ipl-logo

Religious Corruption In Antigone

1581 Words7 Pages

“Oh god, is there a man alive / who knows, who actually believes...” (Sophocles, Antigone 1162-63). Religious corruption has led to a complete dismissal of religion; the world has lost its tune with the divine, spirituality has become a myth and a doctrine for the elderly. Gazing back into the depths of time reveals vital yet lost opinions on Divinity which have vanished in modern cultures. Within the ancient Greek works, a careful analyzation unfolds the authors opinions on whether the gods and oracles are worthy of veneration or just tools in a political battle of power.
An individual's opinion is a possession completely unfettered; one can lose freedom, mobility, and even life, yet opinion remains personal and immortal. A person’s opinion provides insight into his mind and oftentimes a direct window into the rationale of a culture. The seemingly random tangents in …show more content…

He speaks of it as above the gods, something which even they cannot control. This is visible when Antigone argues with Creon saying, “Do as you like, dishonor the laws / the gods hold in honor” (lines 91-92). The gods hold things in honor that are above them, thus natural law must be a binding force which holds the deities responsible. Throughout the play Antigone, Sophocles never mentions a particular god as the cause of Creon’s tragic situation. This indicates that the tragedies are a natural result of Creon’s blatant disobedience of the laws of nature. The natural laws then are gods themselves, visible as such when Antigone describes them as: “the gods / the great unwritten, unshakable traditions” (lines 504-05). Consequently, because the Natural laws are gods themselves, and because the other gods hold them in honor, they deserve a respect higher than them. This is what Herodotus emphasizes throughout The Histories, He abstains from giving an opinion about the lesser divinities, only stating natural law demands

Show More
Related

  • Euthyphro And The Crito Analysis

    529 Words  | 3 Pages

    Not completely satisfied by Euthyphro’s definition that, “Piety, then, is that which is dear to the gods”, Socrates pointed out that gods were known to disagree and argue; therefore, they may not have had unified opinion on what is holy. To further frustrate Euthyphro, Socrates continued his argument by asking the following question, “Holy is beloved by the gods because it’s

    Read More

  • There Are Examples Of Moral Ambiguity In Antigone

    671 Words  | 3 Pages

    Creon did appalling things in the play Antigone, even causing the death of three different people in his family. However, he is not necessarily heinous. His actions were just following the laws that were already made. Getting rid of the law just because Antigone was the one that broke it would make him look like an awful, cowardly monarch. Running a country is insanely difficult, especially with the events that happened before the events of this play.

    Read More

  • Some Of The Following Examples That Drastically Changed Antigone And Creon

    205 Words  | 1 Pages

    The moral of “submission to the gods” and obedience, in general, can be seen in both these following examples that drastically changed Antigone and Creon’s life. Antigone was sentenced to death by Creon for burying her brother, Polyneices, who Creon declared was a traitor thus should not be buried. Not only does Antigone have the urge to bury him because he is her brother but also because it is what the gods declare as right and moral. Creon refused to directly kill her so he sent her away to die of natural causes. Soon, after a visit from the prophet, Tiresias, Creon realizes the wrong he has done and tries to fix it, but he is too late.

    Read More

  • Differences Between Antigone And Letter From Birmingham Jail

    554 Words  | 3 Pages

    To begin, Antigone’s dialogue with Creon heavily focuses on the power of religious law over mortal law. Antigone proclaims, “Nor did I think your edict had such force that

    Read More

  • Moral Choices In Antigone

    1766 Words  | 8 Pages

    Moral Choices Life is full of choices. Sometimes it’s easy for a person to make the right choice, but other times it seems a bit harder. The writer J.K. Rowling once said, “It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”. She clearly states that choices are the fundamentals of our future, since our choices are what lead to our actions. Our choices can lead to happiness, sorrow, grief, anxiety or even bravery.

    Read More

  • Humanism In Antigone

    423 Words  | 2 Pages

    Antigone: I think she leans towards humanism, from what I saw in the beginning of the play. She ignores the King’s wrath, and feels the need to bury her brother despite risking her own life. She tells Ismene that it must be done. She proceeded to Creone that she did not abide by his laws, but rather God’s laws. She believed that it was better to treat her brother, as she wanted to provide for one another, under her faith in God.

    Read More

  • Ethos, Pathos and Logos in 'Antigone' by Sophocles

    1197 Words  | 5 Pages

    “You may do as you like, Since apparently the laws of the gods mean nothing to you.” (Sophocles, et al. 192). This argument, though quite passive aggressive, is more ethical. The religion of the people of Ancient Greece was held to the utmost of importance, which is why such epics are written about them when someone dares to defy them. In this case, Antigone calls out Ismene for choosing to obey the rule of Creon rather than the rule of the gods.

