Being a person with a high authority, has control and with that amount of power comes responsibilities a they have to deal with . Power has a negative effect on people because it can affect how they see themselves in relation to others. In the play Antigone, King Creon, someone who likes nothing more than to feel superior than others, has an argument with his son Haimon over the injustice he is giving Antigone (Haimon’s lover) for burying her dead brother Polyneices in a respected manner. “ And the city proposes to teach me how to rule?”
Sophocles play “Antigone” introduces a lot of debatable topics such as Human law vs Divine laws, pride, but most importantly the topic of woman’s movement for empowerment. Long before 442 B.C.E, women were belittled because of their gender however, after the birth of “Antigone” it demonstrated a strong outreach towards women and their roles in society ”Antigone, a woman who defines King Creon’s edict without any fear, doubts, or regrets. This courageous woman, the fruit of incest, has fascinated philosophers in the nineteenth century, inspired playwrights in the twentieth century, and intrigued feminist thinkers and activists for decades” (Söderbäck). Birth from a respected bloodline, Antigone doesn’t feel respected at all within her town, especially from her uncle Creon who became entitled as the King after Antigone’s blood
What is worth mentioning in Sophocles’ play is that he not only showed the weak side of women but also the strong ones. For example, Ismene is the traditional role of women in ancient Greek—coward, fear of men power and feeble. For Ismene, "we must remember we were born women, not meant to strive with men" (Antigone). She even chose to die with Antigone while hearing her sentence, for she was afraid that she would be alone, she could not be able to fight against Creon, this men-dominant society. In contrast, her sister Antigone presents the “women power”.
Pride can be one of man's strongest qualities. In Sophocles' play, Antigone, the Theme of pride becomes the cause for destruction for both Creon and Antigone in the play.. Creon's Pride blinds him to the injustice he commits against Antigone and the gods. Antigone's pride leaves her no choice but to be killed because of her beliefs. They Both automatically surrender to their own hubris and demonstrate how uncontrolled pride leads to personal downfalls and destruction in Antigone.
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power”. Power is a significant concept that can be exemplified through someone having the courage to stand up to others, the influential aspects needed to control people, and the ability to maintain free will as an individual. Abraham Lincoln, in a position of power at the time, said that power can be used to “test a man’s character”. This may be true, however, his statement only referred to men and disregarded women altogether. Gender plays an important role in the development of power by creating opportunities or obstacles for those trying to obtain power.
Him putting Antigone to death because she went against his power clearly shows his feminism towards women. This also shows that all males had full power over society, economy, and women, which isn’t fair. Antigone displays her feminist qualities when she goes against the most powerful male, the king Creon. Her going against him shows her disrespect for Creon, her doing this and speaking like a male figure shows her push for equality between the sexes. Antigone throughout the whole play pushed for equality but she never seemed to get what she wants.
The excerpt above from Antigone basically states that a good man is one that swallows his pride and fixes his mistake. Pride is an emotional feeling that stems from a persons satisfication of his/her own achievements. In July 1, 2015 a dentist/hunter from Minnesota killed a belevoed lion named Cecil in Zimmabawae. Cecil was approxiametly 13 years and and the dentist Walter Palmer paid his guide about 50,000 in order for him to lure the lion and kill him. Cecil was tracked, shot and killed with an arrow, he was also skinned and his head was removed.
In an excerpt from Antigone by Sophocles, the speaker, Teiresias is stating that a good man is one who makes a mistake, recognizes it, and corrects it. Also, the opposite of a good man is one who knows they have made a mistake yet fails to correct it because of their pride. The Mayor of New Orleans, Mitch Landrieu recently spoke about why the statue of a Confederate general is being taken down. Landrieu says “We still seem to find so many excuses for not doing the right thing. Again, remember President Bush’s words, “A great nation does not hide its history.
Women have always been portrayed as the weaker sex compared to men. It has been demonstrated in history itself and throughout literary works. Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Homer’s The Odyssey, however, portray women to be more powerful than men, even when their society thought otherwise and underestimated them because of their gender. Lady Macbeth, The Three Witches, Queen Arête and Penelope demonstrate the astute, charming, and ambitious side of women that was overlooked by men when it came to having power and making decisions.
It is well known that for much of history, females have been largely oppressed and given few rights, unlike the male gender. Traditionally, a women’s role in society was to be a submissive housewife and to raise children. In Sophocles’ play, Antigone, a young woman goes against the law to give her dead brother a proper burial, defying the typical role expected of a female during this time period. Antigone can be seen as a role model for women because she knows her own mind, stands up to her uncle, and sacrifices herself for someone she loves. Women during this time period were expected to listen to the men in society and follow their rules.
Gender roles play a significant part through ought the play Antigone due to the fact that men are treated on a higher scale than women. Sophocles portrays women as people with no rights nor freedom. Antigone is on a destiny for burial rights of her brother Polyneicis. Gender roles are expressed throughout the play Antigone by disrespecting women and men having power and freedom.
People have many different reactions when given power. The reaction is usually either one where they use power for a greater good and to guide others in a better situation, or they can misuse the power given and take advantage of the circumstances or others to make themselves feel even more dominant and in command. In the play, Antigone by Sophocles one of the main characters , King Creon, abuses his power to take superiority of others and in an attempt to gain control. The misuse of power is more frequent than the use of power for the favorable, even in many current events.
Justice is an underlying idea that humans revolve around. It is our sole concept that constructs how we think and behave. Justice creates morals and therefore how we judge those around us. If we didn’t have justice, our society would be in chaos and completely unruly. When identifying what is just, there are quite a few traits that can be clearly spotted.
Power is present in all role of the story and the character who symbolises it is Créon. But power of goods are omnipresent as well, represented by Antigone, and there is a confrontation between both of them. Following examples of passages of the book are presented to evince the presence of the authority and power in the play. Starting from the beginning, even if is not represented in the play, the first power conflict was between two brothers. Polynice betrayed his brother Eteocle when he did not want to cede the throne of Tebas, they died fighting each other and Creón became king of Tebas.
Role of Women in Ancient Empires Throughout the modern world, we mention the concept of equality between men and women and try to equalize their positions in society. It is illogical for women to ask and try to prove that they are equal with men because equality is something that are already given to humanity, but contradicting the role of women by men is what created the gap between them. By looking at history, we can say that accomplishing that goal of making their position equal is not easy.
