In the story of Antigone, Eteocles and Polyneices are both fighting to be the king of Thebes. They both die in the fight but Eteocles is buried while Polyneices is left to the vultures. Antigone is both Polyneices and Eteocles’ sister, With both brothers dead the throne was given to their uncle Creon, who believes Polyneices is a traitor and should not have a burial. Antigone strongly disagrees with Creon, thus sneaking out and giving him a proper burial. This action was considered punishable by death.
Creon tells the people of Thebes, if they give a proper burial to Polyneices, then they shall be killed. When Antigone, Polyneices sister, finds this out she buries her brother despite Creon’s demand. The sentry, and other men, find that Polyneices had been given a burial, and one of them has to tell the king, so they won’t be killed for a “crime” they did not commit. Because
The sisters of the dead brothers, Antigone tried to convince Ismene to assist with the burying of the brother’s body, against the edict of the king but Ismene did not concede as she was afraid of the death penalty and still could not dissuade Antigone from doing the deed herself. The Chorus of Theban elders pledged their support on the king’s edict of disposing Polyneice’s body but at that time it was reported that the body has been buried. It was found out that Antigone was responsible and she was questioned but she did not argue or deny her involvement and responsibility. She was made to pay for the disobedience and was put in the under cave. Creon was warned, given the words of wisdom by the gods to let go of Antigone or he will be punished.
In the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, burial customs of the ancient Greeks play an extensive role. The women of the family perform the burial rites, and believed that if their distinct methods were not followed, the soul is destined to suffer between worlds until the correct rites were performed. Antigone, the sister of Polynices and Eteocles, is aware of this and is not going to stand by and let her brother, Polynices, linger between worlds in pain, after being killed by Eteocles. With her ambition and determination she does the deed, and of doing so she follows the god's laws, but breaks Creon’s laws in the midst of it. Creon is also aware of the burial rites but still decides, through his stubbornness, that Polynices shall not be performed these rites, because of his actions against Thebes.
Courage is the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery. In the Greek tragedy Antigone, continues to fight for her for her family’s name although it has been slandered because of mistakes her ancestors made in the past. When Creon creates a law that forbids anyone to her brother, Polynices, Antigone heroically attempts to save her brother’s honor her brother even though she knows the harsh consequences that may follow. Although Creon is always loyal to the state based on what he believes, Antigone’s courage to her family can't be matched by any other character. Antigone is the courageous character of this play because she would accept any consequences for her brother, she would die for him, and let her dream of being a mother and wife vanish.
Antigone is the daughter of the late king Oedipus, and Creon is the king of Corinth. The conflict that these two face is the burial of Polyneices, who was Antigone’s deceased brother. Creon was not allowing Polynices to be buried, because he had fought against Athens. To Creon, this was correct: “And yet you dared to overstep these laws?” (Sophocles Line 458)
In the scene in which Creon will not allow her brother to be buried. This goes against her personal beliefs she confronts Creon when she says “if I had allowed my own mothers son to rot, an unburied corpse that would have been an agony.” Creon wouldn’t allow Antigone brother to be buried even tho Antigone felt it was the right thing to do. Antigone is talking to Ismene about burying her brother but Ismene tells her to keep the idea a secret but Antigone disagrees and says “But I know I’ll please the ones I’m duty bound to please.
In the play, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus learns about the death of her two brothers (Eteocles and Polynices).Creon, the new king of Thebes passed a decree to the city on the burial of the two brothers. In the decree, Creon declares that Eteocles body should be buried with honor and fame for his courage of saving the city from the enemy. Whiles Polynices body is left unburied and rotting for beasts to feed on because he came to destroy the city and enslave the people. Antigone defies Creon 's decree, buries Polynices body and gets caught. Creon imprisons her
Tragic heroes may end up having the worst kind of fate. One could say that Creon was an example of this. In Sophocles’ play, Antigone, interactions between Antigone and Creon molded Creon’s place as a tragic hero. Antigone played a large role in developing his role in the story because both characters were stubborn in their beliefs, Antigone’s actions and words caused Creon to act, and Antigone had a different goal in life. It all started when Polyneices became jealous of his brother when he became the king of the Thebes.
Polyneices and Eteocles both die tragically in battle. Creon believes that Eteocles died noblely and therefore deserves a proper burial, but Polyneices died a “traitor” and doesn’t deserve a burial at all. Antigone rightfully believes this to be absurd, she thinks both of her brothers deserve a proper burial. This leads Antigone to make the brave decision to bury her brother against Creon’s will. Antigone then urges Ismene to help her and that it is the right thing to do, but Ismene insists that it is wrong to go against Creon.
Despite Creon's point of view, Antigone's decision to bury her brother is justified. Antigone's action is out of love and respect for her brother, and it respects the laws of the gods. As Antigone says in the play, "Not even the power of a king can deny me the right to bury him" (Sophocles, line 70). He recognizes that it is his duty to respect the divine laws and bury Polyneices with due respect. This is a sign of his loyalty to his brother and dedication to maintaining moral order.
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.
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.
The burial ritual was very important to those who believed in mythology, as it was what allowed them to cross over into the afterlife. According to tradition, an entire body must be preserved or it cannot cross over. Creon wanted to leave Polyneices’ body to be eaten by wild animals so he would be unable to cross over. Antigone buried her brother anyway and when Creon found out, he threw her in prison. As the story goes on, the general opinion begins to change and more characters begin to side with Antigone.
The drama Antigone places the culture of Greece on display by showcasing the many values that this culture held in reverence, including remaining loyal to family, honoring the dead, and honoring the gods. In Sophocles’ renowned drama entitled Antigone, one of the main values that Antigone chooses to honor is loyalty to family, even when that means that she has to forgo loyalty to her city and community. Even though her uncle the king, Kreon, forbade anyone to bury Polyneikes’ body because he had been on the opposing side in the battle, Antigone felt a duty to her brother to bury him. When speaking with her sister, Antigone says that Kreon’s command “…threatens our loved ones / as if they were our enemies” (Antigone 14-15).
