Antigone
It is true that all human beings are guided, controlled, or motivated by allegiances to some extent, whether it be to God, to the state, and/or to familial love. The play Antigone by Sophacles has many references to this fact. Antigone, the main character in the play, does not survive physically as a result of her choice of loyalties to the gods and her family, but rather she survives in a spiritual sense. Creon, on the other hand, falls because of his poor choice of loyalties to himself, which he considers to be the "State". Teiresias, prophet and long time advisor to the family of Thebes, survives in the end as a result of his loyalties to the gods and the state. The following is a quote from Choragos, the leader of the Chorus, about how guidance, controlling, and motivation can either bring us down or make us stronger: "There is no happiness where there is no wisdom; No wisdom but in submission to the gods. And proud men in old age learn to be wise." Antigone, the main character in the play, plays the role of an innocent young girl whose loyalty lies with the gods and with her family, resulting in her physical death, but also her survival spiritually. No matter what the cost may
Throughout the play, there are many such circumstances in which characters are able to survive, or unfortunately fall because of their choices of loyalties. Therefore, one could infer that there is truth in the Chorus' statement: be, she is willing to put it all on the line for what she believes. Creon accuses Polyneices of fighting against his own country and has forbidden all citizens of Thebes to prepare his body for burial. Instead, it is to be left to decay on the field on which he was killed. When Antigone first hears of this news regarding her brother, she immediately reacts by telling her sister Ismene that she wants Polyneices soul to be at rest, and therefore is going to bury him on the field. Fearing Creon reaction, Ismene declines the offer to felp her sister, and Antigone goes on without her. Antigone feels that her crime is a display of love for her brother, and her intentions are, in no way, criminal. Antigone's love for her dead brother and her reverence for! Should carry him stinking and bit by bit to heaven, And proud men in old age learn to be wise." No wisdom but in submission to the gods. Antigone is able to survive through, and only through, her loyalty to the gods and her family. She may not have survived in a physical aspect, but she indeed survived in a spiritually. Teiresias is able to survive through his loyalty to the gods as well as the state, whereas Creon, on the other hand, is an unfortunate man who falls because of his strong will to be loyal to the state, which, in turn, he considers to be himself. All human beings are truly guided, controlled, or motivated by allegiances, to some extent, which either helps them to survive, or makes them stumble and fall. "There is no happiness where there is no wisdom; Basically, Creon states that even if the gods themselves were to come down and carry the body of Polyneices up to heaven, he would still not submit to Antigone's wishes to have her brother buried. He is being very stubborn and not yielding to the ru
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1364
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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