The Tragic Hero Of Sophocles ' Antigone

Sophocles’ play Antigone continues the calamitous story of the Theban royal family, recounting the conflict between Creon’s authority as king and Antigone’s sense of justice. While many of the events of the play are certainly tragic, whether or not Antigone and its characters should be considered tragic is less definite. Aristotle’s theory of a tragic hero calls for a basically good character who experiences a fall due to some flaw or error, experiencing a transformative realization and catharsis as a result. When considered together, the traits of both Antigone and Creon come together to fulfill all of the requirements for the play to be a tragedy, but neither character can be considered an Aristotelian tragic hero standing alone.

Sophocles, a great tragedian, was the one who gave Greek tragedies their traditional form. An important part of traditional Greek tragedies is the presence of a tragic hero. All tragic heroes should have the characteristics of rank, a tragic flaw, a downfall, and a recognition of mistakes. The seemingly tragic hero is Antigone. She wants to bury her brother Polyneices even though this would be going against Creon, who is her uncle and the king. When Antigone buries Polyneices Creon sentences her to death because of it. In Antigone by Sophocles the tragic hero is not Antigone because she only meets the characteristic of a tragic flaw, hers being pride, but doesn 't meet the other three characteristics of a

A tragic hero is a character in a play that is known for being dignified but has a flaw that assists in his or her downfall. Antigone is a Greek tragic piece written by Sophocles. In the theatrical production the use of power and morality versus law is evident. The promotion to the conflict was that Creon created a law in which enabled Polynieces, Antigone’s brother, to be buried in the proper way. As it is the way of the gods Antigone found it fit to bury her brother causing her to disobey the law of Thebes. Both Antigone and Creon, the main characters, could represent a tragic hero. However Creon is more eligible for being the tragic hero because he fits the definition. Aristotle’s idea of a tragic hero was that the character was of

Similarly, Creon is a good leader to his people. He punishes evil and rewards good as mentioned above. He is seen by the people, as well as his own son, to have "goodness" in his "leadership" (lines 691). Thus, Creon’s noble character seen through the love of his country, through the just decision to punish Polyneices, and through his good leadership qualifies him for the 1st criterion of being a tragic hero.

Antigone, a Greek a tragedy, is the third of the Three Theban Plays by Sophocles. Throughout the play, readers are introduced to few, but intriguing characters, one being the protagonist of the play, Antigone. Antigone is the tragic hero of Antigone; she presents recognition of the gods, exemplifies good virtues, and possess a fatal flaw, or hamartia. A tragic hero is a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat.

Hero. Hero comes from the greek word heros meaning “A person who faces adversity, or demonstrates courage, in the face of danger.” Growing up we have always read stories about heroes coming to save the day; for instance, Captain America. Being that our whole lives we were mostly exposed to heroism, have you ever asked yourself what is the opposite of a hero? A villain is the opposite of a hero, but their is another opposite form of a hero; a tragic hero. A Tragic hero is “A literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction” (“Tragic hero as defined by Aristotle”). For instance, in the play written by Sophocles Antigone, the tragic hero is Creon. Creon who is Antigone’s

Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, defines a tragic figure as one who represents goodness, superiority, a tragic flaw, and a realization of their tragic flaw and inevitability. A tragic figure is normally someone of royalty, or importance, and also experiences a great devastation. A big flaw of a tragic hero is usually their pride. The figure will experience an ironic plot twist, where they realize things are not what they expected, and then are to face the reality of their fate. In, The Theban Plays, by Sophocles (translated by E. F. Watling), the characters Creon and Antigone represent tragic figures. In the play “Antigone,” Sophocles depicts the character Creon as a tragic hero. Creon portrays many characteristics of a tragic figure. His tragic story begins when makes the decision of becoming a hubris. A hubris is one who ignores the gods, and follows their own path. When Creon does this, his decisions greatly affect the fate of his loved ones; his son, wife and Antigone. Along with Creon, Antigone portrays a tragic hero in as well. Antigone’s tragic fate comes from her loyalty to her family and the gods. She chooses to stick to her own beliefs, rather than having obedience towards the king, and this was the cause of her downfall.

