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Character Analysis Of Antigone In The Play Antigone
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Two human beings find out many things about themselves throughout the play, Creon, an ignorant, sexist king, and Antigone, a passionate, selfless, and loyal princess. Sophocles was a man who was influenced by what was going on in the world around him and teaches lessons with his writings. Sophocles edifies the world, through Creon’s ignorance and pride, to never close yourself off from something that will benefit you in the long run. Through Antigone his professes his message of loyalty to one’s family, passion for what she believes in, and selflessness for putting her dead brother over herself.
Antigone is a very passionate woman when referring to things that she is passionate about, she shows this through various types of irony throughout
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the play. Antigone hints to her outrage, yet selfless emotions in her verbal irony in Sophocles’s play. Antigone fiercely tells her resentful sister, Ismene, to “Go away… Leave me my foolish plan” (Prologue 86) while Antigone has been repeatedly pleading for her sister's help in burying their late brother Polyneices. The verbal irony is shown through Antigone’s want for her sister’s involvement, but says the complete opposite. Passionate and noble are two words that describe Antigone while showing the situational irony in Sophocles’s play. Antigone informs her king and father figure, Creon, that “I should have praise and honor” (Scene 2, 113) for her selfless act of burying her brother, Polyneices, who Creon decreed was not supposed to be honored in the ceremony of burial. The situational irony is obvious in this situation because Antigone is informing Creon of the emotions she should receive by her actions while she his being put to death/exile. That directly contradicts how Antigone feels about the entire situation. Because of her nobility and passion, Sophocles shows that, although Antigone knew the magnitude of her action, decided to defy the law of man and follow the law of the gods. Creon is the type of man that doesn’t like to admit when he is wrong and his ignorance shows through his irony throughout the play.
Creon’s slight sexism and ignorance is shown in Sophocles’s play, Antigone. It is shown through Creon’s repeated use of the phrase “the man” (Scene 1, 43, 60, 85, 136-138) when speaking about who buried his nephew, Polyneices. The dramatic irony in this phrase is that Antigone, a woman, is the person who buried her brother who has been dishonored by Creon, her uncle. The sexism aspect of the situation is also prominent in a conversation Creon later has with Antigone, which only proves his ignorance to the power of the woman. Creon’s innumerable pride and incredible ignorance is shown in Sophocles’s play. After Antigone defies his edict and admits to his face of her action, he is quite enraged of her selfless admittance that he responds “The inflexible heart breaks first, the toughest iron craft first, and the wildest horses bend their necks at the pull of the smallest curb” (Scene 2, 88-89). The irony here is that Creon is being ignorant to point where he is the one that is having the inflexible heart in this situation. Even his own son, Haimon, points this out in saying “trees bend, and because they bend their twigs are safe, while stubborn trees are torn up, roots and all” (Scene 3,
82-84). Antigone is a woman who is willing to put down her life for what she believes in. Here recently there has been some controversy over a Kentucky County Clerk named Kim Davis who stood up for what she believes in, while it wasn’t as severe as losing her life over it, she was willing to go to jail for a very long time. Creon is a man who doesn’t like to admit when he’s wrong, ignorance. Ironically that is normally a girl quality, but even when it slaps him in the face her still won’t admit it until he has lost everyone he loves. Although as Khalil Gibran puts it “The person you consider ignorant is the one who came from God, that he might learn bliss from grief and knowledge from gloom”.
Since the play’s inception, there has always existed a contention concerning the true hero of Sophocles’ Antigone. It is a widely held belief that Antigone must be the main character simply because she and the drama share name. This is, of course, a very logical assumption. Certainly Sophocles must have at least meant her to be viewed as the protagonist, else he would not have given her the play’s title. Analytically speaking, however, Creon does seem to more categorically fit the appellation of “Tragic Hero.” There is no doubt as to the nature of the work, that being tragedy. Along with this genre comes certain established prerequisites, and Creon is the only character that satisfactorily fits them all.
...se Creon was not yet the king of Thebes during the period of Oedipus’s ruling, and Antigone who was not yet a renowned figure acting independently in her own will without any dilemmas. It is until the story of Antigone when Antoine’s rights are desecrated by the might of Creon’s rule and that it led Antigone to bail and revolt against it. This is the dynamic that Sophocles sees in Antigone within the society of Thebes, and through the perception of Antigone’s heroic deeds, equal to that against the behavior of Creon, Sophocles exemplify to the audience the unbalance nature in society.
