Power, Hubris, And Hamartia ' Sophocles ' Antigone

Written by the Greek writer Sophocles, the play Antigone continues to touch audiences around the world with themes that are relevant to this day. In the play, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, and his wife Jocasta, is confronted with conflict as both of her brothers had slain each other after Polynices was exiled from Thebes, then marched back to regain his throne. Creon, the now ruler of Thebes, put forth a declaration stating that only Eteocles was to be buried, while Polynices had been barred from burial as he was considered a traitor. During the play, Antigone fights back and forth on her decision of putting the unwritten law of the gods before the law posted Creon. Two important themes that are showcased throughout the story

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.

Antigone takes place just after a war between Antigone’s two brothers, Eteocles and Polynices. Eteocles fought on the side of Thebes whereas Polynices resembled an invader. Afterwards, Eteocles is buried and seen as honorable. However, Polynices is denied a proper burial because he is considered a traitor to Thebes. In this play, Sophocles uses Antigone and Creon as foils by characterizing Antigone as a martyr and Creon as a tyrant to urge the reader to realize that one’s own morals are more significant than the decrees of any government.

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

“This is law and order in the land of king Creon.” (Antigone 7) Everyone in Thebes especially women are intimidated by Creon because of his hubris making him the tragic hero of antigone, The Burial at Thebes: A version of Sophocles’ Antigone translated by Seamus Heaney. After two brother from opposing sides battle and die, Creon becomes king of Thebes ruling that only Eteocles gets a proper burial and Polyneices the “treacherous” one is denied any burial at all. Antigone defines his order believing it is her duty to give her brother a proper burial, so that the gods can accept him, making Creon’s hubris commend her to death. Based on Aristotle’s definition, Creon is the tragic hero of Antigone because he starts from position of greatness, his tragic flaws leads to a catastrophe; he realizes the error of his ways, but it is too late to prevent the catastrophe; and his downfall and suffering leave him both humbled and enlightened.

Just like Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Sophocles’ Antigone displays the compartments of what makes a play stand out as a tragedy. In short terms, Antigone intends to bury his brother, Polyneices, who had passed away leading a war. According to the gods, burial marks eternal peace for his and her soul. However, Creon views Polyneices as a traitor, and doesn’t deserve a burial. Despite Creon sentencing Antigone to death, many characters opposed his actions, such as Antigone herself, her sister Ismene, her husband and Creon’s son Haemon, the blind prophet of Creon, Tiresias.

“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.

Having pride is a complex part of life, it shows accomplishments and what you’ve achieved and could achieve. But having too much pride can lead you astray and change your mindset. In the play Antigone, there’s constant reminders to never have too much hubris because it can ruin your mind and like other old stories, end tragically. Hubris played the entire role of this story as Creon over time his hubris grew until he was beyond the point of no return which turned everything’s against him. In the play, Creon is always a follower of law and a follower of god

The opening events of the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, quickly establish the central conflict between Antigone and Creon. Creon has decreed that the traitor Polynices, who tried to burn down the temple of gods in Thebes, must not be given proper burial. Antigone is the only one who will speak against this decree and insists on the sacredness of family and a symbolic burial for her brother. Whereas Antigone sees no validity in a law that disregards the duty family members owe one another, Creon's point of view is exactly opposite. He has no use for anyone who places private ties above the common good, as he proclaims firmly to the Chorus and the audience as he revels in his victory over Polynices. He sees Polynices as an enemy to

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.

In the drama Antigone, Sophocles considers the source of authority and power in society. When King Creon makes a law that forbids the burial of Antigone's brother, Polynices, she ignores the king’s authority, risks her life, and buries her brother out of loyalty to the gods. The situation leads to a conflict among the people of Thebes, Antigone, and Haemon. They must decide where their loyalty lies, and whose authority should take precedence, that of the king or that of the gods. While a number of views about the role of authority and power are expressed through characters such as Creon, Antigone, and Haemon, the drama seems to support the view that authority does not rest only with one person.

In the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, King Creon created a law that denied proper burial rites to anyone who invaded or betrayed the city of Thebes. Antigone defied this law by burying her brother, Polynices, after he was harshly accused of being a traitor. Both Creon and Antigone showed a tenacious passion toward their perception of justice, unwilling to accept that honoring the law and honoring the individual conscience were both justified in different ways. The stubbornness that they shared led them both to meet their downfalls, which conveyed the idea that being too proud to accept guidance from others ultimately leads to dire consequences.

In the Greek tragedy Antigone, written by playwright Sophocles, a conflict is presented in the aftermath of a rebellion against Thebes, wherein the brothers Polyneices and Eteocles kill each other, as leaders of opposing armies. Creon, their uncle, assumes rule of Thebes, as the only remaining heir of the previous king; then honors Eteocles as a hero, but forbids any burial for Polyneices, calling him a traitor. Antigone defies this, claiming the gods require him to be buried. This essay will argue that Creon was correct to forbid the burial of Polyneices. Both Antigone and Creon have ample justification. The justification, and flaws therein, for Creon’s actions will be discussed, resolving the conflict.

Sophocles’ play “Antigone” illustrates the conflict between obeying human and divine law. The play opens after Oedipus’ two sons Eteocles and Polyneices have killed each other in a civil war for the throne of Thebes. Oedipus’ brother in law Creon then assumes the throne. He dictates that Eteocles shall receive a state funeral and honors, while Polyneices shall be left in the streets to rot away. Creon believes that Polyneices’ body shall be condemned to this because of his civil disobedience and treachery against the city. Polyneices’ sister, Antigone, upon hearing this exclaims that an improper burial for Polyneices would be an insult to the Gods. She vows that Polyneices’ body will be buried, and Creon declares that anyone who

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.