More handpicked essays just for you.
Antigone and creons conflict affect how creon is a tragic hero
Who is creon in antigone
Who is creon in antigone
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Creon's Tragic Insecurity in Antigone In ancient Greek tragedies at least one character has the misfortune of having a tragic flaw. The flaw usually effects the protagonist and leads to his down fall. Normally, the characters close to the protagonist are all affected by his flaw. In Antigone, by Sophocles, Creon's tragic flaw is that he is insecure. Creon's insecurity leads to the death of many people and to his own downfall. At many times, Creon feels that people are directing everything toward him, when of course they are not. Consequently, he takes action to make sure people take him seriously. He hopes his actions will teach people not to walk all over him and his empire. However these actions are not always the right ones. Since Creon is so insecure he feels that people are conniving against him. When Polyneices was found buried after Creon clearly announced no one was to bury him, Creon completely dismissed the idea that it could have been the gods or a mere woman who buried Polyneices. He said, "There have been those who have whispered together. Stiff-necked anarchists, putting their heads together, scheming against me in alleys."(9) The mention of the word "those" shows that Creon feels many people are out to disobey his laws and make him look bad. Contrary to Creon's belief it was a woman, Antigone, who had gone to bury her brother Polyneices because she felt he deserved a proper burial. Creon's insecurity made him feel that a large group of people were against him when in reality it was only one woman who disobeyed his law. Creon's insecurity blinds his ability to direct order in his country properly. After Antigone buried Polyneices Creon felt he needed to take a strong stand or people would think he would always be lenient toward criminals. However, to achieve this Creon felt he needed to take drastic action against Antigone. He once even said to his son, Haimon, who was about to marry Antigone, "The woman dies. I suppose she'll plead family ties. Well, let her. If I permit my own family to rebel, how shall I earn the world's obedience?" (19) This quote shows that Creon feels that to prove himself to the country he needs to earn the "world's obedience".
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.
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.
First, Creon is a tyrant. His rule will not be remembered for many reasons, one being that he desecrates family honor. When a son or father dies in battle, they are carried home to be properly buried by their families. Eteocles, Antigone’s other dead brother, is a patriot and is buried because he fights for Thebes. However, Polynices is not buried because he rebels against Thebes. Creon leaves Polynices’ body out to be attacked by dogs and vultures. This angers the people of Thebes because family honor is very important to them. Therefore, the people of Thebes will not remember Creon because of his offensive deeds performed while he is on the throne.
In the play Antigone, I choose Creon to be the tragic hero because he is the King of Thebes and he looses everything he has. Creon being King makes the audience believe that something like that can happen to the King then what can happen to us. Antigone the niece of Creon, The sister of Polyneices was punished by Creon for burying Polyneces after his death, Creon has forbidden anybody to do so. Once Creon punished Antigone the blind prophet Teiresias told him that the Gods will take revenge for his actions, then Creon tried to change everything but he is too late. Creon's tragic flaws were his stubbornness, the abuse of power and the actions he took to cause the downfall of the Thebes.
The power Creon had was the cause of his stern and haughty traits and irrational judgments. He needed an affirmation of his manhood and confirmation that everyone he ruled over would assuredly respect him and his decisions. In fact, he felt so intensely threatened by the feminine and dominant Antigone that he decides to destroy her. "This girl is guilty of double insolence, breaking the given laws and then boasting of it. Who is the man here she or I?" Creon, scene 2. Instead of punishing Antigone for burying her traitorous brother Polyneices and increasing the respect of his nation for their king, he pushes them further from him in fear and silent disgust. His people recognize his tragic flaw: pride. Instead of a reign filled with luxury and happiness and respect from his citizens he condemns hi...
In terms of Sophocles’ Antigone, Creon only makes the law against burying Polyneices to protect his own position atop the throne. His decree was meant to make an example of Polyneices and frighten his subjects into submission amidst a chaotic and unstable time. Tiresias, a blind prophet, sees this and when he confronts Creon on his decisions in running the kingdom, he says, “The generation of kings has always loves brass” (Sophocles 233). Those in power have trouble perceiving what is really important. In his kingdom’s time of strife, solidifying his own rule was not an issue of value. Creon should have tried to help those who were struggling in their time of need. Instead, he looked out for his REGAL POSITION and made poorly thought out laws, eventually leading to tragedy throughout his kingdom. Haimon, Creon’s son, realizes his father is not looking out for the kingdom and confronts him, saying, “you are not in a position to know everything that people say or do...But I, at any rate, can listen” (Sophocles 218). While Creon rests atop his throne, looking at his kingdom from above, deciding what is best for everyone within, Haimon lives with the population. In some ways he sees more than his father in terms of the wishes of the people. Creon, blinded by his power, can neither see what is good for his people nor the reasons behind his son’s
likes him and looks up to him. After that there is a war between the
Creon doesn’t believe in the family ties that Antigone is deeply connected to. He is loyal to the idea of his city, rather than the people of Thebes and their needs. Creon, although not villainous, is the antagonist of the story. An antagonist in power is a recipe for corruption and misconduct within a government. By forbidding the burial of Polynices, Creon is proving that he recognizes his attempt to overthrow the king. This shows a certain weakness and fear within Creon, and shows that he wants to keep his position. Creon’s thirst for power and control is a clear example of the corruption within the government. Overall, it can be pretty easy to find corruption within a absolute monarchy, but Creon takes it to a new level by putting his followers in complex moral situations. Antigone must choose between her loyalty to her family and lost brothers, and her loyalty to her city and Creon. Evidently, she sided with her family, going against Creon’s rule. The fact that she was put into this situation by Creon proves that he is not only the antagonist, but the source of corruption within the government.
