Theme Of Civil Disobedience In Antigone

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

In the play, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus learns about the death of her two brothers (Eteocles and Polynices).Creon, the new king of Thebes passed a decree to the city on the burial of the two brothers. In the decree, Creon declares that Eteocles body should be buried with honor and fame for his courage of saving the city from the enemy. Whiles Polynices body is left unburied and rotting for beasts to feed on because he came to destroy the city and enslave the people. Antigone defies Creon 's decree, buries Polynices body and gets caught. Creon imprisons her and she kills herself. Meanwhile, not realizing Antigone’s death, the blind prophetTiresias, Haemon (Creon’s son) and the Chorus pleaded with Creon to release Antigone and change his laws. Creon finally agrees, but in an untimely manner, finds Antigone dead in the cave. Out of despair, Haemon and Creon’s wife killed themselves, and Creon is left destress and miserable. Kings four nonviolent direct action steps to change unjust laws can be used to analyze Antigone 's actions against Creon 's laws in Sophocles play,

In conclusion, Antigone’s action towards Creon‘s Laws corresponds to the four steps of nonviolent campaign that Martin Luther King used to protest in Birmingham. In case of Antigone, an unjust law was passed in the city that restricted her right as a woman to bury her dead brother. She noticed the presence of injustice when, one of her brothers was given a proper burial over the other, which contradicted to the laws of the gods, and decided to break the law by burying her brother. For Martin Luther king, a segregation laws was passed that restricted blacks in Birmingham to vote. King saw such laws as unjust and protested against it. For negotiation, king and his followers tried to talk to the city authorities of Birmingham about the law and they were refused. In the case of Antigone, Creon son (Haemon), blind prophet (Tiresias) and the chorus pleaded with Creon to change his laws and release Antigone, but he refused. For Self-purification, Antigone took action by burying her brother and got imprisoned. For king, He and his followers took action by protesting against the laws through Marches and parading. Many of his followers, including him were imprisoned. For direct action, Antigone committed suicide; in the case of Martin Luther king, he was assassinated in Alabama. Through this, the civil right laws were passed, which gave Blacks and minorities the rights to vote. In the case of Antigone, Creon felt guilty of his actions and