ipl-logo

Role Of Creon In Antigone

856 Words4 Pages

In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, the main character Creon goes through major character development as the story progresses. As King of Thebes, Creon establishes a series of decisions thought to be ethically correct for the city. However, many of his family members and townspeople disagree and revolt against his decrees and, as a result, leads to his downfall, making him a symbol of a tragic hero. One of those people is Antigone, the headstrong female protagonist who defies Creon’s orders in order to bring justice to her brother. Her conflicting motivations and rationale advances the plot and contributes to Creon’s development as a tragic hero.
The definition of a tragic hero is a flawed character who makes poor judgement that inevitably leads to their downfall. The first sign of Creon as a tragic hero appears in the beginning of the play, when he decrees that one of the fallen brothers, Polyneices, will not be getting a buried honorably. Antigone, angered by his decree, buries the body herself in order to secure a respectable burial for her brother. Because of Antigone, Creon’s flaws of being too arrogant, harsh, and stubborn were highlighted as he sought out to find who buried the body. Creon’s harsh and arrogant attitude appears when he scorns the Guard, saying, “...before what you’re about to say enrages me completely and reveals that …show more content…

Creon’s harsh decree was made out of good intentions to stabilize Thebes after recovering from near destruction, yet it led him to his downfall when Antigone decided to defy his orders. It worsened when he refused to compensate with Antigone and the god’s law, sticking with the rational man’s law. Using Antigone to develop and explore a complex character not only establishes Creon as a tragic hero, but also raises many questions about the extent of loyalty within family, government, and set of

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Creon In Antigone

    1321 Words  | 6 Pages

    Aristotle once said, "A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall." In the play, Antigone, by Sophocles, King Creon is the main tragic hero, because of the decisions he made leading to his destruction. After the death of Polyneices and Eteocles, Creon was crowned King of Thebes. All of the citizens of thebes feared Creon because of the prideful tone he showed in his first speech, and in Aristotle’s description of a tragic hero, the character almost always displays excessive pride. Another decision that Aristotle said most tragic heroes go through is an error in judgement, which Creon made when sentencing Antigone to death.

    Read More

  • Creon In Sophocles Antigone

    735 Words  | 3 Pages

    Creon feeling all this guilt from which he has set upon himself says “Aaaii… my fear now makes me tremble. Why won’t someone now strike out at me, pierce my heart with a double bladed sword?” Ceron feeling to blame from all the pain and suffering he has caused he wonders why he is not killed because he feels it is so well

    Read More

  • Creon: The Real Tragic Hero

    623 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the distinguished play Antigone, there is argument over who the tragic hero is, Antigone, or King Creon. A tragic hero must meet certain specifications, which include having a great influence, being essentially good with good intentions, having a weakness in them that leads to their fall, they must commit great sin which leads to conflict, that their story begins in relative happiness and ends in utter disaster, and that the hero commits their actions of their own free will. In this play, I believe that Creon is the real tragic hero and that Antigone sparks the reaction to his downfall. Creon’s position as king gives him great influence over the people of Thebes, allowing him to create laws to restrain, abstain, and assist the citizens.

    Read More

  • Creon's Tragic Hero In Sophocles Antigone

    660 Words  | 3 Pages

    Almost always, in Greek tragedies a “tragic hero” has a hamartia, or tragic flaw, which will cause their concluding demise. In the Greek playwright, Antigone written by Sophocles, the interesting character, Creon, is a prime example of this. According the Aristotle’s theory, to be a tragic hero you have to have three traits: a flaw, a fall, and acceptance of your current situation. Creon’s flaw is his ego, which blinds him and lures him to do rather profane activities. Due to Creon’s ego, him losing everything caused by that very hamartia, and acceptance of the series of unfortunate events that occurred; Creon is the tragic hero in Antigone

