Creon's Pride In Antigone By Sophocles

In the play Antigone by Sophocles Creon is the king of Thebes. In this piece Creon becomes overwhelmed with the power given to him as king. The result is Creon turning into a corrupt king. He orders laws that must be followed with consequences of death. He uses the body of his nephew, Polyneices, as a way of frightening the people into submission. And finally Creon walls up his niece, Antigone, to die because she disobeyed him. Such actions can not be justified and ultimately makes Creon a bad ruler.

Creon, King of Thebes in Antigone, may be best known to the reader as a tyrant who refuses to recognize the familial bond that Antigone has with her fallen brother. The reader is able to truly see how much of a tyrant he is by his most obvious character flaw, his pride. Though Creon may be the strict ruler that Thebes needs after they have just recently started to overcome a state of

Creon is the king of Thebes in Sophocles' Greek tragedy Antigone. His tragic flaw was arrogance. He arrogantly decreed that no one was to bury his son-in-law, and that his body would rot dishonorably; however, this was against the laws of the Zeus and the other gods. Deciding that his decree was more important that that of the gods, he expected all the people to obey him. Unfortunately for Creon, his daughter-in-law Antigone attempted to bury her brother, the dead man. His son Haemon was betrothed to Antigone, and attempted to reason with Creon that the entire city loved what Antigone did. But against his son's advice, Creon arrogantly condemned Antigone to death in a cave. A blind prophet came and recited all the bad omens that had happened,

Lastly, Creon was a tragic hero because he realized his flaws too late in time. Referring back to the prophecy of Tiresias, after the prophecy of Thebes was declared and Creon denying it, it soon came to pass. The chorus leader cries “My lord, my lord, such dreadful prophecies- and how he's gone..Since my hair changed colour from black to white, I know here in the city he's never uttered a false prophecy” (Antigone line 1220). Creon then replies to him by acknowledging his wrong and the effect of his wrong in the situation. “Aaii- mistakes made by a foolish mind, cruel mistakes that bring on

She was committed to honoring her family and that is why she felt Polyneices deserved proper burial rites along with Eteocles. She took the idea to bury him to Ismene. Since it was against the law, she did not agree. Antigone responds to her by saying “That must be your excuse, I suppose. But as for me, I will bury the brother I love” (65). She argues that Creon is not enough to stand in her way (35) and Polyneices has the right to be buried being that he fought as bravely as Eteocles. So, Antigone took it upon herself to bury Polyneices. A sentry brings the news to Creon and soon Antigone follows. When taken to Creon, she fights that he is disobeying the laws of heaven. She argues, “Your edict, King, was strong, but all your strength is weakness itself against the immortal unrecorded laws of God" (360-363). She stressed to Creon that even though he holds a powerful position of authority, divine law will always come before civil law. Along with her upholding of the laws of heaven, Antigone expresses how her love for a brother is stronger than any other. She gives one last plea: she would not have defied Creon if the unburied body were her husband’s or her child’s. Both of those could be replaced, but a sibling whose parents are dead is suitable to accept such punishment. She would rather die with honor than live with the guilt of her brother’s soul left to wander the earth. With Polyneices left unburied, she feels she would have

In sophocles play Antigone Creon’s flaw is his pride. In the quote “ Now I am no man, but she is a man, if power lies with impunity.” Creon feels that if he isn't hard on Antigone, then he isn't a man. He doesn’t want to look weak to his subjects which hurts his pride, so he decides to kill Antigone instead of being nicer. You see Creon's pridefulness again when he goes to the prophet. Creon contradicts the prophet insisting that they are wrong and he is right. This pride leads to everyone he loves dying. Other characters even tell Creon that he is being arrogant and that he’s not always right. Haimon tells Creon “ I beg you not to be unchangeable. Do not believe that you alone can be right.” Creon believes that he is even above the gods at

In Antigone, Sophocles characterizes Creon as a prideful and stubborn individual, who strives to gain power over others, especially the gods. Despite his own son threatening to commit suicide, Creon does not recognize his hubris as his fatal flaw until the very end. One significant power struggle in the play Antigone, is the conflict between Creon and his son, Haimon, who is engaged to Antigone. Creon uses his permanent place as ruler, to decide that Polyneices should not be properly buried, because he is a traitor to their kingdom. Not only is he gravely wrong, he is not swayed by anyone’s opinion, even his own son’s.

