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Creon Tragic Flaws

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The play, Antigone, is a tragedy written by the Greek poet Sophocles. A common theme among tragedies is that they have a tragic hero, and Antigone is no different. The tragic hero of this poem is Creon, the King of Thebes. Creon is faced with the difficult task of punishing his niece, Antigone. She has broken one of his laws stating that no one is to give proper burial rites to Polyneices, Antigone’s brother, because he tried to overthrow Creon. Against the warning of others, Creon goes on with his plan to essentially sentence Antigone to her death. Creon continually ignores what others counsel him to do because he believes that just because he is king, everything he does is right. It is this thinking that ultimately leads to the death of not only Antigone, but also Creon’s son and wife as well. All tragic heroes suffer from a tragic flaw that leads to their downfall. Creon suffers from two tragic flaws, pride and stubbornness. Both of these flaws lead Creon down a path of destruction that he is unable to return from. …show more content…

Teiresias tells Creon that about how he had a dream and saw that the gods aren’t please with Creon. They aren’t happy with how Creon is punishing Antigone for trying to uphold their laws. “Wise art thou as a seer, but too much given to wrong and injury” (Sophocles, ln. 1215-1216). Earlier in the play Creon was talking about how Teiresias as a seer is very reliable and has never been wrong. However, in this quote, the reader can see that Teiresias is advising Creon to give Polyneices proper burial rights and free Antigone because it will please the gods, but since Creon is too prideful and stubborn to admit he’s wrong, he blames Teiresias’ visions as being wrong. He refuses to hear the counsel of others, even if it came from the gods. This is the last chance Creon had at potentially stopping the ensuing downfall that he will face later on in

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After Creon angered the gods with his tyrannical ruling, it was only a matter of time before those closest to him fell victim to fate. The messenger, in the end of the play, told Eurydice, “He gathered Antigone close in his arms again, Choking, his blood bright red on her white cheek. And now he lies dead with the dead, and she is his At last, bride in the houses of the dead” (Sophocles Exodus.21-23). Creon enforcing his law had finally led to his niece committing suicide, and his very own son following soon after. If Creon could have just taken a moment to reflect on himself and realize that he needed to fix his mistake, he could have spared multiple lives.

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His free choice is represented by a quote from the guard surveying Polyneices body, “We saw this girl giving that dead man's corpse full burial rites—an act you’d made illegal” (337). Although Creon's own niece turns out to be the one that went against his word, he still chooses to follow through with the punishment even though the deed Antigone did was morally right. The punishment that he lays upon Antigone is excessive and unjust considering the crime. While in an argument with her, he calls to his guards proclaiming, “Take her and shut her up, as I have ordered, in her tomb’s embrace [...]

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