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Morality In Sophocles Antigone

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The Greek tragedy Antigone by Sophocles takes place in Thebes during the aftermath of the reign of Oedipus. Kreon is the ruler of Thebes and the uncle to Antigone yet the familial bond is disregarded mostly due to the shame of the incestuous nature of Kreon’s nieces and nephews. After a civil war of Antigone’s brothers, which results in both of their deaths, Polyneices is left unburied; this is the beginning of the tragedy. Both Kreon and Antigone made many questionable decisions that led to the death and suffering of many but I sympathize with Antigone because her decisions were based on her emotions, morals, and the perceived god’s law. Through the analysis of Kreon, we find he has many human flaws. His good intentions result in tragic consequences. …show more content…

Judging morality in this play is very difficult. Kreon seems to be in the wrong, but is Antigone not also in the wrong for defying authority? Her civil disobedience was based on her set of morals and her ideals when it comes to the rights of a human being. She backs this up with her religious view as seen here “It was not Zeus who made this proclamation; nor was it Justice dwelling with the gods below who set in place such laws as these for humankind.” (450-453). Antigone seems more morally good and therefore we feel more compassion for her. Antigone is a more emotional character than Kreon. She mentions the love she has for her brother and the importance of her family in the first conversation she has with Ismene (1-99). I believe that her initial reasoning for wanting to bury Polyneices body is because the emotions of grief over took her as exemplified here “I’ll lie there, dear to him, with my dear friend,” (73). Her emotions overtake her in the end when she kills herself and dies a martyr’s death. The chorus feels for her in this quote “Still the selfsame blasts of the selfsame winds of the spirit are gripping this woman.”

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One could argue that Antigone did not act for the benefit of her society. She ignored Kreon’s proclamation that prohibited anybody from burying Antigone’s brother, Polyneices, challenging his authority, and was more focused on doing what she believed was right, burying her brother and giving him the proper burial rites, and relinquishing herself of any possible guilt for not doing so. However, one can further argue that, even though Antigone’s primary intention was to revere her brother, she did act for the benefit of her society, as she indirectly fought to preserve her society’s value of honoring the dead. Antigone does realize that she has the people’s support for her actions, as she says, “my action pleases all of them, if fear did not lock up their tongues” (Sophocles 40). The latter part of Antigone’s statement suggests that people do not reveal their disapproval of Kreon’s proclamation, due to his authority and power.

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Throughout the play, Antigone is established as a veritably religious existent, most specially when she states to Creon, “ Nor did I suppose your edict had similar force that you, a bare mortal, could stamp the gods, the great verbal, imperturbable traditions. They're alive, not just moment or history they live ever, from the first of time, and no bone knows when they first saw the light ”( Sophocles 82). Antigone expresses that not only does she find Creon’s recently established law cruel and unwarranted, but she also claims that indeed if his law was indigenous, it can no way trump laws established by the gods. While Antigone constantly defies against Creon, the current sovereign of Thebes, at no point in the play does she ever misdoubt or defy the gods, whom Antigone defines as her true autocrats. Antigone recognizes that the gods are almighty and each- important, which is why she eventually values godly law over civil and mortal law because she recognizes that no matter how numerous or what kind of laws Creon establishes, godly law will always triumph because the gods have power over any mortal leader.

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She explains to Ismene that “Kreon honored only one / of our brothers with a tomb and dis- / honored the other… anyone who does / what he now forbidden will be put / before the people and by public stoning / murdered” (lines 26-47). Antigone is taken back by the ridiculous law. She doesn’t understand why Kreon made a law that goes against what the law of the Gods is, which is that every person deserves a grave.

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Other individuals may disagree with this statement because breaking the law is not honorable at all. Antigone did what was honorable towards her family and what she felt was right; versus what

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The drama Antigone places the culture of Greece on display by showcasing the many values that this culture held in reverence, including remaining loyal to family, honoring the dead, and honoring the gods. In Sophocles’ renowned drama entitled Antigone, one of the main values that Antigone chooses to honor is loyalty to family, even when that means that she has to forgo loyalty to her city and community. Even though her uncle the king, Kreon, forbade anyone to bury Polyneikes’ body because he had been on the opposing side in the battle, Antigone felt a duty to her brother to bury him. When speaking with her sister, Antigone says that Kreon’s command “…threatens our loved ones / as if they were our enemies” (Antigone 14-15).

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