How Is Antigone Morally Ambiguous Character

Conner Johnson

Mr. Milroy

English 10b Hon.

17 January 2023

Ambiguous character

Antigone is a morally ambiguous character who plays a pivotal role in the play Antigone by Sophocles. Being the play’s lead character, She is the starting cause of all the struggles in the drama. Violating the law is an action Antigone sees as necessary to fit what she believes is morally right, consequently creating contrast in her character of whether she is morally just or conversely purely evil. Creon decreed that it would be against his rule to bury the body of Polynices; nevertheless, Antigone still goes to bury the body because she believes it to be morally right. She can not be seen as entirely evil because she kept the body of her brother from just laying there on the battlefield to rot, yet Antigone can not be seen as completely good since she has broken the first

Antigone shows that a character can be good and evil. It is up to the reader to discern whether that character is good or bad or somewhere between the two. Antigone is corrupt because she goes and breaks the law that Creon passed almost immediately after the law passed. When she gets caught, she shows no remorse for her actions and instead is critical of Creon’s decision to outlaw the burying of her brother's body. Also, She can be seen as evil because she completely disregards the effects of her actions on others. When she breaks the law Ismene, her sister, is taken in by the king's guard to be questioned by Creon. Since she is in questioning, there is a chance she will be punished for something that she took no part in burying the body of Polynices, and Antigone only tries to talk Ismene out of trying to take claim on the actions of Antigone. She could have instead brought it up to Creon, which would have saved Ismene from any trouble. This doesn’t mean that everything Antigone does is morally