...EURO3301 Reflective Essay (2) Given that Antigone seems to act out of kinship loyalties and in deference to the will of the gods of Hades, to what extent can she be interpreted as an individual in conflict with her society? Do you consider her rebellious or conservative? Jack Tesser (21137219) Within Sophocles’ play Antigone, the major character Antigone is seen to act continuously out of kinship loyalties and deference to the gods of Hades. These actions allow her to be interpreted as an individual in conflict with her society to a certain extent. She can be identified as predominantly rebellious at different times within the play. The gender of Antigone as well as the gender related expectations of the society of Thebes also plays an important part in analysing how Antigone is in conflict with her society. Coupled with exterior factors such as religion, sacrifice, and human law, an audience can make commentary on how Antigone is at conflict with her society, and how she can be seen as primarily rebellious. After Antigone’s brother Polyneices, falls to his death in battle, Antigone feels the need to bury him in honour to her religion and the gods of Hades, as her other brother who is described by Creon as “Eteocles, who fell fighting for his city…will be buried and receive all honours”. Creon additionally describes Polyneices as the one “who…hope[d] of burning his native land…he shall be neither buried nor mourned” In Antigone’s eyes, both her brothers should...
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...Antigone, a Greek tragedy written by Sophocles and translated by Ruby Blondell, is a story in which the “hero” (Antigone) is easily praised and the “enemy” (Kreon) is easily hated. It is human nature to root for the underdog, or the one who is being wronged, and not give the other side a chance. The very opening scene of the play immediately shows us the thoughts and feelings of Antigone, and her hatred towards Kreon. This almost forces the audience to side with Antigone because we are given no insight to Kreon’s point of view until later on when it is almost too late. However, after a careful examination of the play, I developed more respect and sympathy for Kreon than I did Antigone, just by further studying their motives behind their actions....
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...Power is ultimately the overall judge of a person’s character. It gives emphasis on their beliefs and how they think a certain situation should be taken care of and dealt with. Giving someone power ultimately shows the negative side of someone’s personality and character. Some people abuse their power when they feel entitled over other people. In the story Antigone, one example of this is when King Creon is executing Antigone for burying her brother, Polyneices, who died in battle. He feels as though he is entitled and too important to have to listen to the gods when he says, “Maybe. But you are guilty and they have nothing to do with this.” (Scene 2, Line 120) This shows that Creon is abusing his power by believing he is above everyone else that is around him and he especially believes he is above all of the gods. This also shows that he thinks the gods decisions do not have authority over him because he is going to execute Antigone for...
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...Justice in Antigone and Measure for Measure The concept of justice hinges on the beliefs of any given individual, human influences must always ultimately crumble and be brought to justice in the face of what is morally correct and divine. Punishment, conflict and pursuit of justice are major themes in both Sophocles Antigone and Measure for Measure. Antigone is laden with violent imagery; countless arguments causing conflict between Antigone and Creon as well as Creon and Haemon; and the blatant violence of the various murders and suicides present in the play. Moreover in Measure for Measure, is the conflict between justice and mercy, and whether justice and punishment would be served through strictly following the law or by showing mercy. "The law is strong, we must give in to the law in this thing, and in worse. I beg the Dead To forgive me, but I am helpless: I must yield”. (49-51) Why are Punishment, disagreement and pursuit of morals such a strong theme in both of these ancient works? Both Sophocles and Measure for Measure William Shakespeare lived in more primitive times when there were weakly enforced written laws concerning justice and fair play. The common solution for most problems were along the lines of "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" which were better represented in Sophocles Antigone than in Measure for Measure, retaliation were definitely used as a method of justice. When Antigone buries her dead brother in the story of Sophocles’ Antigone, Creon's...
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...Antigone is credited as one of the best works of Sophocles, ranked by most modern critics above Oedipus the King. There are many aspects of Antigone that make it the play critics love to ramble about. “Antigone must be received as the canon of ancient tragedy: no tragedy of antiquity that we possess approaches it in pure idealism, or in harmony of artistic development” says one critic named Berhardy. Tragedy is usually concerned with a person of great stature, a king or nobleman, who falls because of hubris, or extreme pride and Antigone is no exception. Pride and its effects are a central part of Antigone’s plot and theme. Pride, being part of their character and morality, overran in to their literature and was a complex and multifaceted concept in Greek tragedy, exemplified by Sophocles’ Antigone. In the play both Creon and Antigone were incredibly proud and unwilling to back down once they took their stands. Creon had made a decision and was unwilling to compromise. Antigone was to die for her violation of the law,the sin of burying her brother. Antigone’s gender had a profound affect on the meaning of her actions. Creon had disliked for her disrespectful and rebelling nature. His need to defeat her was all the more pressing because she was a woman. “The ideal of the female character in Antigone is boldly and severely outlined. The freedom of Greek women was extremely limited and restrictive. Antigone’s rebellion is threatening because it upset the gender roles and hierarchy...
