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The Sentry In Sophocles Antigone

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Sophocles' play Antigone is a powerful tragedy that has been studied and admired for centuries. It follows the story of two relatives, Antigone, and Creon, who find themselves at odds over their conflicting beliefs and values. Antigone believes in honoring the gods and respecting the dead, while Creon believes in the rule of law and order. Throughout the play, the Chorus serves as a moral guide and provides insight into the characters' actions. Initially, the Chorus is on the side of Creon, and his belief in upholding the rule of law seems to be driven by their fear of being killed for disobedience. The Chorus sympathizes with Antigone's plight and the depth of her convictions after devastating suicides that impact Creon directly. Overall, …show more content…

The body had been buried. The Sentry was extremely intimidated to be the bearer of this news and declared, "We were ready to take hot bars in our hands or walk through the fire, and call on the gods with oaths that we had neither done it nor were privy to a plot with anyone, neither in planning nor yet in execution". (Sophocles, Sentry, 290-300). The Chorus and the Sentry feared for their lives and bided King Creon's will to save them. The conflict is that the citizens and the sentries didn't agree with the King and their jobs were to represent the citizens and to keep law and order, which they couldn't do for fear of the death penalty. King Creon orders the delivery of the man who buried Polyneices. He says, "if you and your fellows do not find this man who with his hand did the burial and bring him here before I face to face, your death alone will not be enough for me". (Sophocles, Creon, 335-345). The sentries were ordered to find the guilty culprit or …show more content…

While reporting to the king, the Sentry says, "I have come here, though I break my oath in coming. I bring this girl here who has been captured giving the grace of burial to the dead man". (Sophocles, Sentry, 430-435). This statement indicates the inner battle the Sentry is facing by bringing forth Antigone. He is breaking his oath to the city which is to keep law and order and he believes that Antigone's wish to provide her brother with a proper burial is appropriate. He is struggling with his oath to serve the community and the demand of the king. The Sentry later says, "We charged her with what she had done, then and the first time. She did not deny a word of it – to my joy, but to my pain as well. It is most pleasant to have escaped such troubles but painful to bring into it those we love". (Sophocles, Sentry, 475-485). Antigone was comfortable with her decision to provide her brother with a proper funeral. The Sentry was relieved to be saved from death because he turned Antigone into the king but he didn't want to turn her in because he cared about her and disagreed with the king in this

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For example, when she puts aside her grave fear of consequence to traverse the bridge. Antigone is overwhelmed by her own stubbornness, which leads to a tragic situation. Antigone refuses to compromise with her sister, Ismene, whom when she first learns of her brother's death. Antigone's unrepressed emotions gives a voice of dissatisfaction with Creon’s. Ever since Antigone gets herself in that situation facing Creon’s wrath, but still she doesn’t make a decision on how to bury her brother.

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In 1791 Thomas Paine wrote a book about America’s demeanor and several centuries later not much has changed. In almost three hundred years buildings have sprung up where forest once thrived, races have come together despite cultural differences, and political lines have rearranged to create the constantly evolving United States of America. The surface of America will never stop changing but, the principles of the American people will always be the same. We as a people will always be accepting of anyone regardless of race and we will always support the right to choose heedless of class. However riots and protestors have begun in an attempt to stop the police officers from treating Americans with such brutality.

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Around 441 BCE, the ancient writer Sophocles wrote the tragedy Antigone, a play about loyalty, betrayal, and pride. Throughout the scenes of the play, calamitous occurrences take part, mainly involving the two main characters: Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, and Creon, King of Thebes and uncle of Antigone. Antigone, an independent, uncompromising young woman, simply wants to bury her deceased brother who was recently killed in battle. However, Creon, seeing Antigone’s brother as nothing but a traitor to his country, enforces a law which makes it illegal to give a burial to the remains. Not only does Creon’s unyielding decision cause conflict between himself and Antigone, it will also prove to be a fatal decision.

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Antigone is a tragedy play written by Sophocles. In the story, Antigone, a young woman, had requested permission from Creon, the king at the time, to have a proper burial for her brother, Polyneices; even though he was a traitor and the law forbids mourning for him. Creon had denied Antigone's request for the burial of her brother, however, Antigone had still carried out the burial. Unfortunately, she had been caught in her act, by the king’s guard, and brought before Creon.

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For I'll never act to respect an evil man with honours in preference to a man who’s acted well. Anyone who’s well disposed towards our state, alive or dead, that man I will respect.” (line 237-239) Creon is giving his reasoning about why one brother deserved a burial and the other did not to the chorus leader. “ I did not think anything which you proclaimed strong enough to let a mortal override the gods and their unwritten and unchanging laws. They’re not just for today or yesterday, but exist forever and no one knows where they first appeared.

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Creon also faces internal conflict in his decision not to bury Polyneices, as it offends and disrespects the gods. During a time of intense beliefs, religion was a big part of Theban life. Therefore, appropriate measures were taken to ensure the gods do not curse you for being disrespectful. This puts Creon in a difficult situation, as he must decide on whether following his own laws of the state or laws based on religion is the better course to take. This struggle incorporates the theme of justice and power, especially in giving different perspectives on the same scenario, which helps to provide insight into the “political” message of Antigone.

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”(Sophocles Pg 4) Antigone is going to bury her brother but Ismene thinks it’s a bad idea and tells her to keep it on the low but Antigone thinks she is going to please the ones who agree with her.

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The two are bound to two opposing sides of the law with family stances being most prominent reason for their divide. Through the characters of Antigone and Creon, Sophocles and Anouilh prove that duty is bound to family loyalty, regardless of how polarizing the reactions may be. This is shown through Antigone and Creon’s actions and decisions, determination and persistence,

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Subsequently, King Creon finally becomes aware of the disclosure that state law has displaced him from his own son, to which he springs to action. His efforts are inspired, yet meaningless when he finds that “Haimon is dead, and the hand that killed him is his own” (Sophocles 49). Creon’s dejected reaction to the death of his son reveals that even though the fatality was due punishment for the treason Haimon committed against the state, Creon’s individual conscience diminished the hubris he formerly had. The death and relationship of Haimon and Antigone, Antigone’s pursuit of God’s authority over that of Creon’s, and her burying Polynices display the theme of individual conscience vs. state law.

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But this is Antigone! Why have you brought her here? SENTRY. She was burying him, I tell you!

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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

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The Chorus states that when Creon finally admits to his wrong doings, it is, “late in learning [his lesson]”, conveying Creon’s stubbornness lead to his downfall (Exodos). The Chorus also states that his final action of mortality is “right in so much wrong”, conveying that his trifling and futile attempt to fix his problem did not help in the mass of wrongdoing (Exodus). Creon has done so much wrong that it does not help that he has tried to right them. Creon many mistakes, and his inability to learn from them with his people’s advice further advocates his wrongdoings and inadequate leadership. Creon, the king in Antigone, a play written by Sophocles, is a poor leader.

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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.

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In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, Creon’s deadly stubbornness and selfishness in ignoring the pleas and

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She does not understand why she is being treated so unjustly for trying to do the right thing. The chorus in the play tries convincing Antigone that justice is behaving in accordance to Creon’s laws but Antigone is stubborn and sustains to her convictions. Even though Antigone ends up dying she dies achieving her goal of wanting to bury her brother properly. Mostly everyone in this play goes against what the main character feels is justly because they want to follow the kings laws and they believe she is acting immorally. Antigone is not acting immorally, she is doing the right thing to follow the law of the gods.

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