Creon is the tragic character of Antigone because his pride blocks the path of him being wise. He sentences his niece, Antigone, to death because she has buried her brother, Polynices, whom Creon considers a traitor. This leads to an argument to his son, Haimon, who is also Antigone’s fiancé. Haimon disagrees with his father and believes that Antigone should not die because she was only following the divine laws by burying her brother. However, Creon still remains stubborn and disagrees with his son since he believes Antigone should be punished for disobeying the ruler’s law. In return, Haimon says “The city would deny it to a man” (2. 3. 102). He explains that the people of Thebes disagrees with his father regarding Antigone’s punishment and considers her honorable. Unfortunately, the citizens fear Creon and they’re helpless in this situation. This leads Creon to get enraged at his son and his mind is still set on executing Antigone. Haimon responds by saying “Not here, no: She will not die here, King...
As king, he passed a law stating that the fallen late king, Eteocles will receive a royal burial while Polyneices won’t be buried at all because he was a traitor to the kingdom. Creon encountered problems as soon as the decree spread to the people of Thebes. His niece, Antigone, disobeyed his law and went against him by burying Polyneices. Creon was furious that his own flesh and blood would defy him. When he captures Antigone, he accuses her of treason. As Antigone continues to defy him and disrespect him, Creon’s hubris or excessive pride takes over him. “Listen, if she’s not punished for taking the upper hand, then I am not a man. She would be a man! I don't care if she is my sister’s child --- or closer yet at my household shrine for Zeus --- she and her sister must pay the full price and die for their crime.” (484-489) Creon believes he is doing what is right for his kingdom. Creon, just like Antigone, is a stubborn person who can never acknowledge when he is wrong. He needs to show the people he is the leader of Thebes and they need to follow his every order. However, Antigone refuses to serve under him any longer. Creon was afraid that others would side with Antigone and turn against him as well. Therefore, Creon put her in a tomb so she can be forgotten. Nevertheless, people, like Teiresia and Haemon, still warned Creon how his actions will set the path for the prophecy. Creon doesn’t
In the following paper, I plan to discuss the source of conflict between the title characters of Antigone and Creon in Sophocles’ “Antigone”. I also plan to discuss how each character justifies his or her actions and what arguments they give for their justifications. I will also write about the strengths and weaknesses of these arguments. The final points I try to make are about who Sophocles thinks is right and who I think is right.
But throughout the play, his decisions are truly of why he is pertained as a tragic hero. One of which, is his tragic flaw, being his arrogance in the face of the gods, and pertaining his pride to overrule other things more important. For example, “Whatever you say, you will not change my will.”(Creon), this conveys his self-righteousness and his ways of wants. In Creon’s definition as king, he is the only one to have a say, while the people cannot and do not have the chance to speak out their opinion. Creon upholds the laws of the city that when Antigone tries to rebel against, he becomes stubborn. He never wants to believe that he could be wrong, especially to someone younger, especially to a woman. This pride illustrated to the gods, resulted to having himself face the deaths of his son and wife. Creon, then, may have the realisation of his pride taking over him to what he did wrong, “My own blind heart has brought me from darkness to final darkness.”(Creon), but his fate was already decided because of his own self, and failure to recognize his own wrong doings, even when he was
She believes that Divine law is the only moral way she could live and she will get honor in death if only she acts in favor of the gods will. Antigone is able to put a small bit of dirt on her brother to, in her mind, give him a proper burial. Throughout the play the main characters argue about which of their choices of what to do with Polyneises corpse is justifiable. Both take different sides of law; civil law verses divine law. Each person’s actions were perfectly reasonable in his or her own minds. Creon, in justifying his law appears to be conceited and believes nobody should question him or stand against him. He also has a mind set that is stubborn. He doesn't want a ‘inferior’ women to change his mind because he would appear weak to the people of the kingdom. He has a lot of self-pride and the gods do not favor self-pride. Creon and his son Heamon argue about his fathers decision to kill his bride to be and Heamon confronts his father, “its no city at all, owned by one man alone.” Creon replies, “what? the city is the kings-that’s the law.(Antigone, line 824-825)”. Creon couldn't handle following a law made by a superior being, the gods, he believes himself to be the most superior. The civil law that Creon made was very
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.
they are using it, it will be a good product. Sex appeal and use of