Stemming from Aristotle’s views on tragedy, there must be an action that is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude that can arouse the feeling of pity or even fear by incidents that occur throughout the play. In Antigone by Sophocles, tragedy is portrayed throughout the piece by the protagonist. Many grasp onto the assumption that Antigone is the tragic heroine. Although she contains many qualities that meet specific tragedy criteria, it is Creon who is the tragic hero. Due to Creon’s stubbornness and rash decision making, many find it hard to believe that he is the most tragic; however, based on his moment of anagnorisis and his agonizing outcome from his pathos, he is easily defined as the protagonist.
Based on Creon’s tragic flaws, …show more content…
The protagonist, Creon, experiences a crucial pathos that leads to the catharsis of the people. His scene of suffering can be broken down to the event where he goes to free Antigone from her buried tomb, to find Haemon with her dead, suicidal body causing Haemon to kill himself as well. Not only does Creon suffer the loss of his son in front of his eyes, he later finds out that his wife has also killed herself out of grief, leaving Creon alone and responsible for the deaths that occurred in his family. His inability to compromise between himself and Antigone motivates the killings and defines Creon’s downfall. He recognizes this after the tragic events when he says, “All these deaths I caused in my own family by my stubbornness” (29). This shows how his hamartia paved the way to his pathos. It is not until Creon experiences the excruciating pain from death that the audience feels total pity for his character. The moment when this happens in the play is when Creon expresses, “Now I am afraid. Why wasn’t I killed? Why didn’t somebody kill me, stab me to death?” (29). The guilt piles on top of his thoughts, leaving him to wish he was the one who was killed from his actions. Because of the tragic outcome of his downfall and undoing, audiences now see Creon as the main protagonist of the
Based on Creon’s tragic flaws, …show more content…
The protagonist, Creon, experiences a crucial pathos that leads to the catharsis of the people. His scene of suffering can be broken down to the event where he goes to free Antigone from her buried tomb, to find Haemon with her dead, suicidal body causing Haemon to kill himself as well. Not only does Creon suffer the loss of his son in front of his eyes, he later finds out that his wife has also killed herself out of grief, leaving Creon alone and responsible for the deaths that occurred in his family. His inability to compromise between himself and Antigone motivates the killings and defines Creon’s downfall. He recognizes this after the tragic events when he says, “All these deaths I caused in my own family by my stubbornness” (29). This shows how his hamartia paved the way to his pathos. It is not until Creon experiences the excruciating pain from death that the audience feels total pity for his character. The moment when this happens in the play is when Creon expresses, “Now I am afraid. Why wasn’t I killed? Why didn’t somebody kill me, stab me to death?” (29). The guilt piles on top of his thoughts, leaving him to wish he was the one who was killed from his actions. Because of the tragic outcome of his downfall and undoing, audiences now see Creon as the main protagonist of the