In the play Antigone, there are three different main characters that are round: Creon, Antigone, and Ismene. Antigone and Ismene are sisters, and Antigone tries to convince Ismene that their brother Polyneices should be buried. Ismene refuses because Polyneices fought against the kingdom and is not allowed to be buried in any way. Antigone still goes against the law and buries her brother anyway. This shows that she goes into the sixth stage of Kohlberg’s theory. Kohlberg’s theory separates people into six different stages, and each stage shows a different level of maturity and how someone behaves. Antigone has gone through so much during this play, and even goes against the law for what she thinks is right, but she stays with her beliefs …show more content…
The reason that she is a static character is because she doesn’t follow any unjustified laws made by the King, but, instead, continuously goes with what she believes in: moral law. She tells Creon that she was the one that buried Polyneices at the end of the play because she’s not afraid of what he will do to her. After she admits it, Creon says, “And yet you dared defy the law.” She responds, “It was not God’s proclamation. That final Justice / That rules the world below makes no such laws” (2.64-67). When she says this, she is saying that there are no moral laws that say she cannot bury her brother. Another sign that shows she is static is when she is banished to a cave that Creon sends her to. She is sentenced to stay there with little food and starve inside until she dies. She says to Creon, “Soon I shall be with my own again / Where Persephone welcomes the thin ghosts underground: / And I shall see my father again, and you, mother, / And dearest Polyneices-- / dearest indeed / To me, since it was my hand / That washed him clean and poured the ritual wine: / And my reward is death before my time!” (4.60-67). In this quote, she explains that she wants to kill herself and accept her fate instead of trying to get out of the cave. Antigone knows that what she did was right and has no regrets, and she also feels that she has done her job to help her late
Furthermore, Creon is loyal to the state because he follows its laws. When he finds out that his niece, Antigone, is the one who disobeyed his authority and buried Polynices, he follows the law and orders to have her stoned even though she is part of his family and was soon to be married to his son, Haemon. Although it could be argued that Creon did go against his decree and changed his heart later in the play, he was too late because Antigone hangs herself and the consequences of his loyalty to the law had already taken effect.
Throughout the story of Antigone, particularly the end, Creon proposes the bad-boy in control personality. He acts as the ruler he is and puts his power to work. He fears nothing unless his family is involved. He has no mercy when it comes to the law. Additionally, he is greatly affected by the environment he creates around himself.
A tragedy is when someone drops my chocolate milkshake from Chick-Fil-A in the parking lot, but the Greek definition of a tragedy is,”a play in which the protagonist, usually a man of importance and outstanding personal qualities, falls to disaster through the combination of a personal failing and circumstances with which he cannot deal”(Collins). In Sophocles’ play Antigone, Creon is the most tragic character because of his hubris, hamartia, and he is the primary Antagonist.
Antigone is a powerful character, strong-willed, determined and at times self-righteous. She is contrasted by her sister Ismene, who is weak and powerless. Though Antigone is a powerful character, she has no real political power and is dominated by one man, Creon. Creon is both the ruler of the state as well as the patriarch of her family. Antigone was raised by Creon’s house after her own father went in to exile. Antigone is betrothed to Creon’s son, Haemon, further cementing Creon’s power over her. There is one aspect of life that Antigone does have legitimate power in and that is her family, especially her blood line. In ancient-Greek culture the women’s place was in the home, she was responsible for household things and often wasn’t even allowed to leave the house. It is because of this responsibility that Antigone needed to bury her brother Polynices even though it went against the decree of Creon. Antigone also had the gods on her side. It was an unwritten rule of ancient Greek society that the dead must be buried, otherwise bad things may happen. This rule, because it was unwritten and therefore innate, was protected by the gods, specifically Hades, the god of the underworld and family.
In the story of Antigone, which was written by Sophocles, the main characters of the story were Antigone and her uncle Creon. Despite that they were relatives, there were some conflicts between them. The story ended by the death of Antigone, haiemon her Fiancé and his mother, while Creon stayed alone after he had lost his son and wife. From the story no doubt there are some similarities and differences between Creon and Antigone.
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
Eteocles defended it” A “Nevertheless, there are honors due to all the dead” ( 1.126-129). At this part, Antigone is at stage five because she defends herself with what she believes is morally right and decides for herself what should and shouldn’t be a law. This makes Antigone a static character since she has not changed morally throughout the story.
It is equally important to note that even after she finds out that her own uncle is to blame for the disrespect toward Polynices’ body, she never recourses to violence. Rather than avenging her brother, Antigone only goes as far as insulting Creon. “Look at yourself, Creon!...
Sophocles play titled Antigone, embellishes the opposing conflicts between Antigone who stands for the values of family, and Creon who stands for the values of state. Sophocles explores the depths of Antigone’s morality and the duty based on consequence throughout the play, as well as the practical consequences of Creon who is passionate and close-minded. Although Antigone’s moral decisions appear to be more logical and favorable than Creon’s, a personal argument would be that both characters’ decisions in society can be equally justified.
