Tragedy in Antigone

Sophocles’ play Antigone is most certainly a tragedy, similar to other Greek tragedies such as Oedipus by the same author. What makes this tragedy different, in my opinion, is the fact that there are two potential tragic figures in this play: Antigone, the play’s namesake, and Creon, the king of Thebes who is arguably the most important character of the play. Antigone is the tragic story of a woman whose desire to do what she feels is right and proper at any cost ultimately causes the loss of her life; it is also the story of the tragic downfall of a king whose strict adherence to law in an attempt to maintain order in his kingdom cause his entire world around him to crumble to pieces.

First, we will take a closer look at the character of Antigone and her tragic story. Right from the very beginning of the story it is obvious that Antigone is a very strong-willed woman who stands for what is just and right. After the injustice of Creon’s decree forbidding burial of her deceased brother Polynices because he was a “traitor,” Antigone is determined to give her brother the proper respect that he deserves in death. She decides to deliberately disobey the law and bury her brother anyways; in this action she not only commits the crime which physically leads to her death but also reveals her tragic flaw. This flaw is her failure to play it safe and recklessly commit a crime which she has a high chance of being caught for. Her reasoning of this stems from her belief that she is above the law and that she obeys the law of God and justice; this reveals a failure to understand her place in society as a female citizen who is not obligated to receive any special treatment.

Creon can be viewed as a tragic figure also, but his reasons and his flaws are much different than those of Antigone. Creon, as the new ruler of Thebes, attempts to lay down strict, specific rules and orders to keep his kingdom in line. His decree forbidding the burial of Polynices, and his faithful enforcement of this rule cause problems for him that ultimately lead to his downfall. In this one singular act, created with good intentions to protect the masses and maintain order, started him on his downward spiral. One of his significant flaws is revealed in this process, and that is his adherence to law despite its negative consequences. Creon thinks that he absolutely has to follow through with his punishment, as shown in his dialogue with Haimon and Antigone, and this is why he loses everything. Another flaw is his hubris, as shown in his conversation with the prophet Teresias and failure to listen to the advice is Teresias, and, in effect, the Gods. Creon is essentially a good person with good intentions, but his flaws cost him his son, his wife, and effectively his entire life.

So, I will leave it to you to decide who is the more important character in the story and who is the true tragic figure. (520)

Death is a lonely thing

In his introduction to “The Death of Ivan Ilyich,” Ronald Blythe discusses the “sheer desolating aloneness of dying,” and in this story this aloneness is glaringly obvious and a prominent aspect of the story. Throughout his painful course of death, Ivan receives very little support for his illness and mostly has to deal with his sadness and realization of death in solitude. Even his own wife, Praskovya, wishes he were dead so she would not have to deal with him anymore, but only has reservations about these thoughts when she realizes that she would no longer enjoy his salary if he was dead (because dead people don’t get paid money).

The true aloneness of Ivan’s death is apparent right from the start in the story’s first chapter. All of Ivan’s acquaintances, including to some degree his best friend Peter Ivanovich, are more interested in the financial and professional consequences of Ivan’s death rather than concern and thought for the deceased. Ivan’s wife Praskovya is concerned about receiving her government pension for her husband’s death and how to get as much money as she can while showing little respect or care about her late husband. Many of Ivan’s professional acquaintances are thinking about the implications of his death with regard to his position as a judge, while also feeling glad that they are alive while Ivan is dead. These post-mortem actions of Ivan’s “friends” reveal the lack of loyalty of his friends and how they, in effect, abandoned him after he died, making the loneliness of his death that much more pronounced. Even Peter betrays him, thinking about making his card game on-time and wanting to speed through the funeral processions so he can play his cards. This selfish act by Peter helps highlight the aloneness that Ivan had to suffer through in his death.

One specific event in his life that is very representative of the desolating aloneness that Ivan feels is the night of playing bridge with his friends late in chapter four. As Ivan is trying to enjoy the game and find some pleasure in his life, the pain in his side and the bad taste in his mouth begin to dominate him and Ivan ends up ruining a great hand that he had. His partner, rather than feeling sympathy towards Ivan’s condition, responds with anger and distress at Ivan’s failure. This leads Ivan down a road of depressing thoughts, as he thinks about how no one cares about him and Ivan is just poisoning other people’s lives. Ivan feels incredibly alone at this point in time, not believing there to be anyone who understands or even pities him.

Overall, the unfortunate journey to death for Ivan Ilyich is plagued with sorrow, sadness, and aloneness (457).