Creon's Loyalty In Antigone

In Sophocles’ piece, King Kreon prohibited the burial of Polynices, Antigone’s brother, because he was seen as a traitor to his country. Antigone blatantly disobeyed King Kreon’s proclamation because she thought that Polynices ought to be buried not only because he was blood- family, but because the gods law states that burial is a necessary ceremony. Her sister, Ismene, tried to warn her of the trouble she could find herself in, if King Kreon finds out that it was Antigone who had buried her brother, the traitor. (Blondell, 21). In addition, Antigone does not hesitate to admit to this illegal deed when the guards catch her in the act (Blondell, 37,38). While she acted out of respect for her brother and the gods, it was selfish in the fact that she was only thinking of herself. She did not hesitate to disregard King Kreon’s law and did not take any factor into consideration. Antigone accepted that her life was the price to pay for her civil disobedience, but her actions also, unintentionally, led to the death of two other people. Although, in the end, King Kreon sees that Antigone was right, the reason for which she had fought, and ultimately lost her life for, had no significant positive effect on anyone else.

In the prologue of the play, Antigone, by Sophocles, Antigone and Ismene (sisters) are debating between burying their late brother, Polyneices, and the consequences they may end up facing. In Antigone’s eyes, family comes before the law of burying a traitor. When disputing between the burial, Antigone says, “...but Polyneices, who fought bravely and died as miserably, - they say that Creon has sworn no one shall bury him…” (Prologue.17-20) Antigone just wants to put her brother to peace, but Creon refuses to allow anyone who tries to ruin the well-being of his new society to be buried. She believes that Polyneices fought just as bravely as their brother, Eteocles, and his spirit deserves to be put to rest instead of lying in the public square.

Sophocles’ play Antigone suggest that loyalty is the center of the decisions that the people make. There are two types of loyalty in the play: loyalty to the state and loyalty to religion. The conflict arises when loyalty to the state law interferes with the spiritual law. The king of Thebes, Creon, has decided that a man by the name of Polyneices shall not be given a proper burial due to the fact that he betrayed the state. His sister, Antigone, strongly disagrees with this logic and believes that the king should not be the one who decides whether his soul is accepted into the afterlife or not. The influence of loyalty when making decisions is shown when Antigone explains to her sister that she is going to bury her brother, through the conversation Antigone and Creon have after she is caught, and the argument that Creon has with his son about the burial of Polyneices.

Antigone and Creon are two characters that may be considered too similar in personalities, which causes some commotion. Both are confident and persistent in their beliefs and will do what they believe is best in their mind. Antigone is guilty in the eyes of the law because she buried her brother, Polynices, a traitor to Thebes, against Creon’s ruling. Creon has banned Polynices’ burial because he fought for power against Thebes and his own brother, Eteocles, who also died in the battle. Eteocles was granted a proper burial for dying in the name of Thebes, but Polynices was not. Antigone is worried about his burial rights because it is her job as a woman in the family to make sure that her brother is buried so he can get to the afterlife

And yet, as men’s hearts know, I have done no wrong, I have not sinned before God. Or if I have, I shall know the truth in death. But if the guilt lies upon Creon who judged me, then, I pray, may his punishment equal my own.” Antigone wants to bury Polyneices because her father, mother, and brothers have died. Antigone’s family members are all equal to each other and Antigone wants to die so she can join her deceased family members; Antigone hopes that Creon will kill her for burying Polyneices. Antigone feels as if it is morally wrong to not honor life because life is given by God and by not not burying Polyneices, she is not only dishonoring him but God

Antigone had one theme that I thought was very interesting. In the play, Creon had an issue with choosing the State over his family. Antigone feels that it is unfair to keep her brother, Polinices, from being buried; as a result, she decides to do what she thought was right by burying her brother (lines 14-35). Usually, having an improper burial meant that a person was a disgrace to his society based on the culture during that time. In contrast, having a proper burial meant that the people will honor those who serve well to his country. The modern day version of a proper burial is holding a funeral where the family and friends remember their lost love, burying their body in a beautiful casket with clothes. Creon made a decree that he will never honor the traitors of Thebes, whom he recall Polinices for betraying his country.

Creon left Antigone in the tomb when he told the guards to ‘’take her to that vault and leave her alone’’ to let her choose death herself. In order to,not let Creon or his soldiers have the blame for her death. Therefore Creon wanted to resemble Antigone’s death as the punishment for anyone who was against Creon’s law. While, if he choose to stone her to death it wouldn’t end in silence. Along with, both Creon and his soldiers have the responsibility of her death. However, creon left her saying ‘’if she lives or dies,that is her choice, not ours’’.

“Creon honored one of our two brothers with one and dishonored the other without one?” (21-22), stressing the importance of honoring their brother. Antigone works to further make Ismene aware of the priority that must be placed on burying Polyneices, stating that, “For my brother, certainly, and yours, if you will not. / I for one will not be caught betraying him.” (45-46), even after Ismene shares her concerns with Antigone’s plan. This again enforces the tone of the unshakable dedication Antigone has for burying Polyneices.

In the Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone, it is commonly assumed that the major flaw of Creon, the tragic hero, is his inability to handle being disobeyed. He is believed to be rash and unable to simply dole out punishment. However, at the beginning of the play, when Creon first learns someone has disobeyed his orders to leave Polynices unburied, he is very rational is demanding to know who has disobeyed him. Like many men in power, Creon considers other men disobeying him to be common, and he has no difficulty validating the feelings of other men and treating them as purposeful individuals when he punishes them. Creon is representative of many men, in that his true weaknesses are revealed when he is faced with a woman who does not agree with him.

