Antigone Is Tragic Hero Essay, Research Paper

Antigone is the tragic hero in Sophocles Antigone. A tragic hero is defined as a character in a tragedy that has the following qualities: superiority, downfall, tragic flaw, twist of fate, in conflict, and a self-realization of their flaw. First, in the quote, Then I beg you: kill me. (II, 954) Clearly shows Antigone s superior character; she is brave and strongly believes in what she is doing. She is not afraid to die for her beliefs and feelings. Also, Antigone is a princess and has some influence over the people in the city. Second, Antigone s tragic flaw is revealed throughout the course of the story. When Creon questions her about her actions, she is stubborn and refuses his offer to dismiss the accusation. Creon attempts to let Antigone go by asking her things like, Tell me, tell me briefly:/Had you heard my proclamation touching this matter? (II, 953). Another tragic flaw of Antigone is the fact that she will stop at nothing to accomplish her goal. Third, Antigone s downfall occurs when she is sent to the cave as her punishment. Creon finally gets the courage to punish Antigone and does this by sending her into a stone-enclosed cave. Fourth, Antigone s long-time commitment in appeasing the gods puts her in conflict with Creon. Creon had established a law that prohibited the burial of Polyneices. In order to satisfy the gods and to support her brother in the afterlife, Antigone gave Polyneices a proper burial by pouring wine and dust over his corpse. Creon was enraged by this incident and began to question her regarding her actions, which resulted in the arguments between the two characters. Fifth, Antigone hangs herself at the end of the story. This quote, She had made a noose of her fine linen veil/And hanged herself. (V, 976) describes what had happened. In this way, she meets death head on instead of having the gods decide whether to let her live or not. This is Antigone s twist of fate. Sixth, Antigone realizes her flaw at the finale of this story. She felt that she might have done the wrong thing by going against Creon s wish. Based on these characteristics, one can conclude that Antigone is the tragic hero of this tragedy.