Ethics In Antigone

In the play, Antigone by Sophocles, Antigone argues that her older brother should be given the respect of a proper burial to be able to pass through Purgatory. Antigone supports her argument by using Pathos and Ethos to persuade the king Creon to go back on the law of anyone attempting to Polyneices a burial they will be punished. Antigone’s purpose is to give her brother the burial that will allow him to pass onto the afterlife she believes in. Antigone uses an argumentative tone for the proper burial of her brother. In seeking a proper burial for her brother, Polyneices, Antigone’s standards of divine justice provide a more effective argument than that of the king

Conner Johnson Mr. Milroy English 10b Hon. 17 January 2023 Ambiguous character Antigone is a morally ambiguous character who plays a pivotal role in the play Antigone by Sophocles. Being the play’s lead character, She is the starting cause of all the struggles in the drama. Violating the law is an action Antigone sees as necessary to fit what she believes is morally right, consequently creating contrast in her character of whether she is morally just or conversely purely evil.

In the play, Antigone, the title character challenges the king when she decides to bury her brother, Polyneices, who has been named a traitor. King Creon, her uncle, has come to power after the death of Oedipus and his two sons, Eteocles and Polyneices. Creon takes his role as king very seriously as he works to be a pillar of morality and uphold the laws of the city. After he deems Polyneices a traitor, he forbids anyone to properly bury the body: "leave him, unwept, untombed" (line 29) allowing the body to be "a rich sweet sight for the hungry birds beholding and devouring" (30). Throughout this play, several themes, namely human law versus divine law, are at play.

As king of Thebes, it is an absolute duty to uphold command and peace within his territory. Part of this responsibility is to execute orders and to punish any wrongdoers who chose to defy the orders. In the play, “The Burial at Thebes”, it follows princess Antigone who recently lost both her brothers. While one brother was given a proper burial, Polynices, the second brother, was forbidden to be buried by King Creon. Despite the king’s order were that if anyone were to bury Polynices, they would receive a death sentence, Antigone disregarded the warning and buried him.

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.

In the play Antigone, written by Sophocles, burial customs of the ancient Greeks play an extensive role. The women of the family perform the burial rites, and believed that if their distinct methods were not followed, the soul is destined to suffer between worlds until the correct rites were performed. Antigone, the sister of Polynices and Eteocles, is aware of this and is not going to stand by and let her brother, Polynices, linger between worlds in pain, after being killed by Eteocles. With her ambition and determination she does the deed, and of doing so she follows the god's laws, but breaks Creon’s laws in the midst of it. Creon is also aware of the burial rites but still decides, through his stubbornness, that Polynices shall not be performed these rites, because of his actions against Thebes.

In the tragic story of Antigone, the characters demonstrate how determination is not always a virtue. Kreon, the king of Thebes, buries one out of two of Antigone’s brothers. Antigone rebels and decides to bury the body of the second brother. Antigone is caught and brought before the king. She admits to burying the body and believes that what she did was right.

Antigone uses both logical and emotional appeals to persuade her sister Ismene that their brother Polyneices should be honored and have a proper burial. During an argument between Antigone and Ismene, Ismene believes that the law should be obeyed therefore she will not help Antigone. Antigone states, “Polyneices, who fought as bravely and died as miserably…no one shall bury him, no one mourn for him… his body must lie in the fields (Sophocles et al.190).” Antigone is trying to communicate to Ismene through the use of an emotional and logical appeal by explaining that he was, left to be decomposed by the birds. In the Greek culture, having a burial is a civic and religious duty which is necessary to proceed to the afterlife unaffected.

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

In the play, the two brothers kill each other over the power of King in the city of Thebes. This little act of “war” causes Creon to proclaim whole new law regarding the conflict. He states, “Eteocles, who died as a man should die, fighting for his country, is to be buried with full military honors…;[B]ut his brother Polyneices,

The play, Antigone, is a tragedy written by the Greek poet Sophocles. A common theme among tragedies is that they have a tragic hero, and Antigone is no different. The tragic hero of this poem is Creon, the King of Thebes. Creon is faced with the difficult task of punishing his niece, Antigone. She has broken one of his laws stating that no one is to give proper burial rites to Polyneices, Antigone’s brother, because he tried to overthrow Creon.

In Antigone, there was two brothers who shared being the King and one of the brothers, Polynices, wanted to start a war with the kingdom because he wanted to be the main ruler. Polynices and his brother Eteocles fight and they both end up killing each other. Their Uncle Creon, who takes position as King when they are both killed, decides that only Eteocles will have a proper burial and Polynices will be left to rot. Antigone, Polynices and Eteocles sister, thinks that Creon’s decision is unfair and takes upon herself to give Polynices a proper burial. When their other sister Ismene finds out, she is stuck between helping her sister bury their brother and following Creon’s demands.

Kreon does not believe Polyneices deserves a proper burial for Polyneices was not noble in Kreons eyes. Polyneices was fighting against Thebes and causing terror. He does not want to give him a proper burial, as shown in the quote “... Polynecius, who died as pitiably - Kreon has proclaimed that his body will stay unburied, no mourners, no tomb, no tears, a tasty meal for the vultures” (Sophocles 22). Antigone is distraught at the thought of her brother being left to be “a tasty meal for the vultures” and soon vows to bury him regardless of the law.

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).

The Concept of Justice: Utilitarianism Evaluating Justice The actions you decide to take in life have consequences. In an ideal world you will be rewarded for being good, while making bad decisions will be consequences. This is what many fail to realize about legal systems. Many individuals expect to get off easy after committing a crime, when ideally, everyone should be able to distinguish between right and wrong, and understand that there are consequences to unlawful action.