Tragic Hero 2 Essay, Research Paper

In Antigone Creon is the tragic hero. Throughout the story he displays the four tragic hero characteristics. He was a person of high character. Creon was the King of Thebes and he thought he was the most powerful person. Creon didn’t think anything could stop him. Pride was Creon’s downfall. It lead to the loss of many loved ones that were close to him. At the end Creon realized he was wrong. He tried to fix it but couldn’t. What makes Creon a tragic hero in the story Antigone?

Since Creon was the King of Thebes he didn’t care what others would think or say. Creon thought he was above everyone. Creon immediately made the decision that Polyneices would not be buried even though he was family. He still was a traitor and because of this he would not receive the privilege of being buried. Anyone who did bury him would be killed. Creon shows he doesn’t care about anyone when he finds out Antigone buried Polyneices. He tells Antigone, “And yet you dared defy the law”(I. 285). Creon doesn’t even care if it is his own relative that bertays him. That person will have to pay for their action of going against the law that he provided.

Creon believes he is a rock and nothing can stand in his way. He thought he was above the gods. He didn’t want to believe in Teiresiasis or anything that came out of his mouth. Creon continues to think he is above the gods. To him, nothing can change his will. Not even Teiresiasis, the blind prophet who sees the future, can change his mind. “Whatever you say, you will not change my mind”(V. 299). In this example, Creon is being stubborn. Teiresiasis tells Creon that what he is doing is wrong and the gods will get him back. Creon doesn’t believe this and thinks he is just a liar.

The tragic flaw of pride is what over took Creon and made him come to his downfall. Creon thought what he was doing was right. To him it didn’t matter that he destroyed his son’s future with Antigone. It didn’t matter that he was killing his own family. It also didn’t make any difference that the gods tried to stop him and would get even with him. Creon thought he was at the top and in control of all. Creon realizes his tragic flaw got the best of him when he says, “Oh it is hard to give in! but it is worse To risk everything for stubborn pride”(Exodos. 300). Creon finally comes to see that power isn’t worth the death of his entire family.

Creon finally comprehends that he is wrong. He realizes that he is not the power above all. After hearing what Teiresias had to say, Creon tries to fix everything. He goes to get Antigone from the cave and finds she hung herself. Then Haimon stabs himself because he loved her and couldn’t live without her. Haimon thought what his father was doing was wrong. Creon runs home is despair and finds that his wife Eurydice found out about the death of their son. This was the second of their sons and the last of their children who died. Eurydice killed herself out of anguish. Creon comes to understand that he is not omnipotent. “My own blind heart has brought me from darkness to final darkness”(Exodos. 301), by saying this Creon knows this was all his fault. He even admits he is the guilty one when he says, “I alone am guilty. I know it, and I say it”(V. 297). Creon withdraws from his pride. He knows that he is no longer on top and in power of all.

Creon is the tragic hero in the story because his flaws lead to his own downfall. Creon’s pride overtakes him. He thinks he is superior to gods which he learns to understand he isn’t. His own pride killed his family. No one can ever be all knowing. There comes a time when someone is right and you aren’t.

Works Cited ”

Sophocles. “Antigone.” Prentice-Hall Literature. Ed. Bowler, Ellen. Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1996