    Read More

  • Creon's Flaws In Antigone

    195 Words  | 1 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Is Creon Justified In Antigone

    1501 Words  | 7 Pages

    In the classic play by Sophocles, Antigone is a tragic story of the bold Antigone who defied her uncle, King Creonʻs, edict by burying her brother, Polyneices, who died attacking the city of Thebes, trying to take the power away from their brother, Eteocles, who refused to share the throne with Polyneices. Even though Antigone knew that going against Creon and burying her brother would not end well for her, she still choose to risk her life to do what is right. After being caught breaking the law, Antigone is appointed to be locked away, isolated in a cave until she dies, but she hangs herself at the end. At the same time, things for Creon are not looking good, as everyone around him seems to be against him in his decision for punishing Antigone. Everyone Creon cares about kills themselves from a curse that is put on Creon for not following the Godsʻ laws.

    Read More

  • Creon Tragic Flaws

    809 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Who Is Creon A Good Leader In Antigone

    606 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, Creon is not only authoritative but also wise. An example of this is when he says, "...whoever shows by word and deed that he is on the side of the state -- he shall have my respect while he is living, and my reverence when he is dead" (1. 45-47). As the king of Thebes, Creon is a man whose respect is earned, not given. Creon explains to the Chorus that a man who is loyal to the state and the ruler earns his total respect. A clever ruler would compel his subjects to obey him and follow his rules without explicitly stating the consequences.

    Read More

  • Antigone: Creon As A Tragic Hero

    1234 Words  | 5 Pages

    “Not so self-centered that you never listen to other people” (Hugh Hefner). In the story of Antigone, Creon shows the characteristics of a tragic hero, as he is the king he shows his self-confident and he does not recognize his flaws until the end of the story. All of this leads into his downfall in the tragedy and causes him to realized what he had done. Creon is a tragic hero because of his self-righteousness, his excessive pride, and he does not listen to the opinion of others.

    Read More

  • Haemon Vs Creon Essay

    644 Words  | 3 Pages

    “A city which belongs to just one man is no true city.” (lines 838-39) Throughout the play, Antigone, written by Sophocles, the character Haemon constantly tries to persuade his father, Creon, to listen to the people of his city and to become a more humble leader. Haemon’s words, actions, and ideas contrast with Creon’s character. Which results in the two characters having continual conflicting motivations.

    Read More

  • Creon: A Tragic Hero In Antigone By Sophocles

    1092 Words  | 5 Pages

    In Sophocles’ play Antigone, Creon, the king of Thebes, best represents a tragic hero. Creon demonstrates goodness in his intentions for Thebes as well as his fragile state due to the fact that he recently lost several family members. Creon, newly named king, finds himself as highest ranking official around, showing superiority. Creon often acts stubborn and prideful, his tragic flaw. And lastly, he must come to terms with the fact that he caused the death of his wife, son, and niece.

    Read More

  • King Creon's Struggle In Antigone

    1014 Words  | 5 Pages

    The play Antigone features a deep struggle of power for King Creon. Creon faced several insecurities, during his rule, as king of Thebes. These insecurities, which stemmed from an internal power struggle, went on to, not only affect his rule as king, but his personal relationships, and emotions as well. Other reasons for his actions stem from family matters that have hindered Creon's ability to successfully control and rule by himself.

    Read More

  • Who Is Creon The Protagonist In Antigone

    1133 Words  | 5 Pages

    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.”

    Read More

  • Creon Character Analysis Essay

    1136 Words  | 5 Pages

    The play, Antigone written by Sophocles, presents a tragedy that fits the classical definition, but it is the story of Creon, the king of the main character. Creon starts out as the king of Thebes , Creon’s tragic flaw is his pride and his arrogance which caused him reflecting upon his mistakes making him a broken man, recognizing what he did to his niece, he is a character within Antigone, even though he was portrayed as an antagonist he was the main character since he was. Creon’s tragic flaw, hubris, causes his downfall. Creon will not listen to anyone.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Love In Antigone

    757 Words  | 4 Pages

    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

    Read More

More about Role Of Creon In Antigone

Open Document