Oedipus The King, And Oedipus At Colonus

To illustrate, Antigone articulates to Ismene that Creon lacks the power to prohibit her from burying Polyneices (Prologue, line 35). Disregarding Creon’s powers, Antigone extends both her immaturity and recklessness in amanner that both generates a hazy impression of Antigone’s plausibility and discredits her personality because of the seldom conflict between the king and women in Ancient Greece. Furthermore, characters such as Eurydice and Jocasta, who experience much more tragedy, diverge from Antigone in the course of their reactions. While Jocasta and Eurydice grieve for their loved ones and succumb to the sorrow, Antigone’s reaction exists at the opposite end of the spectrum where she acts with the sole intent to spite Creon. Continuing, Antigone dictates that she is “not afraid of the danger; if it means death, / It will not be the worst of deaths - death without honor” (Prologue, lines 80-81). Recognizing her inevitable fate, Antigone makes little effort to alter her actions or consequences. Her proud acceptance of her death, which she claims to be one of honor, projects her arrogance and stubbornness toward her situation. This immediate compliance fails to reflect the true outlook and reaction toward approaching death both today and in her time. Additionally, the diatribe provided by Antigone to the chorus near her death sparks much criticism when she asserts that she prays Creon’s punishment equals her own when the truth of her actions emerges (Scene 4, lines 67-69). Antigone’s blatant assault on Creon’s life conveys her ignorance, which also transmits the impossibility of her individuality. Sophocles employs Antigone to generate the generalized perspective of tyranny Conversely, many individuals justify Antigone’s reckless behavior

In the play Creon goes against the Gods by making it illegal to bury Polyneices, Antigone’s brother because he is deemed a traitor. The burying of a dead body is seen as a necessity by all of

“Zeus did not announce those laws to me. And Justice living with the gods sent no such laws for men,” (508-510) said Antigone with frustration towards Creon about the act of her burying her brother, even though it was against the law. 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 stubbornness, disrespect, and anger to be highlighted within Creon’s character. Ultimately, these conflicting motivations develop Creon as a tragic hero by finding in himself that he is wrong about what should have been done with Polyneices’ corpse and the character interactions advance the plot and/or develop the theme by keeping a conflict between Antigone and Creon about who is right.

In the play Antigone by Sophocles, the importance of family over authority is heavily expressed. With Antigone’s opening scene, to the interaction with Haimon and Creon, and then ending with Creon's loss of his family due to his mistakes, the story expresses the moral of family over the law.

In the tragedy Antigone by Sophocles the story of Oedipus’s daughters, who refuse to follow the laws of their uncle Creon, is told. Because Creon ordered that their brother Polyneices, who, together with their brother Eteocles just died in a civil war, fighting against each other, should not be allowed a proper burial because he is a traitor. A battle of words begins between Creon and Antigone and a discourse of opposing views on who is right, especially on how to treat the dead when they are an enemy of the state.

  The dilemma of identifying the true hero, or heroine, of Sophocles’ Antigone has tortured students for years. It is indeed a difficult decision to make. The basis for this decision is what the reader perceives to be Sophocles’ dramatic issue in this play. The dramatic issue of the play is twofold: Antigone is a fanatic who is driven by her religious fever to bury the body of her criminal brother, Polyneices, against the edict of Creon. In the second part, Sophocles shows how the new King Creon’s refusal to change his decision in the face of adversity is admirable, but at the same time his political morals end up destroying his family. His fall from grace is tragic, whereas Antigone's fall is

Sophocles’ Antigone centers around a familial feud that develops between Antigone and Creon when Antigone decides to bury her brother and Creon’s niece, Polynices. While Antigone believes that it is her religious and familial duty to bury her brother, Creon objects, citing the Theban civil war which took place right before the events of the play. Adhering to Greek literary tradition, Sophocles ultimately seeks not just to entertain the audience, but also to teach a moral lesson, in this case about the consequences that ensue when a tyrannical ruler disobeys divine rule, violate religious obligation, and attempt to place government over religion. In developing the plot and conflicts of the text, Sophocles explores three unique but interconnected themes. Sophocles first considers the role of the individual versus that of the family, then rule by consensus versus that by a monarchy, and finally obligations to religion and tradition versus those to the state. The underlying conflict of Antigone, therefore, is not simply that between Antigone and Creon, but also between the themes

Oedipus the King by Sophocles is about Oedipus, a man doomed by his fate. Like most tragedies, “Oedipus the King” contains a tragic hero, a heroic figure unable to escape his/her own doom. This tragic hero usually has a hamartia or a tragic flaw which causes his/hers’ downfall. The tragic flaw that Sophocles gives Oedipus is hubris (exaggerated pride or self-confidence), which is what caused Oedipus to walk right into the fate he sought to escape.

