Creon Character Analysis

The Characterization of Creon According to Aristotle there are six main elements to a play. These elements are plot, characterization, theme, diction, melody, and spectacle. Out of those six I have chosen to examine the element of characterization. While looking into characterization I will first look at how R. S. Gwynn defines the term within his book “Drama a Pocket Anthology 5th ed.”, and then I will look into Sophocles' use of characterization within his play Antigone by examining one of its main characters, Creon. Throughout this paper I plan to get an in depth look at the many aspects of characterization and how it’s used in the play. Characterization can be defined as the building or creation of a character in a play. Gwynn says that characters must be complex and have a few different motivational reasons. An example in support of the complexity of characters is when Gwynn says, “Nothing grows tiresome more quickly than a perfectly virtuous man or woman at the center of the play, and nothing

This ruler of Thebes, seems to clash against Antigone throughout the whole play. The main reason being that he supports human law while she disregards it for higher law. According to Creon, without human law the world would descend into anarchy, and he isn’t wrong. Creon goes on to say, “[It] destroys cities, rips up houses, breaks the ranks of spearmen into headlong rout. But the ones who last it out, the great mass of them owe their lives to discipline” (Sophocles 59). However, in his very next line he seems to let an ulterior motive slip. “Never let some woman triumph over us” (Sophocles 59). This line suggest that Creon doesn’t fight against Antigone due to her lack of respect for human law, but due to the fact that she is a woman. This ulterior character motive that is revealed adds to the level of complexity of Creon that is crucial for a good