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...yet overlapping moral questions. Both upset the powers in charged of their communities and both are willing to die for their beliefs. However, the details of each of their journeys have many differences. Humans can hold multiple moral ideas and when situations arise to cause these ideals to overlap in a conflicting manner, everyone has to decide for themselves what is the best moral resolution. Every individual has to balance for themselves when, if ever, an immoral act is acceptable or if there are reason for an act once thought immoral to no longer be immoral. Both Antigone and Socrates are examples of threat to the political order of their societies. Antigone does this by challenging the orders of the city's new ruler in name of her dead brother and her religious beliefs which states that he should be...
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... Antigone Antigone returns to her home city-state of Thebes to discover both of her brothers, Polynices and Eteocles, have murdered each other. Creon, her uncle who is now king, has decreed that no man shall bury Polynices because he has been declared a traitor. Whoever dares to defy the law will be put to death in unimaginably harsh manners. Antigone is caught and is sentenced to death. However, by the time Creon has figured out he was wrong, Antigone has already hung herself. Her fiancé Haimon, who is Creon’s son, has also committed suicide. Haimon’s mother, who is Queen Eurydice has followed suit and has committed suicide as well. Antigone’s devotion to her values and beliefs are what make her such a powerful female lead. Throughout the play, she shows the difference between having loyalty in what you believe is true and what the state declares as true. After analyzing this theme, it is clear that having loyalty to yourself and your family is much more important than loyalty to the laws created by the government. The first scene of Antigone portrays the protagonist Antigone and her sister Ismene disagreeing about burying Polynices and defying Creon. Antigone’s loyalty remains with her dead brothers and her own values and beliefs. Antigone divulges to Ismene her incredible plan to sneak away to bury her traitorous brother. Ismene however, wants no part in the project Antigone has decided to take on, because Ismene believes...
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...2012 Creon’s Tragic Fall: A Look at Sophocles’ Antigone A tragic hero is defined by Aristotle’s Poetics as the protagonist in the story to whom something happens that elicits pity from the audience. For the most part, a tragic hero is a “virtuous” person whose life changes from being prosperous to being a life full of misfortune (Aristotle, Poetics). In other words, the tragic hero is someone of great social standing who begins the story at a very high point, but suffers their downfall because of a tragic flaw. In Sophocles’ Antigone the central theme of this play is the struggle between Antigone and her uncle Creon. The issue of burying Antigone’s brother Polynices is based on the ancient Greek philosophy of death, where any unburied body condemns its soul to torment. Basically, it was the duty of the family to bury their dead. Yet, this issue extended beyond family loyalty to a decree of piety by the gods. However, in the play, Creon goes against this celestial decree because he sees Polynices as a traitor for warring against him as a member of another army. As a means to set an example about the repercussions of disloyalty, Creon issues an edict to leave him unburied. As a man who starts the drama in as the respected king of Thebes, he gradually loses his family, his objectivity, and his power to his stubbornness and hubris that ultimately results in his downfall. Hence, Creon is a tragic hero in the Sophocles’ Antigone because his unbending pride results in tragic downfall...
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...Creon’s agony at the end of the play Antigone by Sophocles does not compare to the amount of selfishness and stubbornness he had before he was responsible for the deaths of three people, including his son. Stubbornness and excessive pride are common factors on why most heroes fall, since they believe they are superior they think nothing bad will happen to them, causing a downward spiral for themselves and the others around them. Therefore, Creon’s inability to reason and his egotistical characteristics led to his downfall causing serious consequences by his belief of superiority to Antigone, his inability to reason with his son Haemon, and his unwillingness to change Antigone’s punishment. First of all, Creon’s stubbornness...
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...In today’s society, having true communication skills are key to functioning. However oftentimes, ego gets in the way of understanding the message being sent. A play written by Sophocles, “Antigone”, displays problematic communications amongst individuals. “Antigone” itself is part of a cycle of three plays or trilogy in where Oedipus, the former king, exiles himself. As a result, Creon obtains power of King. In the passage, Sophocles uses character interactions between Teiresias and Creon to contribute to Creon’s development as a tragic hero and convey the theme that the refusal to accept wisdom due to ego leads to one’s downfall. With the will and ability of free choice, Creon makes decisions that causes his downfall to be ultimately his...
