ANALYTICAL ACCOUNT OF A RUNNING THEME
“All those who were meant to die have died: those who believed one thing, those who believed the contrary thing, and even those who believed nothing at all, yet were caught up in the web without knowing why.” This particular quote by Jean Anouilh, author of Antigone, helped me choose fate, one of the more interesting underlining themes in all three plays: Oedipus the King, Antigone, and Medea, as the topic for my paper. No matter how hard the protagonists or antagonists in each play tried to change the fate of the protagonists, they failed and fate took over the chain of events. When humans try to change that which is beyond their control, they often fail and make the matters even worse than before as expressed by the authors of the three plays.
When Oedipus was born to Laius and Jocasta, their happiness was interrupted by a horrible prophecy: Oedipus will kill Laius and marry Jocasta when he grows up. The mood in Thebes changed from joyous to somber for the king chose to have his own son killed so that he could remain alive. Considering the situation from Laius’ point of view, it is not difficult to understand his actions but the mere fact that he tried to challenge fate causes his actions to seem ironic and cynical. By tinkering with fate, Laius caused the death of Jocasta, and Oedipus’ blindness and banishment in addition to the events caused by fate. In Antigone, Anouilh portrayed Creon in a similar way as Sophocles portrayed Laius. They both contributed more damage than benefit to the protagonists and their families with their “noble intentions.”
When Antigone violated the law created by Creon and tried to bury the body of her brother, Creon should have ordered her to be killed right away. Since he tried to persuade Antigone to forget about the body of her brother and marry his son, which was against her fate, his plan did not work out. One might think Antigone, being of noble blood and having a chance to marry a prince, was out of her mind to jeopardize her life while worrying about a dead body but Antigone’s fate was to die fighting for respect of her family. By delaying her death, Creon inadvertently caused the death of his wife and son. Jason tried to interfere with Medea’s fate and lost his life as well as the life of his loved ones.
Firstly, Oedipus meant very well, as a ruler. All of the events that were described to unfold under his rule seemed to have the best intentions. Oedipus had no control over the fate of Thebes, nor the fate of Laius.Yet, with all of this grief, Oedipus still listens to the advice from Creon, that was received from Apollo, and chose to look into who murdered Laius to lift the curse off Thebes....
In the play Antigone, created by Sophocles Antigone is a foil to Creon because their personalities contrast. This makes Creon a Tragic Hero because he thinks that he is a god but in reality he is a mortal upsetting the god's and he will eventually meet his demise. At the start of the play the reader is introduced to a character named Creon, who is the king of Thebes, the previous king, Eteocles, was killed by his brother Polyneices. There is a law arranged by Creon, so nobody could bury the body of Polyneices but Antigone, the sister of both Eteocles and Polyneices, wants to bury her brother and is willing to risk her life to bury him. She eventually gets caught and is sentenced to death by Creon.
...f civil disobedience causes a tragic domino effect. Antigone commits suicide. Haemon, who is Creon's son and Antigone's fiancé, is torn apart by grief and kills himself. Haemon's mother and Creon's wife, Eurydice, learns of her son's death. She becomes despondent and takes her own life: "She drove home to the heart with her own hand, once she learned her son was dead" (Antigone 1440-1441). Her words do end many things. The law is banished. Her brother is allowed to be buried, but now he is accompanied by three others.
After being locked up in a dark, damp cave, Antigone was fed up with wallowing in her own pity, and takes her own life by “hang[ing] by the neck in a fine linen noose, strangled in her veils,” (1347–1348). Seeing the graceful young woman embraced in the arms of his own son, Creon immediately swells with anger towards un-masculine Haemon because of his display of love, and the significance of Antigone’s death goes straight over his head. Her strong sense of self – knowing who she is, what she values, and what makes her happy – enables her to make regretless decisions that alter her time to come. One of those decisions instigated Haemon’s fate to be sealed as well, prompting Eurydice, mother of the prince, to join her son in the underworld. Not long after becoming aware of her child’s downfall, Eurydice sacrifices her life at the heart of the palace, and “raised a cry for the noble fate of Megareus, the hero killed in the first assault, then for Haemon, then with her dying breath she called down torments on [Creon’s] head–[Creon] killed her sons,” (1429–1432). Creon’s heart fills with grief, for the fault of these three deaths lies with him, and pathetic self-pities are the only thoughts running through his mind. Despite the three-deceased’s blood lying
Of the tragic figures in Antigone, Creon is the most obviously evil because his motives are self-serving and his fate the worst. As the play begins, we learn that Antigone has defied Creon's royal decree by performing sacred burial rites for her exiled brother, Polyneices. Polyneices has been declared an enemy of the state by Creon. The sentence for anyone attempting to bury him is death by stoning.
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.
Antigone was caught and death was the price to pay as ordered by Creon, not to her surprise. Death to Antigone seemed wanted, it was the only thing left as honor for her. Haemon, the son of Creon and Antigone’s fiancé has enough respect for his father that he does not interfere with Creon's decision to put Antigone to death.
