Creon Character Analysis Of Antigone

In the Greek tragedy Antigone, written by the legendary tragic poet Sophocles, the author describes the many character traits and attributes of Creon that parallel those of Agamemnon’s character in The Illiad. In the tragedy, Creon is the uncle of the protagonist Antigone and the ruler of Thebes. Like Agamemnon, Creon holds a position of great power and duty as the king of his people. Though Creon does not

A hero is not always someone with power. A true hero can be a person that inspires you to be better in life. Many heroes simply help other in danger. Police officers, firefighters and even doctors give people strength to overcome problems. What kind of qualities makes a hero? In the play Antigone, the play writer Sophocles had different type of qualities for a hero. The character of Creon is a true tragic hero that wants to be respected by the city. His pride for the city caused pain to his family and himself.

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.

Of the one hundred and twenty plays and tales Sophocles had written during his time, only seven have survived to today and Antigone a tale of the constant turmoil of the royal family of Thebes is one of those few ancient tales. Creon, the new king of the city of Thebes, strives for justice and absolute loyalty to the crown, however, after he discovered that an unidentified citizen had defied one of his recently announced laws, he inflicted his fury on himself and those around him. Creon is the tragic figure that functions as an instrument of the suffering of others and contributes to the tragic vision of the story, Antigone by Sophocles, as a whole by threatening his subjects and family with death, ignoring the thoughts of his elders and peers, and bringing the feeling of death to himself and also death itself to those around him.

In the short story titled “Antigone,” the author portrays Creon as a tragic hero by displaying flaws in Creon's character shown throughout the story. Creon’s character contains many flaws which lead to many problems. His decisions end up deciding the fates of his son, his wife, and Antigone. Creon finally realizes that what he has done is sinful to the gods. He has put his own pride over the appreciation of the gods.

Another characteristic that defines a tragic hero is that they experience misfortune that is not entirely deserved, and in this case, Creon did; he experienced the loss of both his wife and son. In Antigone, it states, Messenger:“we saw Antigone hanging by the neck/… Haemon had his arms around her waist-/ he was embracing her and crying out in sorrow for the loss of his own bride/...Angry at himself, the ill-fated lad/ right then and there leaned onto his own sword,” (Lines 1359-1377). After Antigone decided to take her own life, Haemon, Creon’s son and Antigone’s husband, saw Antigone’s body and decided to end his own life as well. Not only did Creon cause the death of Antigone, he also inadvertently caused the death of his son, Haemon. In addition to the death of his son, Creon also caused the death of his wife, Eurydice. In Antigone, it states, Messenger:“She killed herself,/ with her own hands she stabbed her belly,/ once she heard her son’s unhappy fate,”(Lines 1460-1462). Once Creon’s wife, Eurydice, received the news of her son’s suicide, she decided to take her own life as well. So, in addition to Antigone’s and Haemon’s death, Creon also caused his wife’s death because he refused to let Antigone go sooner than he did. This whole ordeal stems from Creon’s stubbornness which embodies the play’s tragic vision because it shows how one’s

Glory; it was the only the thing that mattered in Ancient Greece. To receive honor from the gods is the only thing for many greeks. In the play, Antigone, written by Sophocles, the protagonist, Antigone, encounters many conflicts. One major conflict is with King Creon over the honoring of her brother. Creon is as loyal to his word as Antigone is stubborn. Antigone and King Creon have very different views on life and loyalty, however they have one thing in common, power and glory; one in the mortal world and the other in the afterlife, thus shaping their beliefs and loyalty.

In lines 599 to 601, Creon’s states that, due to his selfishness and stubbornness, he will not allow a woman, that woman being Antigone, to change his mind and defy his judgement. He declares that, if Antigone chooses to not change her ways, she will be killed, as to not waver from his own decree. Antigone therefore dies as a result of Creon’s insufferable and ignorant ruling, causing her to suffer at Creon’s hand. Creon’s ruling for the murder of Antigone also causes Haemon to suffer. Creon finds Haemon, in his last moments, mourning the loss of Antigone, “now among the dead, his father’s work,” as described by the messenger in line 1364. The messenger goes on to say,in lines 1371 to 1380, that Haemon first swings towards his father with a dagger, then pitifully and fatally stabs himself. The messenger agrees that Creon’s inability to give in to another’s point of view and have humility are the causations for Haemon’s suicide in lines 1383 to 1835, “The unfortunate boy has shown all men how, of all the evils which afflict mankind, the most disastrous one is thoughtlessness,” which references Creon’s tragic flaws. Following the death of his son, and eventually his wife, Creon realized the failures in his actions and judgements, and is left to suffer due to his own actions. In lines 1406 to 1407, after the discovery

