Creon and Haemon; Conflict of Antigone Creon and Haemon have dissimilar points of views when it comes to Antigone because Haemon has affection for Antigone while Creon feels animosity towards her. In the play, “Antigone” Sophocles tells the story of King Creon who rules Thebes the town. Haemon who is the son of the king falls in love with Antigone. Antigone is the niece of Creon and sister of Polynices. She plays a stubborn character. When her family is involved with the situation her attitude becomes aggressive. Polynices who is a traitor takes his last breath fighting against Thebes. The King announces anyone to honor or bury the body of Polynices would suffer a death due to the fact that he was a traitor of Thebes. The conflict of the play involves Antigone who disobeys Creon’s authority. In the speech between Haemon and Creon an Antigone is revealed between the two that exhibits Creon’s misogyny and Haemon’s analysis of his father’s discriminating attitude toward women in general. Note the tone in the following quotation: Creon: “Oh Haemon, Never lose your sense of judgment over a woman. The warmth, the rush of pleasure, it all goes cold in your arms, I warn you…a worthless woman in your house, a misery in your bed. What wound cuts deeper than a loved one turned against you? Spit her out, like a mortal enemy- let the girl go. Let her find a husband down among the dead” (1328). Creon expresses misogyny in this quote. He consults with his son Haemon about his wife as if she’s not a person because she is a woman. He goes on about Antigone to his son as if there are many other women for him to choose from and one women being put to death should not matter. He’s belief that anyone going against his authority is their enemy. Creon discusses with Haemon about Antigone as if she is a worthless girl. Creon says, “Never lose your sense of judgment over a woman” (1328).What Creon is trying to say is a woman should not get in the way of a man’s way of thinking. Don’t let a woman blind a man into being immoral if she is manipulating him into making him think he is doing a good deed. The word woman is used in this quote because Creon is suggesting that woman are considered less than a man being that he is speaking about Antigone. Money is the root of all evil is the saying so during the older days it was the men with the power because they controlled the money not the women. What is trying to be said in this quote is a woman is useless when compared to a man. Creon argues to Haemon, “What wound cuts deeper than a loved one turned against you?”(1328). Creon is a manipulator because he is trying to make Haemon believe his fiancé is antagonist of Thebes. Creon goes on to say, “Spit her out like a mortal enemy-let the girl go” (Creon 1328). Creon is trying to tell his son is Antigone is a useless girl due to his misogynistic way of thinking. He’s also trying to make it easy for Haemon to let Antigone go. Creon states “Let her find a husband down among the dead” (1328).What he is referring to when he says “down among the dead” is hell. Creon is further expressing his hatred against women by not admiring Antigone as a person. Misogyny is expressed once again due to the fact that he shows no affection in his niece Antigone being put to death. Creon’s word of choice in this quote shows no respect or honor towards women. However, Haemon expresses a positive perspective of Antigone. Creon: Of course it’s not for you, in the normal run of things, to watch whatever men say or do, or find to criticize. The man in the street, you know, dreads your glance, he’d never say anything displeasing to your face. But it’s for me to catch the murmurs in the dark, the way the city mourns for this young girl. “No woman,” they say,” ever deserved death less, and such a brutal death for such a glorious action. She, with her own dear brother lying in his blood-she couldn’t bear to leave him, unburied, food for the wild dogs or wheeling vultures. Death? She deserves a glowing crown of gold!” So they say, and the rumor spreads in secret, darkly… (1328). Haemon speaks in respect to his father the king about the death for his soon to be wife Antigone. Haemon says, “No woman, “they say,” ever deserved death less, and such a brutal death for such a glorious action” (1328).What he is suggesting to his father is that Antigone’s disobedience towards the King was a good action to take. The “glorious action” is the respect that Antigone gave to her dead brother Polynices by burying him. Although the law was sealed that anyone to honor Polynices would suffer a death; Antigone loved her bother so dear that she was tenacious enough to go against the Kings authority. “The man in the street, you know, dreads your glance, he’d never say anything displeasing to your face” Haemon speaks out to his father. What Haemon is trying to say is no one in Thebes will confront the king on their own opinion because of the reaction and consequences the king will enforce if it does not come pleasant to him.

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