Antigone Character Sketch
Antigone, one of the main characters in Sophocles’ “The Three Theban Plays”, is a unique character. She differs from many of the other characters in the plays in several different ways. She is a passionate, bold young woman who has suffered a great deal in her lifetime, but still desires to serve the gods. Antigone’s motives, mistakes and punishments, and the justification she receives from her actions sets her apart from the other characters. The motives for Antigone’s actions are powered by her desire to serve the gods. When Antigone decides to bury her brother, Polynices, who had fallen in battle, she tries to convince her sister, Ismene, to help her. Although Antigone is set on giving her brother proper burial rights, Ismene does not want to go against the law of the city, which states that anyone who gives burial rights to Polynices will be put to death. Antigone responds to her sister saying, “Do as you like, dishonor the laws the gods hold in honor” (lines 91, 92). Antigone is so motivated to make sure the laws of the gods are followed that she doesn’t care what the punishment is for disobeying the laws of man. After Polynices is buried, Antigone is caught, and Creon, ruler of Thebes, asks Antigone if she had been . . .
I am afraid it’s best to keep the established laws to the very day we die” (lines1232-1238). Antigone sees her punishment as a wedding to death, saying to the Chorus, “Look at me, men of my fatherland, setting out on the last road looking into the last light of day the last I will ever see…the god of death who puts us all to bed takes me down to the banks of Acheron alive--denied my part in the wedding-songs, no wedding-song in the dusk has crowned my marriage--I go to wed the lord of the dark waters” (lines 900-907). Creon hears about all that has happened because of his law and says to the Chorus, “Take me away, I beg you, out of sight. After a while, Creon realizes that he was wrong by not letting the laws of the gods be taken out, and says to his men, “Now--I’m on my way! Come each of you, take up axes, make for high ground, over there, quickly! I and my better judgment have come round to this--I shackled her, I’ll set her free myself. Ismene admits to the crime, but Antigone protests, telling her that she was not there to help her in the beginning and she should not be suffering a glorious death like Antigone. Creon had been warned by many of the people that giving such a harsh punishment to someone who was only following a god’s law was a bad idea. The justification of her actions through the punishment of Creon shows that the gods are in control of everything, and man, as Antigone pointed out to Creon, cannot take that control away. A rash, indiscriminate fool! I murdered you, my son, against my will--you too, my wife…Wailing wreck of a man, whom to look to? Where to lean for support? Whatever I touch goes wrong--once more a crushing fate’s come down upon my head!” (lines1459-1465). bold enough to break the law he set forth. Because Antigone stayed true to her god, she is looked upon as a character who stood up for what she believed in, was aware of the consequences, and became a martyr. They are alive, not just today or yesterday: they live forever, from the first of time and no one knows when they saw the first light” (lines 499-508). There let her pray to the one god she worships…” (lines 870-875). In her tomb, Antigone does not wait for death to come for her: she hangs herself with a rope and weds herself to death. The first thing he does is to make sure Ismene is arrested so he can convict her of the crime as well.
Common topics in this essay:
Antigone Creon, Theban Plays, Nor Justice, Thebes Antigone, , laws gods, proper burial, actions punishments, giving proper burial, antigones motives, antigone responds, antigones actions, death antigone, desire serve, serve gods, antigone creon, |
Acceptance Essays
