And The Verdict Is...

Natalie Mironov

Ms. Peifer

10 IB, Hr 4

26 November 2008

Creon: GUILTY

       Ladies and gentlemen, Creon is guilty, there is no doubt about it. He is guilty on three counts of murder, as well as disrespect for the dead. It was his unjust decree that Polyneices remain unburied that led him to order Antigone's death. This in turn caused the death of Creon's own son, Haimon, and his wife, Eurydice.

       Creon first must be found guilty of forbidding the proper burial of Polyneices and going against the laws of tradition. He declared Polyneices a traitor and stated, "He'll have no burial mound, no funeral rites, and no lament. He'll be left unburied, his body there for birds and dogs to eat, a clear reminder of his shameful fate. That's my decision" (Sophocles 233-237). Antigone fought back saying Creon will be showing "contempt for those laws the gods all hold in honour" (Sophocles 95-96). This  proves how Creon is breaking laws of tradition and acting in an unethical manner.

       Secondly, Creon must be charged with the death of Antigone, his future daughter-in-law. As Antigone bravely defends the honor of her brother, Polyneices, Creon tries to claim it a terrible act, worthy of death. He says, "Since I caught her clearly disobeying, the only culprit in the entire city, I won't perjure myself before the state. No -- I'll kill her" (Sophocles 743-746). This is an outright confession of the awful deed he committed, all for an act as honorable as defending one's own family.

       The death of Antigone triggers a chain reaction with the death of Creon's son, Haimon, and his wife, Eurydice, following. These deaths must all be attributed to Creon's arrogance and belief that he is always right. He is so angered by Haimon questioning his morals that he ordered a guard to "go bring her out -- the hateful creature, so she can die right her, with him present, before her bridegroom's eyes" (Sophocles 868-870). This order by Creon was meant to kill the woman Haimon loves right in front of him, an act no person should ever witness. Creon's unjust ways cause Haimon so much grief and pain that he kills himself, which in turn leads Eurydice to do the same. Creon, upon the realization of his faults says, "I killed you, my son, without intending to, and you, as well, my wife" (Sophocles 1486-1487). This shows Creon directly claiming fault for these atrocities.

       If the jury is still unclear as to their decision, one must be advised to take into account Creon's plea. He stated that, "The guilt for all this is mine -- it can never be removed from me or passed to any other mortal man. I, and I alone... I murdered you" (Sophocles 1463-1466). Creon must be punished at once for his heinous behavior.

Works Cited

Sophocles. "Antigone." Johnstonia. Trans. Ian Johnson. May 2005. 24 November 2008 <http://records.viu.ca/%7Ejohnstoi/Sophocles/Antigone.htm>.

Antigone LRJ #2

       There are many strong images presented in "Antigone." One such image is in the death of Haimon where the story says, "And as he died he gathered Antigone close in his arms again, choking, his blood bright red on her white cheek" (Fitts 72-74). This is a very strong image in that it shows how deeply Haimon must have loved Antigone. You can tell he always wanted to be with her, in life and in death, so when she died he felt his life was not worth living and wanted to end it with her beside him. The text also contains many images of Polyneices' body, beginning after Antigone's attempt to bury it. The guard tells Creon they have found, "The body, just mounded over with light dust: you see? Not buried really, but as if they'd covered it." (Fitts 113-114). This is important because it is such a defiant act and goes against everything Creon has said. Another image of Polyneices' body appears when the guard says, "I went with Creon to the outer plain where Polyneices was lying, no friend to pity him, his body shredded by dogs" (Fitts 37-38). The repetition of images of Polyneices' body show how important it was and how it was influential on all the events that follow.

       Another influential factor in the story is Creon. His fatal flaws are that he is stubborn and conceited.  This is evident in many situations such as when he says, "Do you want me to show myself weak before the people? Or to break my sworn word? No and I will not" (Fitts 26-27), and again when he states that, "The State is the King!" (Fitts 107). These quotes show that Creon is never able to admit when he is wrong and always thinks his opinions are right. This is what leads to such tragic consequences.

