Sophocles' Antigone – Comparing the Symbolic Alignment Utilized by Creon and President George Bush

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

He is both logical and ethical. Creon is talking to his “people” and he says that he knows that no one will just follow a person around like a mindless drone. He says that his rules are the law and if you fight for your country you will die in honor and will be praised for it, but if you betray your country for another you will be left for the dogs and birds to feed on you. He says that, that is his command is a wise decision. “I am aware, of course, that no ruler can expect complete loyalty from his subjects until he has been tested in office.” “These are my principles, at any rate, and that is why I have made the following decision concerning the sons of Oedipus: Eteocles, who died as a man should die, fighting for his country, is to be buried with full military honors, with all the ceremony that is usual when the greatest heroes die; but his brother Polyneices, who broke his exile to come back with fire and sword against his native city and the shrines of his fathers’ gods, whose one idea was to spill the blood of his blood and sell his own people into slavery–– Polyneices, I say, is to have no burial: no man is to touch him or say the least prayer for him; he shall lie on the plain, unburied; and the birds and the scavenging dogs can do with him whatever they like.This is my command, and you can see the wisdom behind it”(196). Creon is being logical. He is being logical because he is setting an example to the people of his country. His

In the patriarchal societies of Thebes and Umofia, honor, strength, pride, heroism, and success characterize leadership. Therefore, to become leaders, Okonkwo and Creon depend on the image seen by their societies to define their social status. Upon Creon’s first decree he expresses the importance of his peoples perceptions of himself, questioning his son Haemon about following through with his laws ‘’Do you want me to show myself weak before the people” (Antigone sc.3 line 26)? Creon must stay true to his threat in order to “earn the world’s obedience” even though his niece, Antigone will suffer (Antigone sc.3 line 31).

This quote explains the main conflict of the play. Creon has ordered that Polynices, Antigone’s brother, cannot receive a proper burial because in Creon’s eyes he is a traitor. Polynices fought against his brother to claim the throne of Thebes, the pair ended up killing each other. Tiresias tries to tell Creon that he is wrong to do this because it is angering the gods that he is denying them a body. Tiresias even warns Creon not to be stubborn, “Stubborness/ brands you for stupidity-pride is a crime.” (1137-1138). Pride in Greek tragedies is most often the cause of a characters downfall and Creon is no exception.

As King of Thebes, Creon is forced to make difficult decisions. As a new ruler, he feels it is necessary to prove himself to his citizens, therefore he rules his state with a firm hand. He believes that Polyneices should not be buried because he was a traitor to his country and family. Creon knew this decision would be hard on some

In order to be an influential leader they need to inspire and the only way that will be possible is if they listen to the people around them. Furthermore, Sophocles’ purpose in writing about leadership was to convey that as a leader, they must know what their true values are, because it will help them make decisions easier, help them listen to those around them and it will help them maintain their position as an impactful leader. Creon needed to get a hold on what he truly valued. There were improvements that needed to be made but he was ignorant. His son, the leader, and Tiresias tried to advise him but Creon failed to communicate well with

Creon, the leader who wanted to kill his niece, because she wanted to bury her brother. Antigone will bury her brother, although she knows that Creon’s laws must be obeyed. Creon doesn’t see women strong enough to stand against him. Creon said,“ Whoever is chosen to govern should be obeyed, must be obeyed in all things, great and small, just and unjust “. Creon rejects the rules laid down by the gods. Creon decided to punish everyone who will not obey his law, even if it means having his own niece killed for

Before advancing to the throne, Oedipus had unknowingly killed Laius, his father and the king of Thebes. Shortly after killing the king, he married the dead king’s wife, his mother. He had committed incest by marrying and having children with his own mother. As a result he became father of Polyneices, Eteocles, Antigone, and Ismene. Oedipus stabs his eyes out and his sons, Polyneices and Eteocles killed themselves in combat, over the power of the throne. Creon was in the process of reconstructing Thebes from the ruins that his own family created. He also had to make a name for himself, after all the chaos the past rulers had made. If Creon did not set an example for civilians they would simply rebel. Creon was to stand firm by his word because no one is above the law, no matter who committed the act. In other words Creon was not a villain; he was the antagonist of Antigone. Imagine how biased Creon would appear to the Theban population if he did not pursue the punishment that he himself had instituted. In agreement to his law, Creon’s intentions were just. There’s no doubt about it, Creon’s law was harsh but when truly analyzing the situation, Polyneices was a traitor because he allied with other cities and attacked his homeland. Creon’s strong and steadfast attitudes were to support Thebes. But unfortunately, he was a little too late to understand that his fierce dedication to his decree was an error on his part.

