Similarities Between Patrick Henry And Antigone

“More than a third of governments (62 out of 160) locked up prisoners of conscience – people who were simply exercising their rights and freedoms,” according to the “Amnesty International Charity”. Antigone and “The Speech to the Second Virginia Convention”, written by Sophocles and Patrick Henry respectively, demonstrate when to speak up. On the other hand, Animal Farm, by George Orwell, had the perfect opportunity for the common people to stand up, except not a single person stood up to make the change. If people don’t speak out against laws they don’t believe in then nothing will ever change. People need the courage to speak out against the atrocious laws of their nation. Laws that limit human rights or go completely against a person’s

In Antigone, Antigone stands up against a law that defied her beliefs pertaining to the treatment of her brother’s dead body. Although the king, Creon publicly announced, “Polyneices, I say is to have no burial,”(Sophocles 169-170) the statement infuriated her. Her immediate reaction demonstrates how strongly she believes in her religion. She immediately defies the law the way she sees fit and buries Polyneices so he can have the opportunity to face rightful judgment. Similarly, In “The Speech to The Second Virginia Convention”, Patrick Henry speaks up and illustrates his ideas and beliefs. The people of his time did not want war and just wanted to talk things out to settle things peacefully. Patrick Henry observed that their intentions and England’s intentions contradicted each other’s. Hence he exclaimed, “The war is inevitable and let it come.”(Henry 153) Henry just points out what everyone deliberately overlooks. Henry didn't want to keep this unjust system and concluded his speech with the slogan,“No taxation without representation”. Which caught on and gained popularity. The colonies got taxed from England and they had no representation in their parliament. Likewise, the story of Animal Farm explains the process of escaping the humans for a more fair and just system ruled by the animals, but in Animal Farm it doesn’t quite go

Antigone and Ismene debate on whether they should die for a ritualistic burial. Antigone immediately announces:“But I will bury him, and if I must die, I say that this crime is holy.”(Sophocles 55-56) Antigone knows that no one will bury her brother unless she does. She decided to put god’s law above man’s law, something everyone around her couldn’t do. Antigone created change single-handedly, through her courage. Similarly, in The Speech to the Virginia constitution, Patrick Henry talks about his main complaint . As he exclaims: “Give me liberty or give me death.”(Henry 152) This slogan that he creates becomes one of the main forces that eventually cause the American Revolution. Diction indicates the importance of the slogan, a very simple set of seven words. Straightforward, short and powerful, and to the point. On the other hand, Animal Farm had the perfect opportunity to stand up and show courage. Napoleon, the antagonist of Animal Farm, wanted power without the proper established election method. No one spoke out when Napoleon duped Snowball to get his political position, they wanted to escape unfair treatment but ended up with an unjust ruler. The sheep create a go with the flow mentality, thus helping him in becoming the new leader when they exclaimed,”Four legs good, two legs bad.”(Orwell 149) Even though he had used external forces to help