       Creon experiences anagnorisis following the death of his son, Haimon. He says, "Haimon my son, so young, so young to die, I was the fool, not you: and you died for me" (Fitts 91-92). This shows that Creon finally realized how foolhardy his decisions had been, but even with this realization he was too late. 

       While this realization occured, Creon had found out, "Haemon has been killed. No stranger shed his blood" (Johnston 1308), and immediately following that, "Your wife is dead--blood mother of that corpse--slaughtered with a sword" (Johnston 1427-1428). These show that peripeteia had been occuring simultaneously because Creon's anagnorisis had happened too late.

       After all the drama that has taken place, catharsis finally happens at the end of the story when Creon completely gives up on everything, including his own life. He says, "Get me away from here, for now what I am in life is nothing" (Johnston 1468-1469), and later, "Oh, let it come, so that I never see another dawn" (Johnston 1331-1332). This causes the audience to become emotionally detached from Creon and no longer feel pity or other feelings for him.

       In "Antigone" women are characterized as brave and loyal, Antigone being the most obvious example of this. She says, "For me meeting this fate won't bring any pain. But if I'd allowed my own mother's dead son to just lie there, an unburied corpse, then I'd feel distress" (Johnston 526-529). This is proving she is loyal because she is standing up for her dead brother. She is brave by doing this even though the law forbids it, and not being afraid of the punishment, namely death. Ismene is another example of bravery and loyalty. She says, "I did it--I admit it, and she'll back me up. So I bear the guilt as well" (Johnston 614-615). Even though these are not her original feelings it shows how she came to the realization that she needed to stand up for Polyneices. This is an example of bravery because she is willing to share Antigone's punishment, and better to show her loyalty to her brother late than never.

Works Cited

Sophocles. "Antigone." Johnstonia. Trans. Ian Johnson. May 2005. 24 November 2008 <http://records.viu.ca/%7Ejohnstoi/Sophocles/Antigone.htm>.

---. "Antigone." Literature Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes: World Literature. Trans. Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2001. 814-826.

What A Fool Does In The End, The Wise Do In The Beginning.

Dearest Antigone,

Even with my best efforts you are stubborn and rash. I have tried so many times to teach you to respect authority. In this way, I have failed you. You are strong willed and unafraid, but sometimes, it is best to back down. I know how upset you were over the deaths of Oedipus and Polyneices. I was too, they are our brothers and nothing can change that. And yet you had to go make another foolish decision. I know how much it meant to you to bury Polyneices in honor and dignity as we did Oedipus, but it could not be done. Creon's decry stated that none must touch him and the corpse must be left upon the ground, to be fed on by carrion. You were not to defy this, its only path led to death. But even so, I see how your heart was set on this and I should have helped you. Polyneices is an honorable man and deserved as respectable a burial as anyone else. One must not turn on family, even in the face of tyranny. I apologize for my harsh attitude towards you, it is not my nature to defy authority, but although I have failed you, I cannot leave you to endure the consequences all by yourself. I should have been there with you and will accept the blame in a pitiful attempt to make up for my wrongdoings. And remember, no matter what happens in the time to come, I am your sister. I shall always stand by you in everything you do, in life or in death.

With all my love,

Ismene

And God Said, Let There Be... Blogs!

This blog is part of a class project for English 10 IB. Our assignment is to create blogs and increase our digital presence due to the fact that we are now living in a digital age. Computers, along with cell phones and other electronics, have become such a big part of people's everyday lives. They are used both for work and personal enjoyment and allow the user many resources they wouldn't otherwise have access to. Through this blog we will be doing class assignments online so that all of our peers can read and comment on them. This will allow us to receive feedback, not only from the teacher, but from our classmates as well. This idea of completing and turning in work online is not a new one but has not been very present at Central, being a public school. On this note, we will just have to wait and see how things go!