Sophocles shows how power can be corrupted through hubris and invokes the limits of power of a ruler. Also, Sophocles exposes how the presence of dominance can Antigone continues to argue with Creon over the justification of her harsh sentence. Within the heated debate, Antigone says to Creon that “Not a man here would say the opposite, were his tongue not locked in fear. Unfortunately, tyranny (blessed in so much else besides) can lay down the law down any way it wants” (Sophocles 212). Within the argument, Antigone is saying to Creon that he should let her go because if the people were to speak liberally, they would agree with her on letting her go since she was doing what she needed to do as family. Sophocles uses this didactic quote in order to teach us how a one-man state or autocratic ruler tends to become corrupt by showing how Creon 's pride made him unaware from the opinions of his people. Through his blindness, he was able to expand his power because any sort of restraint from the Thebans would have been seen as treason from his own perspective. Sophocles shows through this experience that absolute power—perpetuated by a person’s hubris—can only lead to a corrupt state where no one is able to put a restraint on power. It could be expanded that Sophocles is advocating for democracy because he lived in Athens at a time when democracy was at its infancy. All that Sophocles is invoking to the reader is that if the power of the king was to be limited

In the beginning of Antigone, Creon and his people firmly believe in the power of his authority and his leadership of the city of Thebes. When Creon argues with his son Haemon, he tells him “that man the city places in authority, his orders must be obeyed,” so much that “whoever places a friend above the good of his own country, he is nothing” (748-750, 203-204). The citizens place Creon in authority, so he urges his people to obey his edicts and orders because their compliance is essential to his position. In his opinion, authority is the most meaningful entity in Greek life, regardless of friendship or family ties. For example, even though Antigone is his son’s fiancée, Creon refuses to absolve her of her crimes because in his eyes, no one should be exempt from the law. The city-state agrees with Creon, illustrated when the chorus sings, “When he weaves in the laws of the

The first thing Creon does in Antigone is declare a harsh but understandable law. He proclaims that while the body of Eteocles will be buried with dignity, the corpse of Polyneices will be left to rot on the field of battle. Anyone who attempts to honor Polyneices body with burial will be sentenced to death. Polyneices is a traitor. He allied with other cities and attacked his hometown. He nearly brought destruction to his hometown of Thebes. Antigone breaks the law knowing of the punishment to come and doesn’t respect Creon’s power. Creon states his disapproval of Antigone’s choice by saying,“Anarchy, anarchy! Show me a greater evil! This is why cities tumble and the great houses rain down, This is what scatters armies!”(Sophocles 771). When Creon makes this announcement, he shows his belief in the importance of political power, and the duty of the citizens to follow the laws given by their leader. He shows how laws are so important to freedom.

His natural law was not based on what the gods had enlisted as the right and wrong but rather that there was an inherent truth about the world and pursuing it was of the most supreme priority of an effective leader, because without being guided by this truth the leader would establish false political law and would falter eventually. That being said, Plato would react to this play by realizing that Creon had the right intentions, because he believed that what he was doing truly was the right thing to do, but he allowed his anger with Polyneices, due to him being a traitor and fighting Thebes, along with his immense pride about not wanting to be proved wrong by a women to cloud his reason. Plato would describe Creon as having a soul not fit to be the ruler of a just city because his appetitive and spirited parts supersede that of reason, which is by far most important to Plato. The only person Plato saw to be a fit ruler was a “Philosopher-king,” since he would understand the “Goods” and “Truths” of the world and would lead the city towards them. But this is only possible if the people are obedient; Plato shows this through his noble lie, where all the people are chosen to a specific role in society based on their characteristics and are forced stay in that role throughout their lives. So Plato would see that Creon was on the right track to getting their but since he was an

This speech consists of Creon stating that he will never turn against Thebes and that he will do anything to protect his city, and that Eteocles will receive a proper burial for serving his city but Polyneices will not since he turned on his city (Sophocles 1208-1209). Also, Creon stated that if anyone buries Polyneices they are breaking the law and will receive punishment. While reading and listening to this scene it created a feeling of command and trust, which is ultimately immensely strong for the reader because it illustrates Creon’s authority and credibility as a leader. This scene highlights how there must be civil obedience in order to have a well-thriving society in addition to rules in place to regulate the citizens, but if these rules are broken then there must be ramifications in response; without either of these, the society would eventually turn to an

The play starts out with Creon as the new king, he alone has complete control over the city of Thebes, thus it's not hard to imagine how this drastic change in his lifestyle can bring with it a surge of excessive pride. He went from being just another citizen to king in a short period of time. His first mistake was being foolish enough to create a law that contradicts a law of the gods. This occurs when Creon states, “ it has been proclaimed to our people that none shall grace him with sepulture or lament, but leave him unburied, a corpse for birds and dogs to eat, a ghastly sight of shame.” (Hadas, pg 96) In Ancient Greece religion a burial of a person is very sacred, it was believed to be an essential rite that aided the person on their path to the

According to the chorus, the monarch of Polis has complete power over the citizens and they must follow his orders blindly. Early on, the chorus says, “The powers who hold by might the sway. Thou hast withstood authority," (Page 35). This statement helps to understand the fact that the Chorus believes that Creon is just as demanding that his laws be followed by his subjects as any other. However, as the play reaches its end there is a check on Creon’s power to impose laws, the power which only the Gods possess. The chorus states that “If he honors the laws of the land, and reveres the Gods of the State Proudly his city shall stand; but a cityless outcast I rate (Page 17)”. The notion behind this quote is that the opulence of the city relies on the decisions made by the ruler and equally by the way the citizens follow those laws. The Chorus condemns a city where both of these requirements aren’t