Creon's Demonstrations of a Tragic Flaw in Sophocles’ Antigone

“...And justice for all” is the last line of the Pledge of Allegiance for the United States of America. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary the official definition for the term “justice” would be: the process or result of using laws to fairly judge and punish crimes and criminals. Creon has a very unique understanding of government, an unsuccessful search for justice, and learns about putting his pride before people he loves.

Antigone is a tragic play written by Sophocles in about 441b.c. The play is a continuation of the curse put upon the household of Oedipus Rex. Sophocles actually wrote this play before he wrote Oedipus, but it follows Oedipus in chronological order. The story of Antigone begins after the departure of Oedipus, the king of Thebes, into self-exile. Oedipus’ two sons, Eteocles and Polyneices, were left to rule over Thebes. An argument over rights to power forces Polynices to leave Thebes. Some time passes and Polynices returns with the army from Argos and attempts to overthrow his brother. The two brothers fight and kill one another and the war ends. Creon, the uncle of the two

Sophocles’ play Antigone continues the calamitous story of the Theban royal family, recounting the conflict between Creon’s authority as king and Antigone’s sense of justice. While many of the events of the play are certainly tragic, whether or not Antigone and its characters should be considered tragic is less definite. Aristotle’s theory of a tragic hero calls for a basically good character who experiences a fall due to some flaw or error, experiencing a transformative realization and catharsis as a result. When considered together, the traits of both Antigone and Creon come together to fulfill all of the requirements for the play to be a tragedy, but neither character can be considered an Aristotelian tragic hero standing alone.

Tragedy always involves human suffering, but not everyone who suffers is a Tragic Hero. According to Aristotle, there are five basic criteria that must be met for a character to be considered a Tragic Hero. Aristotle’s ideas about tragedy were recorded in his book of literacy theory titled Poetics. In it he has a great deal to say about the structure, purpose and intended effect of tragedy. His ideas have been adopted, disputed, expanded, and discussed for several centuries. In this essay, I will examine these criteria in regards to Antigone’s Creon, King of Thebes.

In Sophocles’ Antigone, a major conflict arose over Antigone’s and Creon’s beliefs on right and wrong. Antigone stands for the laws of the Gods and family morals. Creon chose to stand for the values of the state and his will to be king. Although one’s decisions appear to be more reasonable and sympathetic than the other, both characters’ decisions in society can be equally validated.

Hero. Hero comes from the greek word heros meaning “A person who faces adversity, or demonstrates courage, in the face of danger.” Growing up we have always read stories about heroes coming to save the day; for instance, Captain America. Being that our whole lives we were mostly exposed to heroism, have you ever asked yourself what is the opposite of a hero? A villain is the opposite of a hero, but their is another opposite form of a hero; a tragic hero. A Tragic hero is “A literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction” (“Tragic hero as defined by Aristotle”). For instance, in the play written by Sophocles Antigone, the tragic hero is Creon. Creon who is Antigone’s

His tragic flaw of excessive pride and arrogance prevents him from being able to logically access circumstances. He goes through a sudden reversal of fortune where he suffers from catastrophic losses, and he realizes that his misfortunes are caused by his own doings. Creon, being the brother of the late queen Jocasta, uncle and brother-in-law to the banished King Oedipus, and uncle to the former King Eteocles has extremely high noble stature (Doc C). Also, he comes from a position of extreme power, as shown by his three separate crowning as King of Thebes. Because of this, Creon as a tragic hero, has much to lose and will “fall from tremendous good fortune” (Doc C), causing the audience to feel a sense of “pity and fear” (Doc C) for Creon. His loss of his family and status due to his tragic flaw makes the audience pity him because his “punishment exceeds the crime” (Doc C) while making them subconsciously fear for themselves because “the hero is better than we are, and still failed” (Doc C). If the hero who is better than we are failed, then how will we compare? Sophocles creates the epitome of a tragic hero in his tragedy, Antigone, by capturing all five traits of a tragic hero into one character:

Every Greek tragedy must have a tragic hero. In Sophocle’s play, Antigone, the most tragic hero is Creon. He is an essentially good man of high position who takes pride in his role as king. He possesses the tragic flaws of excessive pride and an oversized ego. This causes the tragic reversal that leads to his emotional ruin and eventual remorse and repentance.

The play, Antigone, written by Sophocles shows the different downfalls of characters. One of these characters is Creon. Creon does not realize that his pride and stubbornness has interfered his ability to deal with problems and rule of Thebes properly. By analyzing Creon, one could see that he is considered a tragic hero in this play. The characteristics a person must have to be a tragic hero is he has “a hamartia, or tragic flaw. More often than not that tragic flaw is excessive pride, or a hubris. The character then goes through a peripeteia, which is a twist where the character realizes that things will not turn out the way he expected. Finally, the character has an anagnorisis, which is their epiphany that makes them realize their hamartia” (Cap, Creon as a Tragic Character in “Antigone”). The tragic hero characteristics in Creon are clearly shown when he speaks with blind prophet, Teiresias. The character interaction between Creon and Teiresias helps develop Creon as a tragic hero in Antigone.

The qualifications of a tragic hero vary between Aristotle and Shakespeare. Aristotle thinks of a tragic hero as someone who is a noble character by choice and makes his/her own destiny, while Shakespeare sees a tragic hero as someone who is born of nobility and born to be important. Although both tragic hero's end in a tragic death that effects many people, not all tragic hero's fit perfectly into both categories. In Sophocles’ Antigone, Creon is considered a tragic hero. Creon follows Aristotle's definition of a tragic hero by being a noble character by choice, having important potential, and falls due to "miscalculations" with circumstances that are beyond control.

There has always been a great debate over who is the true tragic hero in Sophocles' Antigone. Many scholars would stake claim to Antigone possessing all the necessary characteristics of a true tragic hero, but many others would argue that Creon holds many qualities as well. It is hard to discount Antigone as a tragic hero, because in fact, the play bears her name, but from careful reading, Creon meets Aristotle's criteria exactly and fits perfectly into the role. In order to determine whether or not Creon is the true tragic hero, one must answer the question: 'What is a Tragic Hero?' In Aristotle's Poetics, he discusses the basic criteria regarding a tragic hero. Aristotle

Greek tragedy would not be complete with out a tragic hero. Sophocles wrote Antigone with a specific character in mind for this part. Based on Aristotle’s definition, Creon is the tragic hero of Antigone.

Soon after his decision of the fate of Antigone, Creon’s tragic flaw blooms the greatest. This Hubris focuses on the Creon’s relentless, uncompromising, and egotistical attitude. Many try to convince Creon to reconsider on his misguided decision, however, Creon does not yield. It is at this point when one realizes the Hubris of Antigone. Creon possesses a false sense of pride and/or confidence in his intelligence. He believes he cannot be wrong, therefore his uncompromising and egotistical attitude shines brightest. It portrays him as “superficial, pigheaded, self-important man.” (Porter) This is Hamartia, his relentless,

   This essay will compare two of the characters in “Antigone”, Antigone and Creon, in an effort to determine the identity of the tragic hero in this tale.

When the title of a play is a character's name, it is normally assumed that the character is the protagonist of the play. In Sophocles' Antigone, most people probably believe Antigone to be the tragic heroine, even after they have finished watching the play. It may be argued, however, that Creon, not Antigone, is the tragic character. When we examine the nature and concept of the Greek Tragedy and what it means to be a tragic character, it becomes clear that Creon is indeed the tragic hero of the play Antigone.