The Tragedy of Antigone
In the story of Antigone, Oedipus has already died, his two sons. Polyneices and Eteocles, left to contend for the throne of Thebes. In their contention for the throne, the two brothers slay one another, leaving Creon once again to be the acting regent of Thebes. With this power, Creon declares that Polyneices must be left to rot on the battlefield, the highest disgrace to any Greek. Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, is left torn between state of family, and in the end, chooses family over state. Disregarding Creon's edict with grave danger to herself, Antigone ventures to bury the body of Polyneices, and thus begins her adventure. Antigone is truly a tragic hero, marked by her station as son of Oedipus, and her proud and perhaps arrogant characteristics which will lead to her eventual, inevitable, tragic ending. At the start of her tale, Antigone is the daughter of royalty, but more then that, a daughter of a horrible tragedy: through an unwitting horror story, her father, Oedipus, was also her brother, as Oedipus was married to his mother before she killed herself upon discovering the truth. Before his death, Oedipus had blinded himself, adding to the tragedy. However, Antigone's own tragedy was still unfolding. Through her proud and unrelenting character, Antigone is determined to give her brother a rightful burial, despite Creon's edict.
At first Antigone seeks the help of her sister, Ismene, but when she realizes the fear and submissive attitude Ismene possesses, Antigone disregards it as even an option, another example of perhaps Antigone's tragic flaw, her own arrogance. As the tale continues, Antigone does indeed bury her brother, but is caught by Creon. In doing so however, she wins the ...
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...lm manner are not maintained, and we will indeed be wiser from knowing her story.
The story of Antigone was a classic Greek tragedy: a continuation of the immense tragedy that had already befallen the house of Oedipus. Moreover, Antigone herself was a definite tragic hero, fitting every requirement and marked by every characteristic of a tragic hero. Despite her failings and downfall, justice of the human spirit shines through in the end, marking the story as a true tragedy: Creon is defeated by his own actions, and Antigone's own tragic death marks the beginning of that defeat. Quoting directly from the notes on classical tragedy, "Tragedy has a satisfying, redemptive ending because the events in tragedy are arranged so well that we would not have the play end any other way; we accept the conclusion." Antigone does indeed satisfy that requirement as a tragic play.
Antigone is a young woman whose moral background leads her to go against the wishes of the king to bury her brother, Polyneices. Sophocles uses Antigone as a character who undergoes an irreversible change in judgment and as a result, ends up dying. Antigone is hero, and she stands for honor, and divinity. Because Antigone's parents were Oedipus and Iacaste, she was born into a family of power; something that she could not change. At times, Sophocles leads the reader into thinking Antigone wishes she was not who she was. Ismene, Antigone's sister, refuses to help Antigone because (as she states) "I have no strength to break laws that wer...
The Deaths of Antigone and Creon Antigone and Creon are the main characters of the play Antigone written by Sophocles. Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus, who was a major figure in ancient Greek myth. Oedipus accidentally killed his father and married his mother. Because of that act, Oedipus ended up cursing his family and died a horrible death. After his death, his sons inherited his kingdom and in a power struggle ended up killing each other.
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.
In the play Antigone, both Antigone and Kreon could be considered tragic heros. A tragic hero, defined by A Dictionary of Literary, Dramatic and Cinematic Terms, is someone who suffers due to a tragic flaw, or hamartia. This Greek word is variously translated as "tragic flaw" or "error" or "weakness". Kreon's hamartia, like in many plays, is hybris - Greek for overweening pride, arrogance, or excessive confidence. Kreon's hybris causes him to attempt to violate the laws of order or human rights, another main part of a tragic hero. Also, like all tragic heroes, Kreon suffers because of his hamartia and then realizes his flaw.
