Are there any circumstances in which you should ignore the law? In Antigone by Sophocles, Antigone ignored the law to do what’s right. Yes when there’s a situation in which people feel as if it’s the right thing to do or if it’s what they believe in. They gotta ignore the law and do it.
Chris Iacono 1C70 Jim McCarthy 2 November 2015 Antigone and Martin Luther King: Civil Disobedience In Sophocles’ Antigone and “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” both Antigone and Martin Luther King fight and disobey the laws established in order to help others. They show their civil disobedience in different ways, but are defying the laws for similar purposes; to preserve human rights. Both are following the idea that the individual has the duty to defy human laws when they contradict those of higher ideals (“Letter From Birmingham Jail About the History of Civil Disobedience”). They differ in that Antigone tried to reason with Creon, but when that failed she took matters into their own hands, while Martin Luther King used nonviolent campaigns
Dearest citizens of Thebes, I stand before you today in the trial of Antigone, an innocent Princess who followed her heart in protecting the future of the morals and beliefs of your own city. Antigone clearly is a woman of great integrity, strength and intelligence, just like her royal ancestors that have led our city in the past. Antigone’s so-called “crime” was nothing but a selfless and moral act of compassion for her brother, and something that we as citizens must do, according to the Gods. Therefore, Antigone, a Princess of Thebes, should not be tried for these unjust charges because her act was indeed out of great love for her family, obedience to the law sent from the gods, and an act against the unjust rulings of the city’s hierarchy.
Conner Johnson Mr. Milroy English 10b Hon. 17 January 2023 Ambiguous character Antigone is a morally ambiguous character who plays a pivotal role in the play Antigone by Sophocles. Being the play’s lead character, She is the starting cause of all the struggles in the drama. Violating the law is an action Antigone sees as necessary to fit what she believes is morally right, consequently creating contrast in her character of whether she is morally just or conversely purely evil.
Antigone enact this civil disobedience as a way of fighting and refusing to follow an unjust law made by and unjust King. The people of today can learn from Antigone. We the people today can take the courage and strength from Antigone and look the injustice in the eyes and fight back. We can take action like the Sons of Liberty and start a movement against the injustice and unruly laws. We can look to Antigone and partake in civil disobedience in order to make a movement to prompt change for the better in our world today.
All laws are created for a reason; everyone is held accountable to the same laws. In Sophocles play, Antigone, the first thing King Creon does is proclaim a strident but coherent set of laws for the people of Thebes. Most people obey the law but some do not. One of the rebels in the scenario is the main character, Antigone. She is the daughter of the deceased King and Queen, as well as the sister of Polyneices, Eteocles, and Ismene.
Martin Luther King Jr. and Antigone are very different people and they have quite similar aspirations. Antigone and Martin Luther King Jr. had ambitions of fighting injustice, and they tried to achieve them by standing up for what they believe in. Antigone uses more of her religious views to help her case, while Martin Luther King Jr. uses more logic and allusions to help his case. Antigone and Martin Luther King Jr. speeches use great words to help justify their beliefs; however, because of their different time periods, they use different types of references to help them obtain their goals.
Civil Disobedience Martin Luther King once stated in "The Letter from Birmingham Jail", "Any individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust and willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment to arouse the conscience of the community over it injustice is in reality, expressing the highest respect for the law" (King 411). King meant that, if anyone feels a law is unjust and needed to expose its injustice, should willingly accept any penalty that comes in their way to help arouse people 's conscience in changing that law. In “The Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Martin Luther King explains the four powerful steps of the nonviolent campaign he used to protest against racial injustice for African-Americans
Antigone Essay When unjust laws exist, it is up to us for to decide if we are satisfied to be under such obedience or if we should either go beyond the bounds of moral principle if we find it to be a justifiable reason. Many, such as Henry David Thoreau, express that we should rather put our priorities in front and break an unjust law for it is the fault of an inequitable government who should provide for reform. If the law is unjust to such an extent, then we should go beyond and disobey that law. The boundaries of law should not be followed if it comes to the point if we wonder if we are treated as humans or subjects. We are loyal to the government, but if the government is not loyal to us, then we should take it as an leeway to break the law.
Justice vs injustice has been a common debate within society since the beginning of law. Specifically, justified injustice or when an illegal act challenges the morality of the affected law; this can be applied to a situation such as a poor father stealing food for his starving children to eat for dinner. This is also seen in Sophocles’ playwright, Antigone, which reflects on the issue of following morals vs law. With the death of the king, Oedipus, and the murder between the two princes, a traitor and the other a loyal brother; Antigone, her sister, and the land of Thebes is left in the rule of her uncle Creon. While under Creon’s rule, Antigone and the majority of Thebes are left in a difficult situation between upholding Creon’s law and what is morally right.
“Antigone” is a Greek tragedy that was written by the playwriter Sophocles. It is the final play of a trilogy that also includes “Oedipus the King” and “Oedipus at Colonus”. Throughout the play there are many lessons to be learned but none are as important as the concept of the relationship between individuals and the state. The problems within the play that relate to this issue are as present within our society today as they were during Sophocles’ time. The lack of influence in government from its citizens leads to injustice and cruelty because the government is following their own agendas.
In the play, Antigone, Sophocles reveals a story of a character who responds significantly to an injustice. After a war between brothers’ Eteocles and Polyneices, both brothers are slain, but Creon, Antigone’s uncle, refused to bury Polyneices due to him fighting against the city. Antigone, the main character, decides to bury her brother against Creon’s orders, resulting in a conflict between the already cursed family. With the unjust refusal from Creon to not bury Polyneices, Antigone decides to stand up against this injustice, even if it means losing her life. Sophocles writes about a stubborn Antigone who believes she is following God’s law, in order to create justice between the cursed family and solve the unjust created by Creon, to
The choices we make sometimes can end up as an act of civil disobedience. In Sophocles disturbing drama. Antigone, she defies creon’s order and buries her brother, claiming that she honors the first law of the gods. As the defiant Antigone comes to realise that she is going to die she becomes heavy-hearted in results to hanging herself.
Antigone’s actions are motivated by her allegiance to her family, moral conscience, and religion amid Creon’s political injustice and tyranny. Antigone’s actions motivate her to demand Ismene to prove whether she is “a true sister or a traitor to your family” (26-27). Antigone maintains loyalty to her brother despite his actions which threatened Thebes. Her inability to bear the thought of her brother’s corpse being picked apart by animals and not being honored with proper funeral rites forces her to act. Antigone’s fierce allegiance to her family is laid bare as she is willing to sacrifice her life to honor her brother and defy the law in an act that she believes is morally just.
In the play Antigone by Sophocles, he demonstrates the many ways an unjust leader can overpower those who fight for what is right (Adams 1). In Antigone’s case, she fought for the just treatment of her brother in his afterlife and for giving him a proper burial. In her fight for justice, Antigone exhibits strong beliefs of fairness to her community regarding family, rights and morality in her battle against a seemingly unjust leader, Kreon. Sophocles’, in Antigone, displays the type of justice called fairness. He pulls the laws and unjust teachings of his time and puts them into a play for all to see and analyze.
