...play Antigone, main character Antigone decides to go against the king Creon and follow the laws of her Gods. In line 565, Antigone says “Take me and kill me - what more do you want.” She was okay with the consequences given from Creon because she believed that the Gods were okay with her decision to unbury her brother, Polyneices. Antigone’s words, actions, and ideas contrast with Creon’s character to the point of these two characters having conflicting motivations. These conflicting motivations cause the characteristics of being rude, stubborn, and selfish to be highlighted within Creon’s character. In the end, these conflicting motivations develop Creon as a tragic hero by showing his true colors towards the people of Thebes. These character interactions advanced the plot by leading to a climax. Antigone's words, actions, and ideas contrast with Creon’s character by showing how rude he is to the people of Thebes. Toward the beginning of this play, Creon starts to yell at the Guard and Chorus Leader and punish them for the...
Words: 628 - Pages: 3
...friend.” ANTIGONE -”My nature is for mutual love, not hate.” CREON -”Die then, and love the dead if thou must; No woman shall be the master while I live.” (line 522-524) In the play Antigone the character Antigone's words, actions and ideas contrasted with Creon's character to the point of these two characters having conflicting motivation. These conflicting motivations caused the characteristics of anger, vengefulness, and stubbornness to highlight within Creon's character.Overall, these conflicting motivations develop Creon...
Words: 465 - Pages: 2
...help the dead.” says Antigone. Antigone is brave. When she was caught she didn’t cry and wasn’t afraid. Her actions, and ideas contrast with Creon’s character to the point of these two characters having conflicting motivations. These conflicting motivations cause the characteristics of her sister, Ismene, Creon’s guard, and Creon’s son, Haemon. This all started when the guard found Antigone breaking laws, he took her to Creon, then the conflict started. It all started with Ismene, she tried defending her sister, Antigone. She tried telling Creon that Antigone did it for good reasons and not to just break laws. Creon tried to sentence Antigone to punishment but Ismene wouldn’t allow that to happen. She kept conflicting with Creon to not sentence Antigone to anything. She wanted to save her sister. Creon wasn’t listening to Ismene though, he completely...
Words: 344 - Pages: 2
...Antigone Antigone is very much her father’s daughter, and she begins her play with the same swift decisiveness with which Oedipus began his. Within the first fifty lines, she is planning to defy Creon’s order and bury Polynices. Unlike her father, however, Antigone possesses a remarkable ability to remember the past. Whereas Oedipus defies Tiresias, the prophet who has helped him so many times, and whereas he seems almost to have forgotten his encounter with Laius at the three-way crossroads, Antigone begins her play by talking about the many griefs that her father handed down to his children. Because of her acute awareness of her own history, Antigone is much more dangerous than Oedipus, especially to Creon. Aware of the kind of fate her family has been allotted, Antigone feels she has nothing to lose. The thought of death at Creon’s hands that so terrifies Ismene does not even faze Antigone, who looks forward to the glory of dying for her brother. Yet even in her expression of this noble sentiment, we see the way in which Antigone continues to be haunted by the perversion that has destroyed her family. Speaking about being killed for burying Polynices, she says that she will lie with the one she loves, loved by him, and it is difficult not to hear at least the hint of sexual overtones, as though the self-destructive impulses of the Oedipus family always tend toward the incestuous. Antigone draws attention to the difference between divine law and human law. More than any...
Words: 952 - Pages: 4
...Sophocles’ Greek tragedy Antigone, Antigone has the responsibility of being loyal to her brother, Polynices. Her intuition and strong will discourages her from listening to the power of the state, thus disobeying part of her family, to respect her immediate family. Her devotion leads to the destruction of Creon and herself. Proving that Antigone’s role as a part of a family, does not stand in her determination to do what she believes to be right. It is for this reason that she is willing to destroy herself and Creon to fulfill her duty to both her immediate family and the Gods above. In order to understand Antigone’s actions and motivation, it is important to understand the importance of what a proper burial is to the people of ancient Greece. Unlike most religions, the Greek did not believe in the reward and punishment concept after death. They did not believe that good people went to heaven, while the evil suffered in hell. They believed that life after death was a sad and miserable affair, and the dead deserved to rest in peace. They believed in the importance of a proper burial, as proposed and supported by the gods. The gods mandated the way people lived their everyday life, and how they lived their life after death. The general belief of the people, was that those who did not get a proper burial would not get any peace. They would spend their time wandering by the river Styx for eternity, while also being denied entrance to the underworld. Creon’s decision to deny Polynices...