This act led her to be declared a heroine by the people. While Creon is the idea that a person’s country interest should take preeminence, Antigone values and beliefs were that family comes first and that blood is always thicker than water. This belief persuaded her to bury her brother even if the king had outlawed it, and she states that “the king has no right to keep me from my own” (Sophocles). Even though, she understood the consequences of her disobedience, she didn’t try to hide her treason act. She admits publicly before Creon that she would choose death but bury her brother than live knowing that her brother is rotting on the battlefield. In her disobedience speech, she eloquently tries to make her king understand how unjust the laws are rather than pleaded her case. There evident force and confidence in her words, which she punctuates well and offers examples together with accusations. Furthermore, her lines are emotional and full of sarcasm and contempt towards the king and his unjust laws, which gives her speech a bitter edge. In burying her brother, Antigone shows obedience to the gods rather than the king even if it was illegal to do so. To prove her allegiance, she states that, “Look at me, you noble sons of Thebes, -the last great line kings, I alone, see what I suffer now at the hands of breed of men- all reverence, my reverence for the gods" (Sophocles). Through this quote, Antigone shows that she feared the

Regardless of how Eteocles and Polyneices acted and died and how Thebes and Creon believed. Antigone still believed that her brother deserved a proper burial in order to move on. She knew that it was dangerous for her to pursue this action and that it could result in her death, banishment, or confinement, but she fully stood by her actions. Later when her sister Ismene tries to help her bury their brother, Antigone comes off as cold and superior to her, but it can read as her wanting to protect that last bit of family she has left and give Ismene a chance to live her life (Sophocles,

Antigone begins her conversation with Creon fighting for her brother’s rights but then it turns into something bigger and she begins to stand up for women in general. She believes she has a just cause and therefore has the right to fight for it. Although she is sentenced to a cave to die which leads to her committing suicide, Antigone feels that it is morally imperative that she voices her opposition to Creon’s ruling, placing herself above his decree. This all begins when Antigone and her sister Ismene discover that their brothers have killed each other fighting for the throne. Their uncle, Creon, the king, declares that only one brother, Eteocles, will be honored and have a proper burial while the other, Polyneices, will remain not buried.

“What right has he to keep me from my own (Sophocles p 142)?” Despite the ban from Creon, Antigone still wants to bury his brother Polynices on her own. She is not just doing this to perform her duties as a family member, but also to challenge the authority of male power of Creon. Antigone’s sister, on the other side, argues that “weak women, think of that, not framed by nature to contend with men (Sophocles p 143)”. As a typical woman at that time, Ismene is born to believe that females should always be obedient to males. Totally contrary to her sister’s belief, Antigone chooses to defy Creon and at the same time, encourages Ismene to stay against Creon with her too. Moreover, Antigone does not violate Creon’s order secretly. She is caught by the guard to the king and admits everything she did. “I did it, I deny it not (Sophocles p 154).” And more importantly, she did it not because she is rebellious, but because unlike other women who listen to whatever others say, Antigone has her own thoughts and reasons to be “bold enough to break the law (Sophocles p 154)”. Yet, regardless of how reasonable Antigone’s action is, going against patriarchal ruling is always a big mistake. Creon will

Antigone went against Creon’s law to stand up and carry out her beliefs by giving Polyneices the burial he deserved. Creon decided to bury Eteocles and not Polynices, since he put the town of Thebes is danger. Antigone, despite her lack of ability to create a change due to her gender, did not like this decision, and wanted to give her brother the burial he deserved. She had the thought to bury him from the start when she asked Ismene, “Is he not my brother, and yours, whether you like it or not? I shall never desert him, never” (39-40). Antigone is brave enough to fight against Creon’s laws even though she does not have equal rights, because she is determined for her brother to be lifted to the gods. Her spirit forces her actions despite the consequences she will have to face if she got caught. She does not care if she has to face death, if that is what it takes for her brother to get his rights, she will not stop until it occurs. When she gets caught, she does not cave in and apologize for her actions. She spoke her mind and said, “This punishment will not be any pain. Only if I let my mother’s son lie their unburied, then I couldn’t have borne it” (391-393). She believes her brother deserves to be buried and she will do anything in her ability to help him. No matter what

Despite her focus on her obligation to family leading to her downfall, she is not the most tragic figure in the play. In Sophocles’ Antigone, Antigone chose her brother over her community’s unjust laws imposed by Kreon. Her reason for such a defiance is best summed up by her response to Ismene when she reveals her plan to break the law. “You be as you think best, but I shall bury him. I’ll lie there, dear to him, with my dear friend, when I’ve performed this crime of piety; for I must please those down below a longer time than those up here, since I shall lie there always” (71-76). It is clear from this conversation between the two that Antigone feels an obligation to her family and brother to give him the proper burial. She makes it clear that her brother was very dear to her and she loved him deeply. Her deep love for him made her capable of defying her community’s laws and face death. She would rather lie in death next to her brother than never see her brother given the proper customary burial that all in the community receive. This deep love is also shown to her sister as she is willing to deny that her sister knew anything about her plan in order to ensure her sister does not get harmed.