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...Antigone - commentary notes The Myth •Characters of a tragedy were not invented from scratch each time the writer composed a new play. •Images and stories inspired by myths were connected with every form of artistic expression and ceremonial ritual, proving that the greeks were not only familiar with a great number of mythical stories, but also made them to define themselves in the world and communicate their specific cultural issues. •In tragic theatre the characters were mentally close to the audience and shared the values of the democratic period in Athens. •The geographical characteristics of the mythical location, which usually existed in reality, could also be used in the stories and affect the dramatic events of the play. •The Theban saga of Lais and his children was one of the most popular in the Greek literary and iconographic tradition. The Festival •The tragedy of Antigone was presented in the theatre of Dionysus as part of a drama competition that took place every year during the city Dionysia, one of the city’s numerous festivals. •The city Dionysia, which was dedicated to Dionysus, god of fertility, wine and theatre, was one of Athens’ greatest annual festivals and aimed to celebrate the god’s arrival in Athens as well as the city’s wealth and prosperity. •The event took place in mid to late march when seagoing again became possible after the winter. •A rough schedule of the festival can be made as it developed...
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...amount of his political career reversing the effects of this system. He did so prior to his position in office by peaceful, some not peaceful, protests. These protests are an example of civil disobedience. “Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is a symbolic or ritualistic violation of the law, rather than a rejection of the system as a whole.” - Henry David Thoreau. One of the oldest examples of civil disobedience is the Ancient Greek play Antigone by Sophocles. Nelson Mandela used many different...
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...Power. Such a small word with such a powerful meaning. When someone is given power they are most likely to overuse it and take control over it. Power has a negative effect on others, from Sentry being afraid to tell Creon the news about Polyneices being buried, to people in this generation using social media all of the time. Yes, King Creon is an outstanding leader, but do you really think he is the king we all think he is? In the play Antigone there is some negative affect toward the power Creon has on the city. King Creon is a very stubborn person, he will not listen to anyone but he is very prideful for his city. This shows that because he is king, Creon believes that he cannot bring himself to acknowledge that he could ever be wrong. With...
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...Antigone vs Otheelo: women In the plays “Antigone” by Sophocles and the Shakespearean tragedy “Othello” written by William Shakespeare, the themes that’s being portrayed are honour and gender, through the play the audience if captivated by the characters choices and motives through the play. With the characters choices they help to make the play more understandable as the audience can recognise the tragic hero in both the plays. The relationships between men and women in Othello are remarked as lesser then men. Iago often refers to his wife as a prostitute - "A house wife that by selling her desires, Buys herself bread and clothes (iv.i.95)” showing what type of relationship women and men had during the late 16th century. Women were generally considered obedient, respectful, kind and warm. They were never outspoken nor were they meant to, for it could be seen as a lack of loyalty. When Othello accused Desdemona of cheating on him, he found himself in a position that he didn't want to face with. Othello was emasculated with the thought of a woman disobeying him. Men were easily manipulated into thinking the worst of woman because they were certain it would never happen. However, when the slightest things start to be pointed out the characters start to over analyse. Woman were not on the same level as men; men talked down to woman, they didn’t see them as equals nor think that they should be treated like one. This relates to Othello and Desdemona’s relationship – she “betrayed”...
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...Hamartia in Oedipus the King According to the Aristotelian characteristics of good tragedy, the tragic character should not fall due to either excessive virtue or excessive wickedness, but due to what Aristotle called hamartia. Hamartia may be interpreted as either a flaw in character or an error in judgement. Oedipus, the tragic character in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, certainly makes several such mistakes; however, the pervasive pattern of his judgemental errors seems to indicate a basic character flaw that precipitates them. Oedipus’ character flaw is ego. This is made evident in the opening lines of the prologue when he states "Here I am myself--you all know me, the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus." (ll. 7-9) His conceit is the root cause of a number of related problems. Among these are recklessness, disrespect, and stubbornness. Oedipus displays an attitude of recklessness and disrespect throughout the play. When he makes his proclamation and no one confesses to the murder of Laius, Oedipus loses patience immediately and rushes into his curse. Later, he displays a short temper to Tiresias: "You, you scum of the earth . . . out with it, once and for all!," (ll. 381, 383) and "Enough! Such filth from him? Insufferable--what, still alive? Get out--faster, back where you came from--vanish!" (ll. 490-492) If an unwillingness to listen may be considered stubbornness, certainly Oedipus would take advice from no one who would tell him to drop the matter of his...
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