Martin Luther King And Antigone Comparison Essay

Antigone is a tragic hero because of her headstrong loyalty to her brother and the morals of the gods, which leads to Creon’s retaliation and her downfall. Early in the play, Ismene asks her sister, “Do you mean to bury him? Against the city’s ordinance?” (44), to which Antigone replies, “But he is mine. And yours. Like it or not, he’s our brother. They’ll never catch me betraying him” (45-46).

Antigone's actions consistently display her dedication to the will of the gods, and Creon's behaviour steadily exhibits his fierce devotion to state laws. Thus, this Greek tragedy compellingly establishes and thoroughly explores the intricate and perplexing relationship between the two themes by utilizing the literary device of

Throughout one’s lifetime, conflicts between justice and reputation often arise. Due to this, one must be able to realize the consequences when standing up against an oppressive power. In the play Antigone, Antigone is motivated and acts upon justice as seen in her defiance to the law, love for Polyneices, and her persistent moral compass. Antigone’s fight for justice shows just how powerful she can be with her words and actions.

Without the sacrificial death, Antigone would only consist of the overpowering actions of King Creon. Her decisions and actions on challenging him was one of the main themes of the play. Arguably she made a heroic decision, but deciding what her intent was behind those decisions is questionable. Undoubtedly one of Antigone’s motivations was to be certain that both of her brothers were resting

Laws have maintained the order and stability of society from old days of ancient civilization to today’s contemporary society. As law-abiding citizens, we allow the laws to be enforced through punishments and consequences; however, when these laws threaten ethical values and justice, they are challenged in a non-violent method known as “civil disobedience.” In Sophocles’ Antigone, Antigone challenged the political authority of Creon in a defiant act that related the struggles between her duty as a citizen of Thebes and her loyalty to her family. In “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” written by Martin Luther King, Jr., King protests racial injustices and systemic racism throughout the South and laments the need for civil disobedience to be used

A tragic character is one whose errors and misfortunes lead to one’s own downfall. In Sophocles’ Antigone, Creon and Antigone are two characters whose adherence to their principles causes extreme conflict. Antigone believes in what is morally just, while Creon believes in what is civilly just. They both are passionate about fighting to prove that their principles are justifiable. Antigone and Creon, both expressing loyalty and pride toward opposing forces, are unable to come to a consensus, which ultimately leads to the destruction of both characters.

Martin Luther King once stated in "The Letter from Birmingham Jail", "Any individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust and willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment to arouse the conscience of the community over it injustice is in reality, expressing the highest respect for the law" (King 411). King meant that, if anyone feels a law is unjust and needed to expose its injustice, should willingly accept any penalty that comes in their way to help arouse people 's conscience in changing that law. In “The Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Martin Luther King explains the four powerful steps of the nonviolent campaign he used to protest against racial injustice for African-Americans

The search for justice is never ending. Justice may be delayed, denied, or postponed, however, the search is timeless. To be just is to argue for fair rights for all. It is to be someone that will help the people of the community. However, many times justice is not sought and not given to those who need it most. In the play Antigone by Sophocles, he demonstrates the many ways an unjust leader can overpower those who fight for what is right (Adams 1). In Antigone’s case, she fought for the just treatment of her brother in his afterlife and for giving him a proper burial. In her fight for justice, Antigone exhibits strong beliefs of fairness to her community regarding family, rights and morality in her battle against a seemingly unjust leader, Kreon.

Oedipus the King of Thebes stepped down from his throne and gave the kingdom to his two sons Polyneices and Eteocles. Each son would alternate every year but after the first year Eteocles refused to step down, drove his brother out to Argos. Polyneices wanted to rebel and attack his home city of Thebes to claim his throne. Eteocles resolves to fight his brother in combat and both end up killing each other. Creon the uncle of Antigone claims the throne and believe that Eteocles should be buried while Polyneices should be left to be fed on my dogs and birds. Antigone fights for what she believes in morally right. Even though Polyneices goes against his brother and people, religious law is more important than man-made law because Antigone is showing her loyalty to the gods, Creon is creating rules to show he is the one in power, and Antigone believes that she should follow the religious law requiring that women bury the deceased.

people act and what you are like. In Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, Antigone, the protagonist, Antigone, is influenced a lot by her core values. The play Antigone was the story of the daughter Antigone of Oedipus and Iocaste, which took place after they tragically died. Antigone is influenced by the core values of her belief of family coming first, her following of God, and dying with pride and honor is important. Antigone’s core values and morals are more important than anything and these influence her choices throughout the play.

In Sophocles’ Greek tragedy Antigone, a woman’s individual conscience trumps state law when Antigone displays time and again that she values her divine motives higher than those of the state throughout the tragedy. Her continued defiance of the state’s authority marks the importance of her individuality through various scenes in Antigone. Knowing full well her role as a woman in a patriarchal society, Antigone goes beyond the powers of the common man to carry on morals of herself and family exceeding beyond immortality and death. Engulfed in the menacing misogyny King Creon set forth in the state, Antigone is determined to thrive and keep the sacred deeds of herself and family in tact despite the fate it bears. The character of Antigone exhibits

In the play, “Antigone” involves a young girl named Antigone who, was trying to achieve something that was against all odds. While in the play “She Stoops to Conquer” Miss Castle would try to achieve her goal by trickery and her wits to get what she wants. But the way Antigone did it, she would try everything to prove her point, even by standing up to the authority to risk her life. But Miss Castle would do this by deceiving her crush Young Marlow to fall in love with her.

Martin Luther King Jr. and Antigone were both minorities of their times. Antigone, a woman, and Dr. King, an African American, suffered through unjust laws and oppression. Both activists fought hard through civil disobedience for the greater good, but had different ways and means of attaining results. Antigone’s desire to maintain the traditions of interpreting her god’s laws results in untimely, spiteful deaths. Meanwhile, Dr. King’s “Letters from Birmingham Jail” used carefully thought out words to enforce nonviolence and create a rimming response. While Dr. King and Antigone may have had somewhat similar views in regards to fighting against an oppressor, their actions were polar opposites with Dr. King’s passive written words and Antigone’s suicide. Regardless of their differences, both Dr. King and Antigone had their desires fulfilled, even if they were not fully present when this occurred. This proves that while civil disobedience can arise in many forms, it can be an effective way to combat corruption in any

Antigone defies King Creon’s law and buries her brother as a way to help his soul find peace, while invoking divine law as a defense for her actions. A soldier catches Antigone in the act, but she does not attempt an escape or deny what she is doing. Instead, she simply accepts her punishment. Consequently, she is condemned to die. On another note, Antigone being female is a large factor in the story. Just as in King’s time where African-Americans struggle with gaining any say or power just because of the color of their skin, Antigone and other women in their own time battle social customs that assume women are the weaker gender compared to men. These men hold all the political offices, and therefore create the laws. Despite being a member of a royal family, Antigone has no real power over

Who starts out at the top, but ends up at the bottom? Who has everything, but ends up with nothing? Who suffers a fate worse that death? That’s right, the tragic hero. Antigone, a play written by Sophoclese has a classically flawed tragic hero. Creon, the king of Thebes, perfectly fits the wrole of tragic hero. His’ tragic flaws and downfalls make him the best fit for the role. His actions and consequences support the idea that he is the tragic hero, rather than Antigone, another main character.