    Read More

  • Role Of Gods In Antigone

    1259 Words  | 6 Pages

    In the play Antigone by Sophocles the Greek gods play a very important role. Discussion of the gods is present throughout the entirety of the play. Essentially the gods drive the plot of Antigone. The play is about a girl, Antigone, who lives in Thebes Greece. She is the niece of the king Creon.

    Read More

  • Role Of Moral Development In Antigone

    527 Words  | 3 Pages

    Antigone’s Moral Development The play Antigone by Sophocles, is about a girl who faces a family conflict over her deceased brother. The protagonist is Antigone and she stays the same morally throughout the play. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development helps people understand the stages individuals morally move through as they mature more. Because of Antigone’s decisions and ideas at the beginning and the end of the play, she is a morally static character through the story.

    Read More

  • The Gods And Mortals In Homer's The Odyssey

    610 Words  | 3 Pages

    The relationships between the Greek gods and mortals have always been complicated. The gods can be generous and supportive, but also harsh and destructive towards the humans. They claim to be all powerful beings with unlimited power and influence, but in truth, they are far more human than they are perceived. They meddle with human lives, not because they are wise, but because of their own selfish reasons. In Homer’s

    Read More

  • Theme Of God's Law In Antigone

    601 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the Oedipus myth sophocles conveys a common theme that transcends into antigone as well. The oedipus myth does start the theme of fate and god’s law ruling over all;whilst fate is a big deal in the story, the main theme is that god's law rules over all. In “Antigone” Sophocles conveys that God’s Law is more important than Man’s Law by Antigone directly disobeying Man’s law so she could obey God’s law,by teiresias saying that creon should change his decision because the god’s don’t approve, and by Creon losing everything because he disobeyed God’s law. Antigone directly disobeys Man’s law so she can obey god’s law. Antigone proves that god’s law is more important than man’s law by earning the opinion of the people by following god’s law

    Read More

  • Internal Conflict In Antigone

    759 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Antigone, there was two brothers who shared being the King and one of the brothers, Polynices, wanted to start a war with the kingdom because he wanted to be the main ruler. Polynices and his brother Eteocles fight and they both end up killing each other. Their Uncle Creon, who takes position as King when they are both killed, decides that only Eteocles will have a proper burial and Polynices will be left to rot. Antigone, Polynices and Eteocles sister, thinks that Creon’s decision is unfair and takes upon herself to give Polynices a proper burial. When their other sister Ismene finds out, she is stuck between helping her sister bury their brother and following Creon’s demands.

    Read More

  • Greek Gods And Goddesses In Homer's Odyssey

    1203 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the epic poem The Odyssey, Homer portrays Greek gods and goddesses as possessing human qualities and faults. Through their actions and emotions, Homer emphasizes the detrimental effects of lust, envy, wrath, and greed in ancient Grecian society. He also never fails to remind readers of the importance of respect for holy figures because of their powerful abilities to create chaos and wonder". Homer wants to prove that gods and humans share a variety of traits, and the only difference is that god don’t allow these flaws negatively to impact their society. To help further his argument, we can compare Greek gods and goddesses to that of Christianity.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Antithesis In Antigone

    1289 Words  | 6 Pages

    There is a conflict the law of the state which Creon follows and the law of the god that Antigone follows. Antigone considers the divine law as the supreme and above all thus disobeys the decision of Creon .she does this even though she knows that this defiance will cost her of her life but anyways goes and does it as she fears god more than Creon. ForAntigone, the religious duty of hers, her right to bury her brother came prior to her civil duties. For her the law of the god ruled above all. In the 5th century B.C., the women of the society were not allowed to come out of their homes.

    Read More

  • The Role Of The Gods In The Iliad

    718 Words  | 3 Pages

    Humans are like puppets; they have the freedom of choice however their decisions are constantly interfered by the gods. The god’s are given respect due to their extreme power, as mortals know, if offended a god, one would most likely have to face severe consequences. Nonetheless, the gods are not all powerful, as they have emotions that drive them hence weakens them. In Ancient Greek society, having the gods in your favor played a critical role in peoples daily lives, as the gods would extremely influence decision, have significant power over one’s fate, and have direct involvement in the lives of humans. “Father Zeus, is there any mortal left on the wide earth who will still declare to the immortals his mind and his purpose?

    Read More

More about Religious Corruption In Antigone

Open Document