1. When Creon believes Antigone has violated the decree and hubris as she begins to justify her actions. Creon angrily snaps back, “Go to Hades, then… As long as I live, I will not be ruled by a woman” (523-525). These lines reveal that Creon has a very short fuse and views Antigone as a threat to his power. This fuels his actions as he struggles to prove he has control of the situation which is contradicted by his quick tempered responses. On the other hand, Creon believes he is the only rational person in the room. He stands ready to punish Antigone for challenging him as a man and as king, despite her argument in support of the gods and her familial values.
2. Antigone is a martyr because she is completely prepared to die for her belief that Polyneices deserves to be buried. She states no one could force her to break the laws of the gods and declares, “I’d die in any case, of course I will,” (461). Someone who is willing to die for their cause, or someone who does, is the definition of a martyr. While some might believe Antigone is the heroine, she fits the description of a martyr and is not the typical heroine description anyways. While she is the protagonist and standing up for her good
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Creon stated that Antigone should be put to death, because she openly defied him as her superior as both a man and her king. While this argument may have been effective for that time, today he would have been communicating that she should obey him solely because he said so. This argument is extremely weak and Antigone counters claiming she should not be punished because his laws do not line up with the gods. This is seen when Creon asks Antigone if she violated the law and she replies, “What laws? I never heard it was Zeus/Who made that announcement”(450-451). Antigone and Creon are similar even in their differing opinions, because they are both incredibly stubborn in their beliefs. This stubbornness drives their sassy, hot tempered debate throughout the
Creon's pride is that of a tyrant. He is inflexible and unyielding, unwilling throughout the play to listen to advice or Antigone. Creon’s love for the city-state cause him to abandon all other beliefs. He tries to enforce this upon the people of Thebes. He wants them to think that his laws should be followed before any other personal, moral, or religious belief. This is where the conflict of character occurs between Antigone and Creon. Antigone knows that the sacred laws held by heaven are far more important...
Creon in the play of 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.
The character Antigone has been in conflict against Creon ever since he became the king of Thebes. Antigone would never let Creon's law about burying the body of Polyneices override her moral beliefs and her beliefs in the gods. “Zeus did not announce those laws to me, And justice
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.
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.
Antigone’s strength allows her to defend her brother’s honor against Creon, who wants to make a statement about traitors. However, both Antigone and King Creon commit faults while trying to protect the things they love. Antigone should not have died for her beliefs as it puts her loved ones and community in danger, and Creon should not have forbidden the burial of Polyneices as it angers the Gods and causes him great suffering in the end.
Aristotle's view on a tragic hero is someone that would have to be held in high standards (royalty) in order to evoke compassion and anxiety in the audience. Creon and Antigone are royalty and share the most important aspect of a tragic hero, each have a tragic flaw. Both of the two characters have an inability to compromise or even reason with. Antigone's tragic flaw was amplified by her loyalty for her brother; she acted irrational, in not taking preparation or thoroughness into consideration when burying her brother. Further more when confronted by Creon, himself she disrespected and basically told him to silence himself because his words were "distasteful" to her. So then sealing her death by becoming an immediate martyr for the wrong cause... anything against Creon's will.
Creon addresses Antigone’s prayer to Zeus when he declares, “Who cares if she calls out “Zeus!”/And calls him her protector? I must keep my kin in line” (658-659). This statement reveals that Creon is not reverent to Zeus, despite his claims. Creon values retaining and proving his own power over showing respect to the gods, otherwise he would consider that the gods might actually side with Antigone and wish for her to survive due to her bravery. Instead, he sees her as a threat to his power and plans to execute her.
How he insults people because they said or did something he didn’t like. On lines 324-326, Creon insults the Chorus Leader by saying, “Stop now-before what you’re about to say enrages me completely and reveals that you’re not only old but stupid, too.” In this quote, Creon insults the Chorus Leader because he said a reasonable thing that Creon doesn’t want to believe, so instead of ignoring him or at least think about it, he insults him like a child. Also in this quote, Creon is once again not taking advice, it’s worse this time because not taking advice from a young man is reasonable sometimes, but the Chorus Leader is wise and older than Creon. On lines 600-601 Creon says to Antigone, “ No woman’s going to govern me-no, no-not while I’m still alive. In this quote, Creon is not only sexist but childish. The way he said this quote was like a child saying he doesn’t want to share. Also in this quote, we see Creon lose his mind a little bit, he is pushing and insulting everyone away. Antigone may have betrayed him, but he is the one making everyone hate him. Creon once again has shown us how tragic he really is. He has become a tragic hero, kind of like every bad guy. He has pushed people away, acted rudely, insulted everyone, and even acted worse than a toddler. Now he can spend the rest of his life as a tragic hero all
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.