They were unprepared for life in the wilderness. Most had the impression that everything would be easy in the new world. The men and boys who first settled in Jamestown were townsmen and gentlemen. “They had come expecting to find gold, friendly Indians, and easy living.” (America: A Narrative History, 57) This information was given to them before making the journey to the new world. The settles were also told they would be provided with everything they would need, but supplies from England were undependable. When they arrived there was no town or any shelter waiting for them. They had to learn how to hunt and grow their own food, which they were not use to or even knew how to do in this untamed world. Captain John Smith took charge of the colony ensuring that of the 38 original survivors had to pull their own weight. He used various means to archive his goals and through his efforts Jamestown pulled through. After a period called the “Starving Time,” (America: A Narrative History, 60), where most of the colonist died, a man named John Rolfe provided a way for the colony to survive. He was able to acquire tobacco seeds from the Spanish and with it he made the colony a source of trade (America: A Narrative History, 61). Tobacco and other grown good where used to improve the lives of the colonies, but their daily lives were still very harsh as they were
In conclusion, during Andrew Jackson’s life time, he was an eager politician; he was a great militarist, and a great president. He created many enemies, but he had made much more allies. He was a very popular president that is one of the reasons he won his presidency. During the military he was great at it, he was promoted through the ranks, because of his great mind. That influenced him during the political life, and gave him more popularity. Over all Andrew Jackson influenced many people and helped a lot of people and he was very great.
Andrew Jackson’s influence on the politics of his time was remarkable. He was the only president to have an era named after him. He also changed the way this country was run and expanded the country’s borders. He changed much, but the four most important aspects of this era, in chronological order, were his victory over the British, his defeat in the presidential race of 1824, his successful presidential campaign in 1828, and his decision to remove Native Americans to land west of the Mississippi. His victory over the British in the Battle of New Orleans lifted his popularity exponentially. He was a newfound American hero, and this pushed his political ambitions towards the White House. In 1824 Jackson was defeated in a close presidential race, dubbed the corrupt bargain by his supporters. He was not a man who liked to lose, especially when he felt that the people wanted him as president. Consequently, he ran a successful campaign in 1828, becoming the seventh president of the United States. One of the most important decisions Jackson made in office was the removal of Native Americans to lands west of the Mississippi River. These four aspects of Andrew Jackson’s life and presidency shaped this era into the Jacksonian Era.
Antigone is a strong willed character who is not afraid to defend her beliefs. After learning that Creon has denied Polyneices of a proper burial she uses her free will to decide that she must lay her brother to rest, as she strongly believes he should be honored like the other fallen soldiers. Unable to
Andrew Jackson was one of the most important figures in American history. Andrew Jackson was the 7th president of the United States of America, and served two presidencies. He was a man with a deep caring and appreciation for his family. Jackson among other things was a very successful businessman, lawyer, politician, and general. It was said that Andrew Jackson “brought the same determination and strength of character he showed on the battlefield to his presidency.”
Andrew Jackson was a very interesting man. He had a very terrible childhood and was a successful man. He became a president fought in wars and was very smart. Though many people despised him. They hated him for actions he did during the time he served as a president and he also had a pretty interesting love life that made his wife be accused of bigamy. Despite all the wrongs he did he is a key person to making America what it is today.
Once established, the Virginia colony had nothing to offer England. This all changed when John Rolfe introduced tobacco. Tobacco changed a poor useless colony into a thriving cash crop colony in just a few years. After the American Revolution, many farmers began growing grains such as wheat, oats, and corn. These crops required fewer workers to grow, didn’t take as many nutrients as tobacco growing did, and was in great demand in
Andrew Jackson is an extremely important individual in our society. Many people do not realize that he is the first president to be born as a common man. He does not have wealthy parents or a university education like some presidents before. He is high spirited with a quick temper and is always ready to support the people around him and defend himself. What makes his life significant enough to be remembered today?
Andrew Jackson despised the Indians and he made them walk from the east of the Mississippi River to west of the Mississippi River, Oklahoma, which is known as the Trail of Tears. It was called the Trail of Tears because about 4,000 Native Americans died on the trip due to disease or starvation. The motive for passing the Indian Removal Act is because Americans wanted to colonize on the Native American land. Through the process of removal, Indians had to adapt to both new environments and a new sense of their place in American society. The Trail of Tears has become the symbol in American history that signifies the insensitive and cruel disregard of American policy makers toward American Indians. The Removal Act was the first important legislation that reversed the U.S. policy of respecting the rights of American Indians, established US Policy towards Indian relations for the future, the first major treaty violation of the USA, and showed the Indians that the white man, and his government, could not be
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...
Tragedy of Antigone The play “Antigone” by Sophocles displays many qualities that make it a great tragedy. A tragedy is defined as a dramatic or literary work in which the principal character engages in a morally significant struggle ending in ruin or profound disappointment. In creating his tragedy “Antigone”, Sophocles uses many techniques to create the feelings of fear and pity in his readers. This, in turn, creates an excellent tragedy.