In Sophocles' Greek tragedy, Antigone, two characters undergo character changes. During the play the audience sees these two characters' attitudes change from close-minded to open-minded. It is their close-minded, stubborn attitudes, which lead to their decline in the play, and ultimately to a series of deaths. In the beginning Antigone is a close minded character who later becomes open minded. After the death of her brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, Creon becomes the ruler of Thebes. He decides that Eteocles will receive a funeral with military honors because he fought for his country. However, Polyneices, who broke his exile to " spill the blood of his father and sell his own people into slavery", will have no burial. Antigone disagrees with Creon's unjust actions and says, " Creon is not strong enough to stand in my way." She vows to bury her brother so that his soul may gain the peace of the underworld. Antigone is torn between the law placed against burying her brother and her own thoughts of doing what she feels should be done for her family. Her intent is simply to give her brother, Polyneices, a proper burial so that she will follow "the laws of the gods." Antigone knows that she is in danger of being killed for her actions and she says, "I say that this crime is holy: I shall lie down with him in death, and I shall be as dear to him as he to me." Her own laws, or morals, drive her to break Creon's law placed against Polyneices burial. Even after she realizes that she will have to bury Polyneices without the help of her sister, Ismene, she says: Go away, Ismene: I shall be hating you soon, and the dead will too, For your words are hateful. Leave me my foolish plan: I am not afraid of the danger; if it means death, It will not be the worst of deaths-death without honor. Here Ismene is trying to reason with Antigone by saying that she cannot disobey the law because of the consequences. Antigone is close-minded when she immediately tells her to go away and refuses to listen to her. Later in the play, Antigone is sorrowful for her actions and the consequences yet she is not regretful for her crime. She says her crime is just, yet she does regret being forced to commit it.
Antigone’s firm belief that her brother Polyneices should have a proper burial is established by her conviction in that the law of the gods is above all else. This law proclaims that all men be mourned and honored by family and friends through means of a suitable burial. Antigone’s need to put honor upon Polyneices’ soul is so grand that she ignores the advice of everyone around her, including her sister Ismene, who tries to pull her away from performing this criminal act because it will disobey the law set by King Creon, and lead to her demise. However, Antigone does not care about the repercussions because even though “[s...
Attitude is everything. In Antigone by Sophocles, one of the characters makes the remark, “Think all men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride” (line 34-36 scene 5). Pride is being shown in many ways throughout the play. Sophocles emphasizes different ironies to bring out Antigone’s arrogance. Creon’s intelligence, but also to show his irresponsibility and foolishness.
Antigone deals with this turmoil because she tries to perform the noble act of loyalty to her brother, Polyneices, as well as her loyalty to her family. Polyneices was slain by his own brother, Eteocles, in a battle where both were killed by each other’s sword. King Creon sentenced Polyneices to be left dead and Eteocles to be given an honorable burial. Antigone is faced with the decision to let her brother, Polyneices, lay dead in the street to be scavenged by animals or to be buried in a proper and decent manner so as to be accepted by the gods. She is in a position that gives her no rights as a woman, sister, niece or future queen. Her decision to bury her brother demonstrates her loyalty to her family, the gods and to all women. Her motivation drives her decisions far more than that what the laws of state have implemented.
The fact that Antigone is willing to stand up to the rulers knowing that the wages of her crime is death, speaks to the character and integrity of passion that she has for not only her family but the God’s laws as well. On the other hand Creon has his stance as well that Polynices must not be buried and should be eaten by birds and animals of the land due to his traitorous attack on thebes and eteocles. This is the position Creon takes against the city and his own son, Haemon, who states to him that “the people and all Thebes together, deny it.” () Speaking of course about the actions of Polynices and his role in the attack on
The characters also change throughout the tragedy. Antigone is different than most female characters. She doesn’t change, but she is stubborn enough to stick to the only thing that she needs, and becoming blindsided to everyone else around her, and this is her tragic flaw: she’s undeniably depressed. Everything, according to Antigone, is gone from her life and nothing matters. In Antigone’s last scene alive, she argues with Kreon. Her every counterpoint to which Kreon says is just her talking of her utter demise. When she speaks with her sister Ismene, she is quite heartless; essentially, Ismene is trying to protect Antigone by saying she is sharing the blame for burying Polyneices: “I share the blame with her and will bear it also.” (line 558). She is so concerned with her sister she would rather die in her place, just to see Antigone alive and glad to start her new life. Antigone is abandoning the only sibling she has left, and by going to the underworld Ismene will have no one. Antigone is so infatuated with killing herself and wanting to see her family again that she forgets she still has some family left; and they are alive. Antigone’s last words are “Be happy. You are living; but my soul died long ago, to be useful among the dead.” (lines