays, the main characters break the laws for justifiable reasons. In Antigone, Antigone's dead brother, Polynices, is considered a traitor and King Creon "forbids anyone to bury him, mourn him" (Sophocles 88). She knows that all men deserve a proper burial and to not do so will be "an outrage sacred to the gods!" (Sophocles 95). Therefore, she "raise[s] a mound for him [Polynices]" (Sophocles 95) so that her city will not have to "face the retribution of the gods" (Sophocles512). She violates King Creon's decree to appease her gods. In Trifles, Mrs. Hale ...
In the play Antigone, created by Sophocles Antigone is a foil to Creon because their personalities contrast. This makes Creon a Tragic Hero because he thinks that he is a god but in reality he is a mortal upsetting the god's and he will eventually meet his demise. At the start of the play the reader is introduced to a character named Creon, who is the king of Thebes, the previous king, Eteocles, was killed by his brother Polyneices. There is a law arranged by Creon, so nobody could bury the body of Polyneices but Antigone, the sister of both Eteocles and Polyneices, wants to bury her brother and is willing to risk her life to bury him. She eventually gets caught and is sentenced to death by Creon.
Creon is in a position of great power, influence and responsibility. The extent of his power is quite clear when he sentenced Antigone to death for disobeying his order. Antigone's reasons for burying her brother were simply the fact that she was demonstrating her love, honor, and loyalty to her family. However, the reason Creon is furious is that he feels insulted that Antigone openly and publicly disobeyed him. He was also inflamed that she was his niece and his son Haemon fiancé. It is known that in ancient times when a man's authority is threatened, especially by a woman, his ego is irreparably damaged.
In Sophocles’ Antigone, the most prominent theme is the concept of divine law versus human law. The play opens with the debate between the sisters Antigone and Ismene concerning which law comes first- the devout obligations of citizens, or civic duty. Antigone requests for Ismene to assist her in burying their brother Polyneices, though the new king Creon, has prohibited burial on pain of death. It can be argued that Creon’s edict, which deprived Polyneices of his funeral rites, is understandable. The young man had been killed perpetrating the most atrocious crime of which a citizen could be guilty, and Creon, as the responsible head of state, naturally supposed that exemplary punishment was the culprit’s right...
He fells that people are already starting to do that at the beginning of his rule and says, “there have been those who have whispered together, stiff-necked anarchists, putting their heads together, scheming against me in the alleys” (i 113-115). His paranoia causes him to feel that people are plotting against him, which causes him to not accept input from other people. Because he is so clear that he does not want rebellion, Creon is very unhappy when Antigone buries Polyneices and feels that this is some form of rebellion. Instead of just accusing Antigone of the illegal burial, Creon blames her for “a double insolence, breaking the given laws and boasting of it” (ii 80-81). Though Antigone never boasted about defying the law, Creon is so self-conscious that he sees the act as much more than it really is. Finally, Creon does realize that he must break away from his ignorant ways. By the time he realizes that he should “not fight with destiny” (v 101) and that “the laws of the Gods are mighty” (v 108), it is too late. He was too oblivious and caught up in his own self-consciousness that he was not able to make the right decision quickly enough. Though Creon did eventually understand his mistakes, it was not enough to save him from the wrath of the
...ess her husband just so happens to die. Her husband has spent most of his nights with the couple’s personal servant, Sarah, who has conceived the children of this man. Ms. Gaudet also dislikes the children solely for the fact that they remind her much of her husband. Manon is soon granted her freedom when her husband is murdered by African- American rebels.
Of the tragic figures in Antigone, Creon is the most obviously evil because his motives are self-serving and his fate the worst. As the play begins, we learn that Antigone has defied Creon's royal decree by performing sacred burial rites for her exiled brother, Polyneices. Polyneices has been declared an enemy of the state by Creon. The sentence for anyone attempting to bury him is death by stoning.
However, compliance is not enough for Antigone. The desire to honor her brother goes way beyond her instinct to protect herself. Antigone finally accepts that her sister is not going to help her in her mission: “Go be the person you’ve chosen to be./ I’ll bury Polyneices myself. I’ll do/ what’s honorable, and then I’ll die.” (Antigone lines 84-85) This statement proves that Antigone is aware of what the consequences for her actions will be. She comprehends that choosing to defy the government by honoring her brother will end in certain death, and she seems at peace with her decision. Antigone’s responsibility appears to be the driving force in her defiance. We see plenty of examples in the story where Antigone feels it is her job to preserve
You shall leave him without burial...” (222). Opposing the king, she neglects the decree and is now to die at the orders of the law for being disobedient; yet Antigone proudly states her crime. There is no sign of remorse shown by Creon as he states: “No; though she were my sister’s child or closer in blood than all that my hearth god acknowledges as mine, neither she nor her sister should escape the utmost sentence-death” (530-33). Bobrick, explains that Creon values the love for his land more than he values family and this becomes a struggle for Antigone as it becomes a fight between obeying the laws of man and the laws of the god’s. The second struggle Antigone faces comes when she realizes she is alone. Antigone confides in her sister Ismene with her plans to disobey Creon; but Ismene, a clear example of how a lady was obliged to be in this time, urges Antigone not to commit the act. Antigone rejects her advice and declares that Ismene is an enemy to her now (41): “If you talk like this I will loathe you, and you will be adjudged an enemy…” (109-10). Antigone must fight on her own. Thirdly, per Bobrick, Antigone
The setting of the drama is in a fictional kingdom known of as Thebes. This kingdom is basically run by a set of rules and laws. Whether they are necessary or not, these rules must be obeyed. In Thebes, one of the rules states that Antigone's brother is not allowed to due a respectable death and therefor, will not have a proper funeral. Antigone is torn apart by this. Her brother whom she loved very much will not be able to have a respectable funeral. She explains in the drama how much she disagrees with the rules of the land. Because of this disapproval toward the law, she takes it upon herself to remove the corps of her brother from it's assigned post so she can do whatever she wants with it. She has broken the law. Although what she is has done is the right thing to do in her mind, the law states that it is not allowed. Throughout the drama, she consults her sister, Ismene, about whether or not she feels though she should commit this crime or not. Ismene makes it clear that she should not and attempts to discourage her sister from doing what she did. Contrary to the advice of her sister, Antigone does indeed commit this crime for she feels that it is what a good person would do.
One major theme in Antigone is the abuse of power. Creon and Antigone cause doom to their lives as they display resistance to power. The two characters attempt to override divine law with the law of the states, which leads to ruin. Creon, displaying a resistance to moral law, denies Antigone the opportunity and rightfulness to bury her brother, Polynices. This is due to Polynices’ rebellion against Creon, the King of Thebes. Antigone serves as a threat to the status quo. She gives up her life out of her commitment to principles above human law—moral law. Creon believes that the laws created by the King must be obeyed no matter how big or small they are. Creon argues that the law created by the King is the platform for justice. On the other hand, Antigone feels that there are unjust laws, despite who made them. She believes she has a moral obligation t...
who is plotting against her father as well. She says that she feels the same
However, Armand Duval’s father refuses to consider a prostitute as his daughter-in-law. Due to the father’s repeat obstruction, this pair of lovers breaks up eventually. After many years, they came across in Paris. When Armand Duval knows the truth that the reason why Marguerite leaves him is that their romance is related to his sister’s wedding, Marguerite is so sick that can’t live long. At last she passes