The hubris resonating throughout the play, ‘Antigone’ is seen in the characters of Creon and Antigone. Their pride causes them to act impulsively, resulting in their individual downfalls. In his opening speech, Creon makes his motives clear, that “no man who is his country’s enemy shall call himself my friend.” This part of his declaration was kept to the letter, as he refused burial for his nephew, Polynices. However, when the situation arises where it is crucial that Creon takes advice, he neglects the part of the speech where he says “a king... unwilling to seek advice is damned.” This results in Creon’s tragic undoing.
Not understanding or listening to the opinion of others can frequently have unfortunate consequences and even lead to tragedy. In the play, Antigone, written by Sophocles, the two main characters, Antigone and Creon, both failed to listen which led to the death of several people. It was exhibited how important it is to acknowledge the truth and this was the central theme of the play. The conflict between Antigone and Creon started because they had opposing viewpoints of whether or not Antigone’s brother, Polyneices, should have been buried after he died in battle. Antigone strongly believed that Polyneices should have because it was the law of the gods and they are eternal, while man’s laws are not. However, Creon, on the other hand,
Antigone, a resolute and heroic female protagonist, pits her individual free will against the intractable forces of fate and against the irrational and unjust laws of tyrannical man like Creon.
Sophocles uses irony in his play to show the quality of Antigone. Antigone showed verbal irony when she said “I should not want you” (Prologue lines 54-55). This shows irony because she came to Ismene asking for help and now she refuses her help. Antigone was rude to Ismene when she said this because she was blunt when she said it. This showed that Antigone was prideful because no matter what happened she would not let Ismene help her. Antigone showed verbal irony when she said, “our good Creon” (prologue line 23). This shows irony because Antigone did not believe that Creon was good when he said Polyneices could not be buried. She was being sarcastic and rude towards Creon when she said this to Ismene. This shows Antigone has a rude and character.
Antigone, a tragic drama written by Sophocles explores the different ranges of characters: static and dynamic or flat and round. Creon, King of Thebes in the dramatic play Antigone takes on the role that of a static character. Throughout the whole play Creon believed the idea that he was above the law of the Gods and his decrees cannot be disputed. Unknowingly, who would think that Creon’s sense of pride would cause him the life of his wife, son, and niece? However, at the very end of the play Creon returns to the palace, holding his son’s lifeless body, where he finds out that his wife has killed herself as well. Overwhelmed with grief about the death of his loved ones, Creon turns to the Chorus and says, “Lead me away. I have been rash and foolish. I have killed my son and wife. I look for comfort; my comfort lies here dead. Whatever my hands have touched come to nothing. Fate has brought all my pride to thought of dust” (1833). Creon takes responsibility of the death of his son and wife by calling himself a “rash” man and this is where Creon undergoes the changes of a dynamic character by admitting that he was wrong.
There are many similarities and differences between Antigone by Sophocles and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The adults in both of the books have the difficult job of controlling the actions of the younger characters. Their decisions have a crucial effect on the outcome of the books, for the younger characters that they guide are the main figures in their stories. Antigone’s King Creon and Romeo and Juliet’s Prince Escalus and Lord Capulet share but also have unique strengths, weaknesses, leadership qualities, and crisis-managing techniques.
Creon in the play Antigone by Sophocles plays a major role within the play. Antigone also plays an important role, as these two character’s conflicting views led to utter disaster, which highlights Creon as a tragic figure. Within the play Creon attempted to establish decisions for the common good; however, his decisions resulted in tragedy. Creon highlighted as the tragic figure, initially created decisions he thought were for the welfare and well-being of Thebes. However, Antigone, who rebelled against Creon’s decisions, caused Creon’s rage to cloud his rational way of thinking.
The play “Antigone” is a tragedy by Sophocles. One main theme of the play is Religion vs. the state. This theme is seen throughout the play. Antigone is the supporter of religion and following the laws of the gods and the king of Thebes, Creon, is the state. In the play Creon has made it against the law to bury Antigone’s brother, something that goes against the laws of the gods, this is the cause of most conflict in the story. This struggle helps to develop the tragic form by giving the reader parts of the form through different characters.