The play, Antigone, written by Sophocles shows the different downfalls of characters. One of these characters is Creon. Creon does not realize that his pride and stubbornness has interfered his ability to deal with problems and rule of Thebes properly. By analyzing Creon, one could see that he is considered a tragic hero in this play. The characteristics a person must have to be a tragic hero is he has “a hamartia, or tragic flaw. More often than not that tragic flaw is excessive pride, or a hubris. The character then goes through a peripeteia, which is a twist where the character realizes that things will not turn out the way he expected. Finally, the character has an anagnorisis, which is their epiphany that makes them realize their hamartia” (Cap, Creon as a Tragic Character in “Antigone”). The tragic hero characteristics in Creon are clearly shown when he speaks with blind prophet, Teiresias. The character interaction between Creon and Teiresias helps develop Creon as a tragic hero in Antigone.

The tragic hero of a story has to have his/her tragic flaw. Creon and Antigone both shared the beliefs of freedom and the protection of personal dignity; those must be their tragic flaws. Creon believed that if he made a direct command he would carry it out all the way and not bend the rules for anyone. That shows how stubborn he was and how heartless and vile he was. Those are the traits of his tragic flaw. Antigone believed that everyone has their equal rights no matter whom they are fighting for, especially if they are part of her family. She would be stubborn and would not bend her ideals for anyone like Creon. She would go as far as it would take for her to get her point across. A tragic hero must realize that he/she has a tragic flaw and must then try to change themselves.

There has always been a great debate over who is the true tragic hero in Sophocles' Antigone. Many scholars would stake claim to Antigone possessing all the necessary characteristics of a true tragic hero, but many others would argue that Creon holds many qualities as well. It is hard to discount Antigone as a tragic hero, because in fact, the play bears her name, but from careful reading, Creon meets Aristotle's criteria exactly and fits perfectly into the role. In order to determine whether or not Creon is the true tragic hero, one must answer the question: 'What is a Tragic Hero?' In Aristotle's Poetics, he discusses the basic criteria regarding a tragic hero. Aristotle

Oedipus is the quintessential Greek tragic hero; his story marks a tale of inevitable distress and sorrow. However, in Antigone, this was not the case and the tragic hero was not easily identifiable. A tragic hero is a character, usually of high birth, neither completely good nor evil, whose downfall is brought about by some weakness or error in judgement. In Sophocles' Greek tragedy, Creon is portrayed as a struggling king who must come to the reality that his actions are in favor against him. Stubbornness and excessive pride are the driving force behind Creon’s downfall as a tragic hero. He is reluctant to acknowledge the views of others, ignores familial values, and executes his rule as a king in a tyrannical manner.

According to Aristotle, a tragic hero can be defined as a “literary character who makes a judgement error that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction.” Aristotle uses ideas such as the anagnorisis, peripeteia, hamartia and hubris to define a hero as a tragic hero. The author, Sophocles, creates Creon to be the leader of the town of Thebes in the play Antigone, after Oedipus. His niece, Antigone is also a main character in such a way that makes her a hero but not quite a tragic hero. Creon is the well-known character who begins as the leader and eventually becomes the true tragic hero. In the play Antigone, the tragic hero is Creon due to his pride, nobility and realization that leads to a tragic outcome.

Poetics, where he defines what makes a tragic hero. Aristotle suggests that a tragic hero is a

Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero is someone of great importance or royalty. The hero must go through something terrible such as a relative’s death. We must feel what this character is feeling throughout the story. Aristotle also said that a tragic hero scan be defeated by a tragic flaw, such as hubris or human pride. In Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone, both Creon and Antigone are tragic heroes.

In many, a tragedy do the tragic heroes have flaws that lead themselves to their own demise. The main character always acts exactly on his or her own emotions; thus aiding their tragic flaw and leading to their own demise without giving them the time to stop the repercussions of their emotion driven actions. In the play “Antigone” by Sophocles many of the characters are simply too headstrong and passionate about their beliefs to realize that they would greatly regret the decisions they are making. All of the characters share this characteristic; it is alluded to in the play that this is caused by their blood relation to Oedipus and how they are too cursed.