Antigone

Guillermo Rodriguez Reggeti

Professor.

English 1302

29 November 2012

Antigone

This paper refers to "Antigone", Sophocles' play. As with most of these literary creations, we hope to find a reason to justify the reading of it. Which in this case, it’s what it teaches us. We also hope to apply this lesson to help us with our everyday lives and also to stimulate our creativity. And it is the pursuit of education - which can be found in "Antigone" What compels you to carefully review the play. After reading with determination and necessary reflection, there are many thesis statements that could be discussed about. However, I have leaned towards a particular thesis, which I believe is the reason sought by the Author to write this play.

As you read and reread the play. You could conclude that there are many arguments, ie many proposals aimed at demonstrating the truth of a theory. On one hand, one of the thesis that can be accepted it’s that Antigone (main character of the play) is "a tragic heroine, ennobled by duty", considering the tragic deaths of his parents and siblings as well as their noble feelings of humanity, love and mercy by insisting to bury one of his brothers, and disobeying the orders of Creon, king of Thebes and then taking her own life in protest of her arrest that the king had ordered.

Likewise, you may also be proposed as a thesis that in Antigone "human law is opposed to divine law", since the order of the King of Thebes prohibit all persons any attempt to bury the body of Polyneices and also prohibits you to cry nor pray about it, this is directly contrary to a divine law, which has always commanded to give proper burial to the bodies of the dead, with the corresponding honors and respects. However, for the reasons, justifications and quotations that I extracted from the play and that I will use along this paper. I believe that the thesis or the main theme of Antigone "is the moral lesson." Moral meaning what it teaches us, what we can learn from it. Also meaning the values of a person. Knowing what is the right thing to do rather than what is better to do.

The initial and introductory dialogue between Antigone and Ismene it’s an important clue to suspect that the central theme of the play it’s a moral lesson. Ismene and Antigone already know that their two brothers have died, one at the hands of another, but only Antigone knows the orders of Creon, King of Thebes, to bury with honors Eteocles and deliver the body of Polyneices to be eaten by birds and animals. Antigone refuses to obey the order of the king, because she finds them very unfair and cruel. She is determined to die rather than let the birds and animals fulfill the King's wishes. Ismene, asks Antigone if she has an idea to enable them to fulfill their purpose of burying their brothers (Sofocles 101), but after knowing what her idea is and that they would will risk their lives in the process, decides to only tell Antigone to follow her desire to die with glory, but that is also a foolish adventure (Sofocles 103).

Here is the first moral teaching of the play, since Antigone understands the weakness of spirit of her sister, she does not obligate her to follow the steps to disobey the order of the King, and instead she understands her sister’s fear.

Antigone justified her acts in compliance with eternal laws, which comes from the gods (Zeus) and not of mortals (Creon). Which points that her brother could not be left unburied and also that, as to her, no matter if people find her crazy for this, because those who do find her crazy for what she did, are just as crazy (Sofocles 112). She reproached the King who, because of the power he holds, the people only obey orders for fear of offending him, but these are not fair and his will is often expressed against morality.

This demonstrates another moral teaching of the play. Antigone is determined to do what is right rather than what she is been told to do. She is willing to accept to be called crazy among the people to obey

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