The sexist stereotypes presented in this tragedy address many perspectives of men at this time. Creon the arrogant and tyrant leader is, the very character that exemplifies this viewpoint. Antigone's spirit is filled with bravery, passion and fury; which allow her to symbolize the very essence of women. She is strong enough to do what her conscious tells her despite the laws of the land. Many examples in the play prove that Antigone's character is very capable of making her own decisions in the name of justice. First, Antigone opposes Creon's law and buries her slain brother; because in her mind it was immoral not to. She does this because she is compassionate and loves her brother very much. Creon, however, believes that his laws must be upheld and would do anything to prevent any type rebelling. He is even more infuriated when he learns that a woman has broken his laws. He tries to show Antigone who's in charge by sentencing her to a life of imprisonment. Secondly, Antigone shows how determined she is by accepting her consequences with pride. She does not try to hide that she is responsible for breaking Creon's laws, moreover, she takes all the credit. All the while she maintains her strength because she truly believes in her actions. These sorts of actions ultimately prove that Antigone is courageous and willing to stand up to men, which was completely against the norm at this time. Her spirit refuses to submit to the role of a helpless woman like her sister Ismene's character does.
“Antigone” is a great Greek tragedy by Sophocles. The story is about a young woman who has brother by breaking king’s decree, and now she is punished for obeying God’s law. In the classic model of dramatic structure, two characters move the action of the play from introduction to climax to resolution with their conflict. One of these characters is the protagonist, and the other is the antagonist. The protagonist is a “good guy” and the antagonist is the “bad guy”. In Sophocles’ play Antigone , the lines between protagonist and antagonist are blurred. In the Greek tradition , the title character is the protagonist, but in this play the supposed antagonist, Creon also displays characteristics of protagonist.
A psychoanalytic thought process has enlightened us on the mental processes that lead to their tragic decisions. The essays referenced also use this lens to differentiate between the reality and subconscious, and the inner tension between the novels three main characters. Creon, the king, struggles with fulfilling his role as king, while still appeasing the Gods. He confuses power with his patriarchal dominance over Antigone, hence allowing his stubborn nature to be revealed. Antigone on the other hand, moves passed gender boundaries during this time period, and has an inner conflict between her morality and civil law. Her response to Creon shows how strong of a female heroine she truly is. Finally, Haemon struggles with his position as a son, lover, and fellow citizen in the novel. He is overwhelmed by his father’s power of him, and in response, does not live up to the expectations of a stereotypical son in ancient Greece. In reference to these sources, we truly see how Sophocles developed his play Antigone to be the masterpiece it is. Being able to link it with his previous plays also helps us understand his underlying themes about the societal roles his main characters play. Antigone and its attached pieces are great plays to understand some of the internal struggles that man struggles
In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, it is greatly apparent just within the first few exchanges between Ismene and Antigone that there are various social issues surrounding the women in ancient Greece. The play raises many gender and socially related issues especially when looking at the contextual background of the playwright and the representation of the women within the play. When the characters of the first scene begin their analog, it is important to note what they are actually saying about each other and what their knowledge of their own social status is. The audience is first introduced to Antigone who we later learn is the antagonist of the play as she rebels against the protagonist, Creon. Her sister, Ismene, is the second character the audience is introduced to, hears of Antigone's plan to bury their brother's body in the first scene. Ismene’s actions and words give the reader the hint that her sister’s behavior is not usual, "so fiery" and "so desperate" are the words used to describe Antigone's frame of mind. At this very early point in the play the reader discovers that Antigone is determined to carry out her mission to bury her beloved brother. However, she is in no position that gives her the rights as a woman, sister, or even future queen to make her own decisions and rebel. Instead, her decision to bury her brother demonstrates her loyalty to her family, the gods, and to all women. Her motivation for those decisions will end up driving her far more than that of what the laws set by Creon have implemented. She shows no fear over disobeying the king and later says about the punishment of death "I will lie with the one I love and loved by him"(Sophocles, 2). Throughout the play the reader can see the viewpoint of an obedient woman, a rebellious woman, and the social norms required for both of them.
In their first verbal exchange, Antigone utilizes several words in her statements such as “say” and “deny”; the employment these words, which are explicit verbs, hints at Antigone wishing to take up the role of a man, as the utilization implies actions unsuitable for a woman, whose role is suppose to be mostly passive (P.56). Secondly, when Antigone asserts “But I will bury him”, Sophocles attempts to describe the defiant and blatant attitude of a woman – Antigone – towards the potent ruler Creon; this statement illustrates a sense of masculinity in Antigone because women during that time period acted submissively and subserviently, however, she overtly rejects to follow the almighty’s order, which was seen a sign of masculinity during that time period (P.55). Therefore, these are two of the most prominent examples from the literary text that best illustrate how Sophocles defined masculinity via the medium of a woman, who is suppose to be obedient and conformable, but instead is noncompliant and