The Republic And Antigone Analysis

(Sophocles 193). Antigone is confident and even surprised that Ismene wasn't willing to join her in her protest. Creon is a tyrant that was power hungry, and too controlling of his family and the people who lived in his city. Antigone saw this overuse of power and could stand to bear it anymore. She had to bury her brother because that was what she believed was right.

Plato regarded justice as the true principle of social life. Plato in his day found a lot of evil in society. He saw unrighteousness rampant and injustice enthroned.

In the scene in which Creon will not allow her brother to be buried. This goes against her personal beliefs she confronts Creon when she says “if I had allowed my own mothers son to rot, an unburied corpse that would have been an agony.” Creon wouldn’t allow Antigone brother to be buried even tho Antigone felt it was the right thing to do. Antigone is talking to Ismene about burying her brother but Ismene tells her to keep the idea a secret but Antigone disagrees and says “But I know I’ll please the ones I’m duty bound to please.

In the play “Antigone” by Sophocles, the question of whether loyalties to family or loyalties to authority are more significant is brought up when personal matters are intertwined with legal affairs. Antigone is persecuted and punished severely by King Creon because she buried her brother, Polyneices, whom the king believes to be a traitor to the city and outlawed any burials or honor for the fallen man. In this situation, Antigone is right in going against the king’s law because in burying her dear brother, she honors the promise she made to him before he died, she pays respect to the laws of God and not the laws of mere mortals, and she shows her commitment to family by displaying her unwavering loyalty towards them, even in death. Antigone is right in crusading against Creon because in essence, he is unjustly punishing her in trying to punish her brother, Polyneices.

I believe that Plato believes that people are inherently good and they will do what is morally right and just for society. They will earn their right to power and ensure fairness for all to prevent the tyrants from trying to take control. Plato mentions three main arguments regarding

One of the most prominent themes in all of greek literature is fate. Fate is especially important in Antigone, an installment of the Oedipus Cycle, written by Sophocles. Antigone is set just after the bloody siege of Thebes, and tells the story of Oedipus’ daughter, named Antigone, as she attempts to bury the body of her traitorous brother Polynices, who attempted to invade and conquer Thebes. Her brother was killed in battle, and despite their relationship, he is left to rot on the battlefield. Her other brother, Eteocles, who died defending Thebes, is to be buried with full honors; Antigone thinks this is unjust, and plans to secretly bury Polynices, in spite of Creon’s declaration that if anyone tries to bury Polynices they will be stoned

Which is to say, Creon contends state law as the basis for justice, hence there can be no such thing as unjust laws. Undoubtedly, Creon's symbolic values within the play is displayed by his fierce dedication to state law and order, contrary to the symbolism Antigone embodies. As is evident from above, Antigone's values harshly clashes with that of Creon's. The former solely recognizes divine law as cardinal, the latter being in the early days of establishing new rule, concedes state laws as supreme. Antigone possesses a moral and ethical power as an individual, refusing to follow state laws on both grounds of morality and divine law, whereas Creon as the king

“In the world below perhaps such action are no crime,” (595-596) says Antigone to Creon who overlooks the Gods. The Gods deem burial an act of justice among mankind, Antigone embodies the essence of the Gods. Themes of justice and righteousness are developed in Antigone by the dialogue between Creon and Antigone. Antigone’s reasoning is overshadowed by Creon’s unreasonableness, which highlights Creon’s characteristics. Antigone’s endeavor towards justice, and her eventual hanging, furthermore, advance the plot developing Creon’s character as a tragic hero.

Possibly their biggest distinction is in their ideals. While discussing the issue of Polyneices and Eteocles deaths, Antigone and Creon take a very different stance. For Creon, he believes that Eteocles was the better man, so he deserves a proper burial, whereas he believes Polyneices is traitor, so he deserves no burial rights. On the other hand, Antigone firmly believes that not granting a dead man a burial is immoral and that no matter the person, everyone deserves a proper burial. After Antigone is confronted by the guard and brought to Creon she explains to him what she knows is morally right, “I did not think anything which you proclaimed strong enough to let a mortal override the gods and their unwritten and unchanging laws” (338).

Antigone believes she should have the right of her brother’s burial. Creon states, “No one shall burry him, no one mourn for him” (Sophocles 2) illustrating that Polyneicis is irrelevant in the city of Thebes. The law in Greek society is a female should not have power or freedom over any circumstance. Antigone demands rights over her brother and will not accept

Antigone exhibits Fairness by wanting all other aspects to be thrown aside and give her brother a fair right to a proper

Creon’s conflict involves two choices that seem equally righteous--that is, between the stability of the state an obedience to divine law. He thinks Polyneices is attacking the state and he wants to defend it by declaring, “He is to have no grave, no burial, [n]o mourning from anyone; it is forbidden.” (165-167) With this edict, he is opposing the gods’ law. Creon’s tragic flaw is his hubris, or excessive pride, and he makes three errors in judgement, not allowing the proper burial of Polyneices, sentences Antigone to death, and unwilling to listen to advice. Creon’s actions portrays him as an arrogant and narcissistic tyrant whom caused the downfall of himself and intense suffering from guilt because of his subsequent punishment.

What is justice? This is the crucial question that Plato attempts to answer in his dialogue, The Republic. He conjures up an allegory that justice can be found in a person, and a person can represent a city. Thus, his entire dialogue focuses on this ‘just’ city and the mechanics of how the city would operate. His dialogue covers a myriad of topics about justice in addition to the human soul, politics, goodness and truth.

Plato’s republic aims to describe a just state, and in turn a just individual consistently throughout the text. By analogising the justice of the state and the justice of the individual, Plato attempts to demonstrate that a just society will breed just individuals. However, there are certain loop holes within his thought process that can lead one to wonder whether or not his ideas are pragmatic, and could function within a real societal structure- and if human beings given their inherently selfish nature, can adopt the traits necessary in order to achieve justice and the ideal state described in the Republic. Plato described the human soul as a “tripartite soul” where three main qualities seen in the human being, will also be reflected in the three classes of the ideal state. Reason is the highest of the three main qualities, and it forms the class of rulers and guardians.

What “tragic ideas” do we see expressed in Sophocles’ drama? Answer with reference to the play Antigone. ‘Tragedy is the representation of a serious and complete set of events, having a certain size, with embellished language used distinctly in the various parts of the play, the representation being accomplished by people performing and not by narration, and through pity and fear achieving the catharsis of such emotion’- Aristotle, Poetics, Chapter 6. The play “Antigone” by Sophocles displays many qualities that make it a great tragedy.