Antigone, from the play, Antigone, by Sophocles, was the sister of Polyneices. Sophocles used tone, imagery, diction, and many other literary devices to show Antigone’s nobility and virtuosity, her hamartia, and her downfall. These are all three of the characteristics of a tragic hero. This defies her as a tragic hero.
Sophocles recognizes Antigone as noble and virtuous by showing the love she had for her brother and wanting to give him a proper burial, even though it is against the king’s edict, knowing she could be punished. She loved her brother very much, and was extremely loyal to him. When he died, the king declared that his death would be declared a public shame, which meant that he would not receive a proper burial. Antigone decided to give her brother the proper burial, knowing doing this was against the king’s decree. This shows her nobility and virtuosity.
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After being buried alive in a cave, or tomb, she committed suicide by hanging herself. The events that lead to her downfall included her punishment from the king from wanting to give her brother a proper burial. After she committed suicide, her fiancée also committed suicide, which isn’t considered part of her downfall, but is added to the several events that took place in the time she had her downfall.
The three characteristics of being a tragic hero are all portrayed in Antigone, which can be argued of the conclusion that Antigone can be considered a tragic hero. She represents the characteristics of nobility and virtuosity, hamartia, and a tragic downfall, which are all shown in the literary devices Sophocles used throughout the play. Although some may argue that Antigone is not one of the tragic heroes in the three plays, she exhibits all three characteristics of being a tragic