Sophocles Quest For Truth

In Antigone, Sophocles introduces the struggle between loyalty to civil law versus familial loyalty and divine law, which is a central conflict in the play. Antigone has a firm belief in upholding family values and honoring the gods and deceased by burying her brother. In contrast, Creon wants to do what is best for the city which is, in his opinion, forbidding the burial of Polynices. Both Antigone and Creon believe that their point of view is more important, and neither is willing to change perspective, causing the chain of destructive events in the plot. Loyalty causes the deadly dispute between Antigone and Creon because of their conflicting perspectives about precedence.

Born in Athens in 437 B.C, Greek philosopher Plato is one of the most powerful thinkers in history. Coming from Greek aristocracy, Plato had political ambitions as a young man and appeared to follow the family tradition. However, Socrates and his dialectical method of inquiry, which was to question and answer everything to show ignorance, soon captivated Plato.

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

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.

Oedipus’ search for truth was one of his actions that had no other purpose other than his need to know. Oedipus was able to make his choices of wanting to learn the truth even though he was warned not to. His perseverance to find the truths of which he was searching for, that being his oracles or birth, were what ultimately lead him to his own demise. Oedipus actions were freely decided and his search for the truth can be seen as ‘heroic’.

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.

This Sophocles tragedy seemed to touch many readers. This tragedy has made many people in present and antiquity rethink their purpose in life. This story also intended to raise many questions. One question that I will discus is what means more to you, social acceptance or staying true to your beliefs? This classic tragedy that I am referring to is called Antigone. This fascinating story touches many subject of social and religious matter. I will discuss the tragic turmoil of Antigone, her surrounding family, and the social and religious dilemma that Antigone faces that will ultimately decide her fate.

The second article I chose was “The Escalation of Conflict in Sophocles” by Melvin R. Lansky. While reading the article I learned that Oedipus actually means swollen foot. This article also has some comparison between Creon and Antigone. It mentions how both Creon and Antigone feel like they are being insulted and diminished. Afterwards they act by returning the shame to one another in contradiction. The author believes that the focus of the drama is the shame conflict that is drawn from both of them. Creon wanting loyalty and honor of the family and Antigone to her family. What I find ironic is that Creon and Antigone are kind of in the same family being Creon’s niece and Haemon’s fiancée. Antigone feels the need to burry her brother to keep

King Creon puts his own laws above the gods laws and Sophocles shows how this story reflects his religious belief.King Creon makes a law about if anyone tries to give Polyneices a proper funeral and if the people touch him they will be killed. If the King does not go through with the punishment, people will think he is weak and they will take advantage of him. The King niece Antigone was caught prepping her brother for burial and the King tries to help her get out of trouble but, she testified for committing the crime. He knows the rules of the gods and that all people are to have a proper burial so their souls can reach the after world.

The character of Antigone in Sophocles’ play, Antigone, is one of the most controversial tragic characters in classic literature. The war in her city has torn her family apart, caused the death of both her brothers, and created a reason for her to fight against the King, her uncle. Her uncle, Creon, makes a ruling that her brother, Polynices, is not to be buried because he is a traitor, but according to her religion, her brother’s soul will not go to the afterlife until he is buried. In defense of her brother, she buries his body illegally and is subsequently sentenced to death. With her complex patterns of thought, bold actions, and the end she encounters, the character of Antigone causes debate among critics as to

Oedipus thinks he is acting justly by cursing the killer of Laius, but because he does not have full knowledge, he curses himself. Throughout the play, Oedipus is told multiple times to cease his search because it will lead to his downfall. Jocasta cries, “For the gods’ sake, if you have any care for your own life, forbear this search!” (138). However, due to Oedipus’ urge for justice, he states, “I must not hear of not discovering the whole truth” (138). Due to Oedipus’ false certainty, he wishes to discover the truth, which will lead to his downfall. Justice is served through Oedipus’ discovery of the

Throughout the play, Oedipus goes to Tiresias, Jocasta, Creon, The Messenger, The Oracle, and The Shepherd for information regarding his life. Each character in one way or another refused to give him the answers he seeked to know. As Oedipus got closer to the answer, another character tried to put a stop in his journey. Oedipus continues moving forward even though people requested that he didn’t. “Oh no, listen to me, i beg you, don’t do this…..Listen to you? No more. I must know it all, see the truth at last” (Sophocles 195). His desire for the truth kept him going to continue his search to find himself, leading to his downfall. Although he had the capability to discontinue the plight, he made the independent decision to continue.

Have you ever experienced wanting to know who someone was? Well, over the summer, two of my close guy friends were telling me many stories about a teammate and friend of theirs. After hearing many of their stories I decided I wanted to meet their friend, who is named Mark. My friends, Daniel and Noah, told me that it was a bad idea. They explained to me he was “special” and slightly “crazy”. I doubted them and still pushed to meet him. After a while, they finally gave in. Mark and I met over text and in the beginning he seemed very nice. Although, after just a couple days of texting him I began to see that my friends were telling the truth. Mark began to become creepy and would never leave me alone and also claimed that he liked me. I finally then decided to ask for help and admit that they were right about “meeting” him. Both Daniel and Noah admitted how that is was their fault, as well, by letting me text him. This is similar to the conflict in Antigone since my friends and I thought our decisions were the right things to do at the moment and did not think of the consequences. In the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, Antigone, Creon, and the gods were all to blame for all the issues that occurred in Thebes. The writing, Antigone, is about the struggle between knowing what is right and wrong when two laws contradict one another. The story takes place in a city-state, Thebes, in Ancient Greece. The main conflict in the story is between Antigone and Creon about the burial

Why are humans always at war? Why haven’t we been able to reach peace? Even when we think we are at peace, the truth is we aren’t, which is why each country is always working toward better weapons or better militaries. The reasons for war and disagreement are presented in the book Oedipus the King by Sophocles. The story is about how the pride of the main character, Oedipus, sets him up for a terrible fall as king. The background information for the story Oedipus the king, is about how Oedipus is born into a royal family in Thebes. His mother was named Jocasta, and his father was named Laius. When Laius and Jocasta find out about Oedipus’s prophecy they immediately try to get someone to kill him because Oedipus’s prophecy said he would kill his father and mate with

He is too proud to consider the words of the prophet Tiresias, choosing instead to rely on his own sleuthing powers. Tiresias warns him not to pry into these matters; "Just send me home. You bear your burdens, I'll bear mine. It's better that way, please believe me" (364-366). However, pride in his own intelligence leads Oedipus to continue his search. "For the love of god, don't turn away, not if you know something" (371-372). Oedipus values truth attained through scientific inquiry over words and warnings from the gods, as this is a result of his pompous pride.