Antigone is one of the greatest tragedies ever written by Sophocles. There is a controversial question about this play: Who is the tragic hero? Could it be Antigone or Creon? Even though the play’s name is Antigone, but as I read the story. A sensible and responsible king, Creon, is a tragic hero because of his power madness, self-righteousness, and ruthlessness. He is the center of the play, which causes events to happen.

Creon is the protagonist in Antigone, because his motivation throughout Antigone is the stability and wellbeing of Thebes. Moreover, Antigone is the antagonist in Antigone, because her motivation is selfish and deceiving. In Antigone the setting is Thebes post the death of both airs to the throne. Eteocles dies defending his country from his brother Polynieces which died attempting to reclaim his right to the throne. The conflict throughout Antigone is Antigone’s responsibility to bury her brother Polynices and the law created by Creon, the new king of Thebes, which states that “No one shall bury him, no one mourn for him.” (Antigone 59) Antigone proceeds to disobey the law and dies in her own hands to ensure her own martyr status. Antigone is not the protagonist because of her selfish motivation and need to

Antigone was wronged and Antigone is tragic hero because she wanted to get a proper grave site, Creon was her uncle, Antigone was the good one.

When Creon is done interrogated Antigone, he sends her to be banished in a cavern, to be later killed. This sets into motion a chain reaction of opposers to Creon. Haemon, Creon's son, tells his father,”Then she’ll die-and in her death kill someone else.” Later on, a blind prophet prophecies Haemon’s death to Creon. Creon orders antigone to released from banishment, but is shocked to see she has hanged herself. Haemon is their with her sobbing, and when he sees Creon he attacks him. He misses and kills himself, bringing reddish color to antigone lifeless body. Word gets to Haemon’s mother and Creon’s wife and she kills herself with a small dagger. This is how the plot advances towards Creon coming to be a tragic hero. The plot moves from just Creon and Antigone to other characters forming a complex plot where many are affected, including

Creon see Antigone as a person who is scheming against him for his crown because she bury Polyneices. Creon did not want to seem weak as the new king, and he wanted to make an example out of Antigone this is why Creon sent her to death. His family and the blind prophet warn Ceon of his actions, but he was too stubborn to care about the consequences of his actions. Creon explains and that Haemon should not care because that she is just a normal women now not even family when she bury Polynices. Creon say: “Do you want me to show myself weak before the people? / Or to break my sworn word? No, and I will not / The women dies. / I suppose she’ll plead “family ties.” Well let her”. (840). Then Creon was visited by the blind prophet Teiresias. Teiresias tells Creon that his actions as king have affected all people of Greece: “This was a sign from heaven. My boy describes it, / Seeing for me as I see for others. / I tell you, Creon, you yourself have brought / This new calamity upon us” (850). Creon tried to save Antigone, but it was already too late. Creon’s downfall is when loses his son, wife, and his willing to rule Thebes because didn't want to change his opinion when putting Antigone in a stone

Love is a powerful motivation it can even drive you into hating someone, love drives you to do even what you wouldn’t normally do. Creon makes a law that forbids anyone from burying Antigone’s brother. When she finds out she goes against the king and buries her brother. When he is informed about what happened he punishes her. Antigone kills herself and then his son kills himself when he finds out that his love had died. Antigone’s love is so great for her brother that she went against the king and buried him with religious rights. Then Haemon kills himself because Antigone had died and he wanted to be with her. In the end Creon’s wife killed herself because her son had died. Creon is perceived as the tragic hero of the play when he is talking

The play, Antigone is an Ancient Greek play mostly about myth written by Sophocles. There are two main characters in this play which are Antigone and Creon. Antigone is a girl who tries to bury her brother, Polyneices who died during the war and she chooses family instead of the government. Creon, is Antigone’s uncle, and also a King of Thebes who didn’t allow the people to bury Polyneices. He doesn’t like people who disobeys the rules of the government.They both are tragic characters because Antigone kills herself and Creon asks for his death to the gods.It can be argued that the tragic hero is Creon because of his excessive pride and his intense suffering at the end of the play.