Words: 2075 - Pages: 9
...Jeremy Martinez English 1B-24013 R. S. Guglielmino 3/17/15 “Antigone” In ancient Greek civilization, the Greeks believed that loyalty is the most influential value one could have in society. They believed that loyalty is important to family, community and the gods (Ancient Greek Values). In the play “Antigone”, Antigone’s loyalty is exemplifying one’s perseverance to clear her family’s name of slander due to the mistakes of her ancestors. When her brother, Polynices, is refused a burial after dying in war, Antigone fearlessly challenges Creon to salvage her brother’s honor knowing the consequences that will follow for defying the Ruler of Thebes. In the Greek tragedy, “Antigone”, by Sophocles, the protagonist must overcome the challenges that lie ahead in order to give the proper respect her brother deserves. When the play begins, Antigone is talking to her sister, Ismene about the death of their brothers and how they are still suffering from the curse of Oedipus. This is the first indication of the family’s sorrow and the degree to which Oedipus’s curse still exist to this day. The two sisters are the only surviving children of Oedipus and Jocasta after their two brothers, Polynices and Eteocles, fought each other to the death to become King of Thebes. When they fought over this, Polynices decided to attack Thebes, making him a traitor. At the end of the war and both brothers’ deaths, Creon was the only person left to rule Thebes. Since Polynices was considered...
Words: 1514 - Pages: 7
...theme throughout the story of Antigone which can be seen in interactions between Creon and Antigone as well as Antigone and Ismene. Each reacts to Antigone’s death sentence following her illegal burial of her brother and he or she shares his or her respective view regarding her punishment. Each individual has his or her own unique beliefs about how justice is be served regarding this particular situation. Thus the theme of justice prevails in the interactions between the selected characters. Antigone is strong-willed in the sense she will go to great lengths in order to bring justice to the ones that have a special place in her heart. She states her fearless opinion when she is talking to her sister, Ismene, about...
Words: 709 - Pages: 3
...Abraham and Antigone: Facing Superior Orders Abraham from the Bible and Antigone from Sophocle’s tragedy Antigone share a very similar dilemma: both characters receive higher orders that would hurt their family members. Abraham receives the command from God to kill his only son as a sacrifice while Antigone is under the state’s decree that forbids her brother the honor of burial. Under the comparable situation, the two characters exhibit different responses: one decides to kill his son under command without hesitation, but the other is willing to defy the law for the sake of her brother. Abraham’s unquestioning attitude towards God’s inhumane order is startling and throws the credibility of his character into question. On the other hand, Antigone’s insistence of respect for her family, regardless of the city’s laws, makes her appear to be a more believable and relatable person. However, Antigone’s motivations to bury her brother also stems from her obedience towards the laws of her gods. Abraham and Antigone thus share the same absolute obedience towards divine authority, but Antigone’s will to also fight for her family’s dignity and honor differentiates her from Abraham as a more believable character. Abraham’s character seems unbelievable because he is willing to kill his own son without questioning and hesitation solely because God asks him to. In Genesis chapter 22, God commands Abraham to take Isaac, Abraham’s only son, to the land of Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice...
Words: 1875 - Pages: 8
...“I’d say it would be for the best if men by nature understood all things’ if not, and this is usually the case, when men speak well. It good to learn from them.” (line(s) 816-819) Haemon’s conflicting actions with his father cause Creon’s similarities with Antigone, Teiresias, and Ismene to stand out far more. The differences in the two’s motivations prove Creon to be a tragic hero by emphasizing his poor judgement that eventually leads to his downfall and having all of the characters at some point in the play disagree with Creon’s words and actions causes the plot to prolong. Haemon contrasts with his father’s characteristics by him being more respectful and compassionate towards people. This is shown in the play when Creon is fighting with his son on what should be done with Antigone, he says “ Since I caught her clearly disobeying, the only culprit in the entire city, I won’t perjure myself before the state. No—I’ll kill her. And so let her appeal to Zeus, the god of blood relationships.” (lines 743-747) Haemon disagrees with this 100% when “I could not find your words somehow not right— I hope that’s something...
Words: 462 - Pages: 2
...bodies. In a broader sense, the term also describes a powerful desire to control another, usually in the context of a romantic or deeply personal relationship. Necrophilia’s tend to be so controlling in their relationships that they ultimately resort to bonding with unresponsive individual with no resistance with dead bodies. Mr. Grierson controlled Emily, and after his death, Emily temporarily controls him by refusing to give up his dead body. She ultimately transfers this control to Homer, the object of her affection. Unable to find a traditional way to express her desire to possess Homer, Emily takes his life to achieve total power over him. Antigone is very much her father’s daughter, and she begins her play with the same swift decisiveness with which Oedipus began his. Within the first fifty lines, she is planning to defy Creon’s order and bury...
Words: 1201 - Pages: 5
...Leaders make or break a population. Over time, people would not have made any evolutionary progress without the guidance of a higher figure over them. From Jesus to Alexander the Great to George Washington to even Adolf Hitler, the world has been filled with surprising… yet amazing leaders. One thing that has been of analysis lately, though, was if nobility plays a role in becoming an effective leader and to what extent does personal responsibility extend to the welfare of others. After analyzing fictional superiors it has become clear that everyone has their own “perfect way” of heading a group. It is known that everyone has done questionable things, but what type of role does it play when it’s while inspiring people that need motivation and...
Words: 1839 - Pages: 8
