Justice is a defining factor of human motivation—it can result in the triumph or demise of a person’s actions. Nevertheless, justice is not only the blade that separates good from evil, but it is the adhesive that cements all of humanity together to form an overall gluttonous species. In the midst of injustice, both works by Martin Luther King and Sophocles question the rule of political law over moral law through civil disobedience, yet their purposes and outcomes differ from one another. Sophocles emphasizes the consequence of resistance to political rule in Antigone’s search for moral justice, while King depicts the racist cause behind his opposition to social injustice. In Antigone, Antigone portrays the suffering that comes from the consequences
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. Antigone realizes she may have to risk her reputation in order to accomplish justice.
Antigone: Gods’ Rule Over Law The ancient Greek play of Antigone includes many instances of great opposition. Between the characters of Creon, the wartime ruler of Thebes, and Antigone, Creon’s step-daughter, there is a struggle for the ruling of whether Antigone’s traitor brother would ultimately be buried or let out for nature to take care of the body. I agree with Antigone to have her brother, Polyneices, buried at the Gods’ will.
In the novel “Antigone”, one of the main characters, Antigone, is hero within the texts for her heroic actions. She follows many of the guidelines that are written in Campbell’s “A Hero’s Journey”. In Antigone, she fought against the injustice of Creon and his tyranny laws. In the novel, Creon refused to allow Polyneices, the brother of Antigone, a proper burial. In ancient Rome, a proper burial meant that the person would be allowed passage into the afterlife.
Antigone is a Shakespearean tragedy which always presents a person whose main purpose is to act as a moral compass for a main character and a main character cursed by fate and hold a tragic flaw. In this story, Antigone is the center topic of the story. With a role of the first woman to rebel against the norms of society, Antigone continues to act in ways she believed was morally correct. Although she is characterized by morality, her unfortunate bloodline fails to escape her true destiny of death. By constructing detailed characters and elaborating the plot structure of a tragic story, Sophocles ultimately creates important themes with plot elements, symbolism, characterization, and historic relevance.
The character Antigone from the play Antigone best represents Stage 6th ,Universal Principles, of Kohlberg’s Stage Of Moral Development because she believes that individuals should have natural rights. In the play Antigone has a sister called Ismene and two brothers, Polynesis and Eteocles. Polynesis and Eteocles killed each other for the throne. Since Polynesis attacked Eteocles first Creon decided to leave Polynesis dead body in the street, so Antigone believed that Creon’s rule was unfair and it was against her natural rights so she decided to break the rule and bury her brother’s body.
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.
Loyalty was probably the most important value of ancient Greek civilization. It was embedded in everything the Ancient Greeks did. They believed in loyalty to the family, to the community and obedience to the will of gods. In Antigone, we see many situations where loyalty to family is shown, especially by Antigone herself. However, there is another form of loyalty shown in the play, loyalty to the law or state which we can see in Creon. .
Many times, people lead themselves to their own downfall. Their demise is often a long and arduous one where they find themselves alone at the end. This truth is frequently depicted in novels, plays and other forms of entertainment. The isolation that occurs in these narratives is one that makes any human with a beating heart fear making the same mistakes that the characters do. In Sophocles weaves this theme of alienation into the plot of his plays, Oedipus Rex and Antigone, to tell a story where both Oedipus and his daughter, Antigone, are cut off from the rest of the world because of their misdeeds.
Ideas on justice and law within Jean Anouilh’s Antigone as representations of the roles within Vichy France during the years nineteen forty to nineteen forty-four In response to critic Hubert Gignoux, Jean Anouilh stated that; ‘‘The rest of my life, as long as God wills it, will remain my personal business, and I will withhold the details of it.’’ This ambiguity that shrouds Anouilh’s personal life encapsulates his political beliefs. The vagueness of Anouilh’s Antigone enables people to make their own assumptions on its social messages and stances, and which roles are being depicted by which character. This essay will examine how characters’ standards of law and justice represent the roles within Vichy France during the start of the nineteen
In Antigone by Sophocles, the main character, whom the play is named for, is faced with a difficult situation. Both Antigone's brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, have died. Eteocles died defending Thebes and Polyneices died attacking it. King Creon, Antigone's uncle, forbade the burial of Polyneices because of his attack on Thebes. The King poclaimed an edict to refuse the burial of Polyneices on pain of death.
I used this quote from Antigone because it properly states Antigone’s viewpoint on Creon’s decree. As told in the story, Creon's decree was that no one could grieve for or bury Polyneices. Creon made this proclamation because when Eteocles and Polyneices fought over Thebes, Eteocles was pronounced king and exiled Polyneices from Thebes. Polyneices, in turn, formed an army to take on the city, ending up with Eteocles and Polyneices killing each other, thus putting Creon in the position of power. Creon then proceeds to label Polyneices a traitor and finally, makes his decree.
Why do people do things? Why are laws created, laws broken, and crimes committed? Behind every action is a motive. In Sophocles’ work of art Antigone, there are many possible motives for the character’s actions. Creon forbids Polyneices burial, sentences Antigone to death, locks Antigone in a stone chamber, and decides to free Antigone because his motives are to be a liked by the Greek Gods and the people of Thebes.