Antigone And Medea Rhetorical Analysis

Correspondingly, Creon's bona fide adherence to the laws of man is evident in the defense for his resolute actions. In the conversation aforementioned between Haemon and Creon, the latter defends his decision by declaring it is to "respect his own authority". As in his opinion, a respected ruler who is in the early stages of establishing authority must be uncompromising and resolute in making decisions. Creon rejects using divine laws to rule his people for they are irrational, and trusts that solely following man made laws will he be able to guarantee a peaceful and prosperous existence for his city. Creon says that the laws enacted by the city’s leader "must be obeyed, large and small, / right and wrong." Which is to say, Creon contends state law as the basis for justice, hence there can be no such thing as unjust laws. Undoubtedly, Creon's symbolic values within the play is displayed by his fierce dedication to state law and order, contrary to the symbolism Antigone embodies.

In an excerpt from Antigone by Sophocles, the speaker, Teiresias is stating that a good man is one who makes a mistake, recognizes it, and corrects it. Also, the opposite of a good man is one who knows they have made a mistake yet fails to correct it because of their pride.

In the play Antigone, there was a character who was put in a unique situation. Haimen was the son of the newly crowned King Creon and was engaged to his own first cousin, Antigone. When Haimen is introduced into the play Creon thinks that Antigone should be put to death because she tried to bury her brother in order for him to rest in peace, but Haimen thinks otherwise. He uses various rhetorical devices to try and change his father’s ruling and get him on his side.

Within this Narrative, Antigone frequently uses the emotional values of others to convince them of what she believes to be right.The first illustration of this phenomenon is when Antigone compares her willingness to face death as the result of giving her brother an honorable burial, to her sister Ismene 's unwillingness in doing the same.The main character feels as though it is her personal and moral obligation to retrieve the afterlife that’s been taken from her brother.Therefore, she does not agree in abiding by Creon 's man-made legislation and makes it her mission to concede to the laws of the gods. Asking for her sister 's help, she hopes to obtain reliability, only to find her too intimidated by Creon, Their uncle, and king. Accordingly, she says to Ismene “You may do as you like since apparently the laws of the gods mean nothing to you” (Page 192 Sophocles Antigone).This sentence uses two rhetorical appeals. First, Antigone 's most manipulated appeal, pathos is demonstrated specifically when she says “ you may do as you like..” (Page 192 Sophocles Antigone).These words make it seem like Ismene is selfish in preserving herself, unlike Antigone 's decision to do the opposite. Antigone uses comparison to herself to make Ismene appear weak and self-serving in return. This technique is persuasive because it appeals to the human need for respect and convinces Ismene along with the audience, by cause of her choices, she lacks in it.Another rhetorical appeal used in the

In Sophocles’ play Antigone, Antigone is punished for burying her dead brother’s body by being buried alive. Antigone gives an emotional speech in which she laments the loss of her youth and her future of marriage and motherhood. In this speech, she employs rhetorical devices like pathos, foreshadowing and extended metaphor.

In Euripides’ text The Medea, Medea can easily be painted as the villian. She is a woman who killed her own children in an attempt to spite her husband. But, by examining the text, we can see that she deserves some sympathy. She has little to no control over her own life and has to rely on the will of men. And as a foreigner in Corinth abandoned by her husband, she faces even more challenges than the native women of Corinth did. She is not blameless, in what she did, but she deserves some sympathy because of how she was immobilized by all the duties thrown on her by her society.

Achilles and Hector in The Iliad and Medea and Jason Medea all have characteristics that eventually led to their downfall. Achilles is a furious man, and it leads him to do unspeakable things. Hector is very prideful, and it clouds his judgement. In Medea, Medea is revengeful, and all she thinks about his getting revenge. Jason is insensitive, and it cost him his family. All four characters have many character flaws but only one flaw admittedly lead to their downfall.

Medea was treated unfairly in the patriarchal society that she lived in and due to the circumstances she was forced to abide by, she sought to achieve her own form of justice. Women were mistreated and regarded as inferior to men. In fact, Medea mentioned how women were like foreigners forced to abide by their husband’s laws and remain subservient. Essentially, women were treated as outsiders and were thought to need constant protection from male figures. So, when the King of Corinth kicked her and her children out of Corinth and Jason left them, she wanted revenge since she felt she had been wronged. Thus, she formulated a systematic plan to achieve her agenda and to rectify the injustice that had occurred. Essentially, the King of Corinth

His power as a king allows him to make his own laws, and even give sentence to those who can defy him. Because of his law, Creon has so much arrogance that when Teiresias informs Creon of his doom-laden prophecy,

“Surely, of all creatures that have life and will, we women/ Are the most wretched” (Euripides 229-230).

Medea was a priestess which made her familiar with the concept of sacrifice. At the point of time when she killed her children, she was not a mother but solely a priestess. This portrays Euripedes’ belief that victims who are betrayed turn against their tormentor and everything related to their tormentor. Even though Medea wins over Jason by filling it with pain and sorrow, she does lose a lot. The phrase “Medea why lie down with death?” shows Medea’s desire to exchange her marriage bed with a death bed due to the intense pain she went through. Thus, Euripedes makes it a point that betrayals in marriages can lead to

The feeling of being left by someone you love is truly painful hence, Medea expressed her emotions as much as she can and mourned for her lost. It is true that women can be sensitive and emotional so there was Medea portraying a usual woman in an unusual manner. Her despair and grief intrigued everyone in Corinth which led to the appearance of the chorus. Since Medea is a foreigner in their city, it was easier for them to judge Medea for they do not know her. They thought that Medea’s reaction was too much and since she is a woman, she had no rights to act that way. Medea was too devastated to show up yet she wanted to point out her side. She shared her heart breaking story of how Jason left her and their children for Princess Glauke. She showcased an empowerment of women as she acclaimed that she would rather go to three battles than

Medea is a play written by Euripides in the year 431 B.C. and basically is a tragic Greek mythological play that deals with themes such as love, marriage, betrayal and revenge. Summing it up, this play specifically is about how Medea is sent into exile due to Creon (the king) feeling threatened by her. He is feeling threatened by her because Jason (Medea’s husband) took another bride to bed which happened to be the king’s daughter. Medea plots her revenge by murdering the king, the bride and her two children in order to make Jason suffer and take away everything Jason cared about. The Greek gods felt that Medea was in her right and they proved this by allowing and even helping her escape in the end of the play

“Let death destroy Jason and Jason’s children! Let the whole ancestry of Jason be destroyed!” (Fredrick, 2015 , p. 18)

What “tragic ideas” do we see expressed in Sophocles’ drama? Answer with reference to the play Antigone.