The Greek drama Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles, is regarded as one of the most perfect tragedies ever written. The tragedy Oedipus the King is highly esteemed partly due to its use of dramatic irony. Dramatic irony means that facts or events, which are not known to the characters on stage or in a fictional work, are known to the audience or reader. Sophocles uses dramatic irony to demonstrate how little the protagonist really knows. The main dramatic irony in Oedipus the King contrasts Oedipus’s limited knowledge of his unfolding situation and how the audience is fully aware of it. Oedipus’s lack of knowledge and resulting quest to seek the truth reveals many flaws within his character. The use of dramatic irony reveals the

Oedipus, a play written by Sophocles, has become a staple in the study of a Tragic hero in classic literature. When this was written in the fifth century, theatre was more than a means of entertainment but almost a religious event. Robert Fagles goes even further by saying that”theatre was not only a religious festival; it was also an aspect of the city’s political life.” (Fagles) . Greek dramas were presented only twice a year during religious festivals that honored Dionysus, the god of wines and crops. The quality and message of the plays reflected the religious and social importance of the time. Sophocles, born around 496 B.C., was not only a very successful tragic playwright but also a priest, and for a short time, a general in the army. His unique and well rounded background gave him a perspective on life that other may not have seen. Out of the one hundred and twenty plays that Sophocles wrote only seven survived in their original full condition. Oedipus the King, and Oedipus at Colonus were two of the tragic works that survived. The fact that Oedipus survived allowed it to become one of the most important works that Sophocles produced. The plot and characterization of the main character have allowed it to stand the test of time. If one wants to study Greek, tragic literature, Oedipus is certainly a play that should be considered as a classic piece of work. . Perhaps that is because the main character of Oedipus clearly defines what a tragic hero is by his

The issue focused on how a family through their daughters Antigone and Ismene managed their grief of not being allowed to perform a symbolic (decent) ritual to bury their brother (Polynices). Creon, the king of Thebes established a martial law in which outlines that those who have betrayed the city will not be rendered a decent bury. The central theme is explained and illustrated throughout the play of the Antigone’s believes and unconditional love for her family. Antigone clearly described and evidences her circumstances in which she will bury his brother at any cost to include sacrificing her own life and the reasons why would not have buried the body of a love one. Reasons for her not to bury a love one are described

Antigone is a play that was written in ancient Greece by the playwright Sophocles. It is the third play in a trilogy of tragedies about the city-state of Thebes, revolving around Oedipus Rex. Antigone starts the day after a civil war fought between the two sons of Oedipus Rex after his death. The civil war ended in death for both brothers, so their uncle, Creon, assumed the role of King of Thebes. The main conflict of the play begins when Creon gives one brother, Eteocles, a burial with honors, but passes a law forbidding a burial for the other brother, Polyneices with the penalty of death. One of the sisters of Eteocles and Polyneices, Antigone disagrees with this law, and decides to bury Polyneices, resulting in Creon sentencing Antigone to death. A conflict emerges between Antigone and Creon, who appear to be opposites. However, despite Antigone and Creon’s different stances on law, they are ultimately more similar than different because of their shared value of loyalty and their shared characteristic, hubris.

On the subject of honorable morality, Antigone possesses the moral high ground in accordance to the Greek expectations of the historical era when compared to the opposition of Creon. Owing to Sophocles’ tragedy known as Antigone, it offers the question of what type of law should be relevant when both divine law and common law clash in their interests. As such, it delves into a complex setting of a post-civil war Thebes, whereby throughout the entirety of the tragedy the audience learns of the fates of those involved, as both sides of the opposition face cruel fates. Yet, while the ending of the play is rather ambiguous about who was right, Antigone was indeed the clear victor according to the cultural upbringing and relevance of the

The conflict among individuals or among a person and a group of peoples possessing a given power has always been existed in each society. As many generations have read the renowned Greek play Antigone written by Sophocle, the conflict between Creon and Antigone, which finally not only causes the misery death of the female hero character but also leaves the grief for the tyrannical King, can be considered in various patterns from religion and politics, to command and persuasion, or rigidity and flexibility, and not limited to a gender struggle. When Antigone raised to oppose to Creon’s ordain, the fact is obvious that to prevent the collision, a mutual agreement does not simply come from the same perception, but a condition in which each side has been put in to a reasonable and resolvable state, thus be the core of the play. The complexion making Antigone a tragedy performs its fundamental principle as a lack of justice through chains of dramatic events. This interaction between Antigone and Creon has to be transparentized under a deep thinking toward three remarkable dimensions of justice: devine judgment, harmony, and natural law.

In the heat of battle two royal brothers fall, for the fate of Thebes hangs in the balance. The cause for this mayhem is because of simple childishness. When the prince's father, Oedipus, instructs his sons to take turns on the throne Eteocles refuses to step down for his brother, so in turn the other brother, Polyneices, attacks Thebes. In the war, the uncle of Eteocles and Polyneices, Creon, decrees that no one shall bury Polyneices or else, due to his treason against his home city. Antigone then makes a decision that shall emerge multiple times throughout the play, citizenship vs. family loyalty. Antigone chooses to bury her beloved brother, believing that the laws of gods over those of men, causing her to later become trapped in a tomb by the orders of Creon. Creon’s decision wasn’t without opposition, for his own son, Haimon, asked him to go with the wishes with the people and let Antigone go. Even the oracle Teiresias suggests that he releases Antigone! Without heeding the warning Creon continues the imprisonment of Antigone, and causes her to kill herself. After the death of Haimon’s fiancee, Antigone, Haimon kills himself, and after his mother discovering his death she kills himself. Then Creon sees the error of his ways and shows a common trend in the actions committed by the characters, family loyalty versus citizenship. Although this message is throughout much of Sophocles’ plays it is extremely prominent in Antigone, and this paper is going to illustrate such.