Creon believes that his laws are absolute and must be followed above all else, even Divine Law. Therefore when Antigone, in accordance with divine law, goes against Creons edict by burying her brother she is forcefully imprisoned and sentenced to death by Creon. In Creons opening speech he says, “Of course you cannot know a man completely, his character, his principles, sense of judgment … Experience, there’s the test” (Sophocles, p. 67). How Creon handles Antigones unlawful actions serves as his first test as the new king of Thebes and ends up showing the Thebans a glimpse of his true nature, that of a tyrannical ruler. This can be seen again when Haemon comes to Creon with the hope of dissuading him from his current course of action. He does this by trying to make Creon understand that the citizens of Thebes don’t agree with his use of power and planned execution of Antigone. Again Creons authoritarian nature comes to light in his response to Haemon, “And is Thebes about to tell me how to rule… Am I to rule this land for others – or myself?” (Sophocles, p. 97). To which Haemon counters by saying that “its no city at all, owned by one man alone” (Sophocles, p. 97). Creon, being the tyrant he is, fails to heed the wisdom of his sons’ words, which ultimately leads to his downfall. Creon, like Machiavelli, believed that it was
Creon's noble quality is his caring for Antigone and Ismene when their father was persecuted. Creon is a very authoritative person and demands control of others. When talking to the Chorus, Creon does not ask them to agree with the decree but demands that they follow it. Creon expects loyalty from others. It is apparent that Creon is very dominating and wants to be in control. "The man the city sets up in authority must be obeyed in small things and in just but also in their opposites"(717-719). Through this quote the reader realizes that Creon wants obedience in everything he decides even if he is at fault. "There is nothing worse than disobedience to authority" (723-724). Further supporting Creon's belief that everyone shall remain faithful to him even if he rules unfairly. This is proved true when Creon says, "Should the city tell me how I am to rule them?" (790).
To open, the things he said showed how he changed and became the tragic hero of the play. Many of his statements reveal his personality including his admirable parts and his flaws. When Creon says: "I call to God to witness that if I saw my country headed for ruin, I should not be afraid to speak out plainly," (Sophocles, scene 1,24-26), it shows his strong sense of nationalism and leadership which catches up with him in the end. "The inflexible heart breaks first, the toughest iron cracks first, and the wildest horses bend their necks at the pull of the smallest curb" (scene 2,76-79) is what Creon says to Antigone after finding out she is the one who buried Polynieces. He thinks that if Antigone wasn't so headstrong and arrogant then she could have avoided the consequence he was about to give her. I think Creon was being a hypocrite because he is just as stubborn as she is. The reason why Creon and Antigone come in to so much conflict is because their ways of thinking are almost exactly alike. "It is hard to deny the heart! But I will do it: I will not fight with destiny" (scene 5, 100), is a statement that shows Creon detecting his fault and how he needs to correct it. After talking to Teiresias, the blind prophet, he realizes in order for the higher powers to forgive him he needs to release Antigone. "Fate has brought all my pride to a thought of dust" (exodos, 138). Creon recognizes his flaw and its consequences but it is too late because fate has already occurred.
Creon's character possesses an infinite number of glitches in his personality, but his excessive pride was the root of his problems. His pride leads him to make accusations, before he considers the wise advice of others. Creon's pride also fills him not just as a king superior to the Gods, but also a man superior to women. The issue of Antigone being condemned to die becomes more than just a person who disobeys Creon; instead, the punishment is given even more eagerly, because it is a woman who disobeys a man. Creon's intelligent son warns Creon the people of Thebes sympathize with Antigone, but Creon accuses Haemon of being a "woman's slave" (line 756). Even though he is suppose to be loyal to the state and her citizens, he defensively questions if "the town [is] to tell [him] how [he] ought to rule?"(Line 734)The Theban king is too prideful to obey even the wisest of prophets, blind Teresias, insisting that "the whole crew of seers are money-mad" (line 1055). Creon finally puts his pride aside and listens to the Chorus' wise advice. It is difficult even then, and he obeys only because he fears the punishment that he might receive. "To yield [for Creon] is terrible" (line 1095) meaning to swallow his pride and admit that he is wrong is a very difficult thing for him to do. When Creon loses his wife and son, Creon's pride disappears, and he admits that he made a terrible mistake by not listening to anyone's advice.
Even Creon, although he wants to resist and continue to fight for what he believes is right, he knows better than to fight fate. Everyone learned this lesson from Oedipus’ mistakes. The Chorus, at first, were in Creon’s side due to the fact that she had disrespected the Head of the State, however, after Teresias’ warning, The Chorus changes their opinion and mentions how perhaps the burial was the will of the gods. The Chorus and the people learned to empathize Antigone, and she was a source of inspiration and realization that no matter how powerful a person is, they are defenseless against the almighty gods. Antigone’s approach to death is almost fearlessly as she is unwilling to live in a world where the word of a man is means more than the word of the gods. “God forbid it e’er should please… and yet how otherwise had I achieved a name so glorious as by burying a brother? … Where they not gagged by terror, Manifold a king’s prerogatives, and not the least that all his acts and all his words are laws.” (497-506,