“You notice how in winter floods the trees/ which bend before the storm preserve their twigs/ the ones who stand against it are destroyed”(p280). Those who listen to advice, who don’t let their pride get in the way, have a habit of making fewer mistakes. In the play Antigone Creon, the king, is not one of those who listen. In Sophocles’ ancient tragedy the conflicting words, actions, and ideas of Haemon and Creon develop the king as a tragic hero through the exposure of his hubris while their interactions develop the themes of excessive pride and shifting loyalties. Haemon’s well structured argument’s first appeals to Creon’s beliefs and ego but then shifts to present his own beliefs and those of the citizens of Thebes, and when his attempt

It can be agreed that admitting a mistake is hard sometimes. One comes to their senses too late to make a change. In the play Antigone by Sophocles, both Creon and Antigone butt heads on what they think is right. The stubbornness of both Creon and Antigone lead to tragedy on both sides for not changing their ways. Creon deserves the audience's pity because he tries to be the defender of the city by not burying the traitor polyneices. Even Though, Creon thought he was doing the right thing, his mind gets clouded by suspicion about his own family and servants. Creon's comprehension comes too late, which leads to all these consequences with his love ones.

Creon, Antigone's uncle, acquired the throne after the brothers Polyneices and Eteocles killed one another in a battle against each other. In the disastrous play Antigone written by Sophicles, Creon now king leads Thebes through recovery from the vicious war. As part of his first order of king Creon ruled that Polyneices was not be buried but to decay on the agony of death and that Eteocles be buried in honor. To respect Polyneices death Antigone sneaks into the house where Polyneices body is and covers it in dirt which goes against what Creon had ordered. Creon later finds about this and then the whole matter uncoils within itself. Antigone is put in in jail and a proper burial is put in place for Polyneices.

Creon, the king of Thebes, is the tragic hero of Antigone. A characteristic of being a tragic hero is possessing a tragic flaw, a hamartia, which in Creon’s case is his overbearing hubris. Creon admits to his pride, “but it is worse / To risk everything for stubborn pride” (Sophocles 699). As a tragic hero, Creon follows a path with several factors leading him to his demise. What sets Creon down this path is his hubris. His conceit, possibly caused by his new found condition of power and wealth, blinds him to the opinions of others and takes over him. From his blinding pride he puts Antigone in a stone vault to die and does not allow anyone to bury Polyneices, who attacked Thebes earlier. These

Creon, the antagonist of Sophocles's play Antigone is a great example of a man who learns humility after causing mass destruction all around him. In the play, Creon is the King of Thebes and he is solely interested in political and social order. The previous King and Creon’s brother, Oedipus died and his sons Eteocles and Polynices were suppose to rotate the throne. However, the brothers ended up killing each other in a duel which led to Creo taking power. Creon angered his niece Antigone when he allowed her brother Eteocles to be given proper funeral honors, but not her brother Polynices. To make things more complicated, Haemon, Creon’s son is in love and intends on marrying Antigone. Going against Creon’s law, Antigone gives her brother Polyneices a proper burial and is caught. Creon condemns her to death despite the outcries of the chorus and his son. He begins to have remorse and says that she may be freed, but

Upon hearing the news from Sentry, the king is immediately angered and sentences her to prison. In scene 2, Antigone then asks what more does Creon want than her death and Creon replies with, “Nothing, that gives me everything.” (210) The king exhibits his desire to have Polyneices remain unburied by punishing Antigone for attempting to bury him. Creon’s tone in scene 2 shows how annoyed he is with the recent burial, and also how infuriating it is for him.

Pride comes in many forms, and when it grows, people get carried away and forget who they are. Supreme pride is just one trait that ties three tragic heroes together, and which it destroys their lives. Creon struggles with his own within the play Antigone by Sophocles; which is shown when he is not capable of creating an atmosphere of respect as king, without putting himself on a holy pedestal. Then Oedipus from Oedipus the King, also by Sophocles, shows his pride in a much different manner. Oedipus tries to go against his own fate that the Gods have already laid out for him.

Creon’s self-pride negatively impacted his leadership skills by convincing himself that what he does is always beneficial and correct. Primarily, Creon’s refusal to recognize that Antigone is family, Creon’s daughter-in-law, and to have mercy on her, impacts his leadership skills by hindering from making moral decisions. Also, he rejects the laws of the gods in favor of the rational laws of man. He stated, “But the cleverest of mortal, old Tiresias, fall with shameful crash, when they decorate shameful words for the sake of profit” (Sophocles 51). Therefore, he believes that his laws and ideas are better than those of the gods and wisest prophets. Additionally, his tenacious allegiance to the laws of state and government prevent him from fully comprehending and acting with human morals. Thus, Creon’s overall self-pride hinders him from being the best possible leader.