...ut her son’s death, she goes and slits her throat. Creon then feels Antigone’s direct action when he is all alone at the end of the play. His edict caused so much pain in suffering for his family, he led them all to suicide.
In the beginning of the play Creon is portrayed as King and a leader unwilling to bend the rules in order to protect the city. The way Creon responds to Antigone, “While I’m alive, no woman is going to lord over me”, shows he is stubborn and also his pride. (593-594) While the play continues Creon’s pride grows, and he thinks he can never be wrong and punishes Antigone by locking her up in a cave. However, things turn a different way when the Prophet tells Creon that he must free Antigone or face the wrath of Gods. After hearing this Creon changes his mind, “I shackled her, I’ll set her free myself. I am afraid it’s best to keep the established laws…” (1236-1238) But, as Creon tries to set Antigone free, he is faced with suicides of Antigone and Haemon, and followed by the suicide of his wife, Eurydice. This moment in the play serves as the downfall of Creon. But unlike Antigone, Creon reaches anagnorisis, which is the moment in the play when the tragic character realizes his hubris has led to his downfall. “And the guilt is all mine- can never be fixed…god help me, I admit all!”(1441-1445) Ultimately, Creon is more of a proper tragic character than Antigone because of he has an epiphany, a moment when he realizes his hubris has caused conflicts and deaths in the
These big words that he proclaimed would bring down his downfall. Because Creon locked Antigone up, to bury Polyneices, she killed herself. Creon's son Haimon, who was engaged to Antigone, also committed suicide upon seeing his beloved Antigone dead. Creon's wife took her own life. If Creon hadn't gone against what was right, by making his laws more important than the god's laws, and issuing his edict, he would not have suffered the way he did.
Antigone causes the death of three people, whether directly or indirectly. First of all, she directly causes her own death because she hangs herself, rather than starving to death inside the sealed up tomb the Creon had her put into. Second, she directly causes the death of Haemon because he loved her and truly cared for her and her did not want to live without her. Lastly, Antigone indirectly causes Eurydice, Haemon’s mother and Creon’s wife, to kill herself when Eurydice learns that Haemon killed himself. “Thy wife, [Creon,] the mother—mother of the dead—is, by a blow just fallen, haplessly slain.” This shows that Eurydice was mad enough to kill her, because many thing have happened to her, the death of her son, her husband’s excessive pride, etc. She also knew he and his pride was the cause of this mess.
The characters in the play disagree with morality on many things. So when it comes to a self caused death being moral or immoral Antigone and Creon are on different sides to of the spectrum. Antigone believes that is moral. “Ismene- Bury him! You have just said the new law forbids
This illustrates one of the qualities that make Oedipus an admirable leader. The rising action of this play occurred when Creon returned from the oracle with the news that the plague in Thebes will end when the murder of Laius, the King of Thebes before Oedipus, is found and driven out of Thebes. In some parts of the play Oedipus’ investigation of the murder of Laius has turned into an obsessive investigation into his own hidden past as he begins to suspect that he is the man responsible for King Laius death and the plague that has attacked Thebes. By his own free will, Oedipus pushed the oracle, the Shepard, Jocasta, Tiresias, and Creon to inform him regarding him about his origin. No matter how much other characters refused to inform him, Oedipus keeps moving onward. The falling action of this play occurred when Oedipus’ suspicion turned into reality. Through his investigation of the murder of Laius, Oedipus discovers that King Laius and Queen Jocasta of Thebes, where his birth parents, and the prophecy that was given to him when he was an infant. His strong desire for seeking the truth and knowledge has led Oedipus to his
You shall leave him without burial...” (222). Opposing the king, she neglects the decree and is now to die at the orders of the law for being disobedient; yet Antigone proudly states her crime. There is no sign of remorse shown by Creon as he states: “No; though she were my sister’s child or closer in blood than all that my hearth god acknowledges as mine, neither she nor her sister should escape the utmost sentence-death” (530-33). Bobrick, explains that Creon values the love for his land more than he values family and this becomes a struggle for Antigone as it becomes a fight between obeying the laws of man and the laws of the god’s. The second struggle Antigone faces comes when she realizes she is alone. Antigone confides in her sister Ismene with her plans to disobey Creon; but Ismene, a clear example of how a lady was obliged to be in this time, urges Antigone not to commit the act. Antigone rejects her advice and declares that Ismene is an enemy to her now (41): “If you talk like this I will loathe you, and you will be adjudged an enemy…” (109-10). Antigone must fight on her own. Thirdly, per Bobrick, Antigone
Former King Laius was told that by fate: he would be killed by his own son, Oedipus. Laius’ wife, Iokaste, was also told that she would marry their son. They believed in the gods and were scared that this prophecy would come true so they decided to try and prevent what fate had planned for their family. The king and queen gave Oedipus up. A shepherd pitied Oedipus and didn’t kill him. King Laius and Iocasta’s actions were driven by the theme of fate. By trying to avoid fate, their actions became the true cost that made