Loyalty In Sophocles Antigone

A tragic character is one whose errors and misfortunes lead to one’s own downfall. In Sophocles’ Antigone, Creon and Antigone are two characters whose adherence to their principles causes extreme conflict. Antigone believes in what is morally just, while Creon believes in what is civilly just. They both are passionate about fighting to prove that their principles are justifiable. Antigone and Creon, both expressing loyalty and pride toward opposing forces, are unable to come to a consensus, which ultimately leads to the destruction of both characters.

Creon and Antigone are constantly contradicting each other throughout the entire play. These two characters both possess the trait of loyalty; however, the way they portray this trait causes ultimate

Creon exclaims to Haemon his feelings about how his decision will affect his reputation by stating, “I caught her in naked rebellion, the traitor, the only one in the whole city. I am not about to prove myself a liar, not to my people, no, I am going to kill her.” (22. 25-28). He feels that if he backs down from his word and does not pursue the death of a traitor, that the people of his country will start to question his strength and their own sense of security. He would not take the advice of The Leader and let Antigone go, due to the thought of damaging his pride and reputation. Creon says to Antigone, “Not a word of hope - your doom is sealed.” (30. 9) in order to give proof of his power over the situation at hand. Creon sees it as dreadful to his pride to give in to the girl who so willingly disobeyed him. This is evident when Creon exclaims, “Lay my pride bare to the blows of ruin? That’s dreadful too.” (35. 23-24). However, Antigone’s pride accounts for her failure to admit that she broke the law. She exclaims to her sister, “Shout it from the rooftops. I’ll hate you all the more for silence – tell the world!” (4. 4-5), thus she is fully aware of the anarchy she is committing, however, she has too much dignity to accept the consequences. Nonetheless, her pride tends to take over, and when interrogated by Creon she admits to her actions, but refuses to apologize for her treasonous acts. Antigone, much like Creon,

They are both adamant about their duties; Antigone’s being to Zeus and her brother, while Creon’s be to Thebes and his people. These principles that seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum, are not as incompatible as they may be perceived. Although Antigone and Creon cannot resolve their conflict civilly, they do have a few characteristics in common. Both Antigone and Creon are convinced that their actions are justifiable. Likewise, both characters show a sense of pride and loyalty to what they have faith in. This loyalty they both face is what conclusively causes the unnecessary conflict, and the death, of both tragic characters. Antigone and Creon both let their pride get in the way, and become stubborn when trying to resolve the issue at hand. This negatively plays a role, and affects both characters similarly. Both Antigone and Creon fight to the death to defend what they believe in. Also, both are afraid of the consequences they might face for not fulfilling what they believe are their duties to obey. Furthermore, neither character attempts to view the other character’s perspective, displaying the inflexibility of both. If Antigone and Creon were slightly less persistent in their beliefs, the undeniable annihilation of both may have been prevented. Although both held their ground to opposing viewpoints, their devotion to their mission is a trait most find