Motivations In Antigone By Sophocles

In the play Antigone by Sophocles there is more than one tragic hero. In the story the tragic hero of this play is Creon which is the king of Thebes. Creon’s flaw is his pride and stubbornness. He expressed these traits when challenged by his niece Antigone, and even his own son, through many different ideas, actions, and words.

Creon is a man who has just become the king of Thebes and has a flaw of having too much pride. He can’t control the power of being over other people and he lets the power go to his head. “ I now possess the throne and all its powers. No, he must be left unburied, his corpse carrion for the birds and dogs

John Lennon said, “Part of me suspects that I’m a loser, and the other part of me thinks I’m God Almighty.” Hubris, or excessive pride, was one of the biggest themes in Ancient Greek culture. It has what killed heroes, and destroyed villains in mythology and even real life. In the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, I share the battle that Creon has regarding a conflict of personal character, which leads to the deaths of others caused by his tremendously large ego.

Sympathy for the Main Character in Sophocles' Antigone Sophocles' play is named after its main character, Antigone, and for

The main characters in Sophocles’ drama, Antigone, are Antigone herself, the play’s tragic heroine and Antigone’s uncle and King of Thebes, Creon. Both characters are ruled by powerful motivations and beliefs; however, they differ from one character to the next.

Brad Moore, a famous athlete once said, “Pride would be a lot easier to swallow if it didn’t taste so bad.” In Sophocles’ well known Greek tragedy, Antigone, the main character undergoes immense character development. Antigone transforms from being stubborn and underestimated to courageous and open-minded. In reality, it is Antigone’s insular persistence that leads to her ultimate decline in the play as well as others around her. After the death of her two brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, Creon becomes the new ruler of Thebes. With this, he grants Eteocles an honorable funeral service for his brave fighting. Claiming that Polynices was a traitor, he shows complete refusal to grant Polynices a respectable and worthy service. Clearly

Creon has no toleration for people who place personal beliefs over the common good. He believes that government and law is the supreme authority, and civil disobedience is worst form of sin. The problem with Creon’s argument is he approaches He approaches every dilemma that requires judgement through descriptive generalizations. In contrast to the morality defined by Aristotle in his Nicomachaean Ethics, Creon shows that he is deaf to the knowledge of particulars--of place, time, manner, and persons, which is essential for moral reasoning. In short, he does not effectively bring together general principles and specific situations Creon does not acknowledge that emotion, and perception are as critical to proper moral consideration as reason. This explains why he does not respond accordingly with the reasoning of the guard, Tiresias the prophet, Antigone, her sister Ismene, or even his own son Haemon. Throughout the whole play, Creon emphasizes the importance of practical judgement over a sick, illogical mind, when in fact it is him who has the sick, illogical mind. He too exhibits pride in his argument. To Antigone and most of the Athenians, possessing a wise and logical mind means acknowledging human limitations and behaving piously towards the gods. Humans must take a humble attitude towards fate and the power of the gods, yet Creon mocks death throughout the play. He doest not learn his lesson until the end of the play when he speaks respectfully of

Creon states “am I to rule this land for others, or myself”? (Sophocles, 441 BC, line 823). This statement shows how Creon has little consideration for others around him. He does not care that

Sophocles, in Antigone says, if we cannot determine what is right or wrong, we should ignore pride and continue living by reasoning and follow God’s laws; however, if we don’t follow God’s law we will experience the wrath of God.

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.

Creon is first portrayed as a leader with rational laws and consequences for breaking them. But by the end of the play, Creon is a completely different character; he has let his excessive pride and hubris take over him. He doesn’t realize his change in character until it is brought to him through the prophecy of Teiresias, when it is already too late. Creon can be identified as a tragic hero because he shows great signs of stubbornness and pride. Considering he is the King of Thebes, he follows his rules and laws without listening to his citizen’s concerns, nor does he care about the gods wishes. His role as a hubris influences many of his choices, he believes in only his own thoughts and wishes. Creon abuses his power just because he can, without thinking of the consequences.

This play features two characters with the human trait of pride. Pride can bring about great bravery in the case of Antigone and too much of it may lead to ruin as depicted in what happened to Creon. In the play Antigone is a martyr because she

The moral compass of planet Earth intends to point north at all times. This isn’t always the case. People make mistakes, and others immediately judge their decision. Are they right, or are they wrong? If they are right, then perfect -- no harm done. If they are wrong feelings of guilt and shame may overcome. It is at this moment in time where the wrongdoer needs to make a decision in accordance to their actions. In an excerpt from Antigone, by the classic Greek playwright Sophocles, the wise Teiresias observes, “Think: all men make mistakes, But a good man yields when he Knows his course is wrong, And repairs the evil: The only Crime is pride.” Teiresias statement is valid. The time period in which this poem was written does not remove its

To him, the state is everything and the people’s respect for its authority is in fact its power. With the frame of mind, Creon governs Thebes with an iron fist, and like many other rulers of the past, obsessively controls everything that happens within his territory.

Creon believes that authority rests with the king and no one else, because the gods have favored him and have given him his kingly authority. In fact, he wants everyone to follow his laws, no matter how stupid or unfair they may seem. As an example, Creon announces his authority before the city, saying, “Now I hold sole power and the throne, because I am the closest relative of the fallen” (Ant. lines 173-175). Creon is stating that his laws must be obeyed because he is the only one with the authority to make such laws. Creon continues to cling to his authority, even when his own son questions him and tells him that the people of Thebes are against him. Creon responds with several rhetorical questions, such as, “…The city will tell me how I ought to rule it?...Should I rule this land for myself or for others?…Isn’t the city thought to be her ruler’s” (lines 745-754). Clearly, Creon believes that his authority should overrule everyone’s and expects his son Haemon to understand that and remain loyal to him.