Crystal Wu
Mrs. Johns
Eng. 3H, per. 5
September 23, 2016
Antigone Persuasive Speech Greetings my fellow Thebans! I, Teiresias, have come to address the edict proclaimed to this city of Thebes by our new king Creon. As you may have heard, Eteocles and Polyneices, sons of Oedipus, murdered each other in a battle for the throne. In Creon’s decree, Eteocles shall be honored for his patriotism with the proper burial rites. With regards to Polyneices, Creon has forbidden his burial, declaring his unworthiness of such basic privileges as a traitor and an enemy to Thebes. However, Polyneices’ loyal sister Antigone has buried her brother’s body in defiance of Creon’s strict orders. As a prophet who has advised and guided Thebes with good counsel, …show more content…
Understanding that mortality was a flaw of mankind, she acknowledged the “need to please/ The dead far longer than [the] need to please/ The living” (74-76). Given the fact that the Gods above have rewarded us with a maximum of a hundred years on this Earth, we were all bound to die. Antigone realized that life would eventually reach an end, but death was everlasting. Thus, to “dishonour/ The sacred laws that Heaven holds in honour” (77-78), punishment from the Gods would have been far more severe than that of Creon’s. Similar to the majority of Thebans here, she valued and prioritized religious and sacred laws above city and government laws. Deeply passionate, she believed that the laws of Gods were of higher status and therefore overruled the king himself. As we know, the Gods demand the burial of the dead, in which Creon refused the civic and religious duty. Nonetheless, by obeying the Gods, Antigone challenged Creon’s authority, but she feared not Creon nor death itself but rather death without honor. For that reason, as she disregarded Creon’s ideals, she willingly sacrificed her life for her religious beliefs, knowing that the pain she endured would win her the Gods’ approval and was only for the greater …show more content…
After all, he was undoubtedly guilty of treason, for he had assembled an army to attack our city. Despite having said that, Creon, under any circumstances, has no authority to forbid the burial of Polyneices, or for that matter, any of the dead. In addition, although Antigone should be disciplined for her stubbornness and refusal to abide by Creon’s orders, such harsh punishment was simply unreasonable and unnecessary, especially when considering she did the bare minimum to ensure brother’s soul would rest in peace. Furthermore, our elders have looked to Creon to direct our city into a new beginning. And as our king, Creon has pledged to keep Thebes safe and to protect the citizens he regards as his subjects. However, in his raging madness and fury upon receiving news of Polyneices’s burial, Creon responded irrationally by threatening and accusing an innocent guard of accepting bribes. Antigone’s sister, Ismene, was also accused of participating in the burial of her brother. And Creon’s track record of wrongfully accusing the innocent continued when he insulted me too by questioning my prophecies and suggesting that I had been bribed as well. Moreover, even though he has vowed to “steer the wisest course” (179), I can attest to his hostility as a threat to the security of this city. Thebes shall soon suffer the punishments for Creon’s blasphemy in his treatment towards Polyneices. The sickness and destruction
Mrs. Johns
Eng. 3H, per. 5
September 23, 2016
Antigone Persuasive Speech Greetings my fellow Thebans! I, Teiresias, have come to address the edict proclaimed to this city of Thebes by our new king Creon. As you may have heard, Eteocles and Polyneices, sons of Oedipus, murdered each other in a battle for the throne. In Creon’s decree, Eteocles shall be honored for his patriotism with the proper burial rites. With regards to Polyneices, Creon has forbidden his burial, declaring his unworthiness of such basic privileges as a traitor and an enemy to Thebes. However, Polyneices’ loyal sister Antigone has buried her brother’s body in defiance of Creon’s strict orders. As a prophet who has advised and guided Thebes with good counsel, …show more content…
Understanding that mortality was a flaw of mankind, she acknowledged the “need to please/ The dead far longer than [the] need to please/ The living” (74-76). Given the fact that the Gods above have rewarded us with a maximum of a hundred years on this Earth, we were all bound to die. Antigone realized that life would eventually reach an end, but death was everlasting. Thus, to “dishonour/ The sacred laws that Heaven holds in honour” (77-78), punishment from the Gods would have been far more severe than that of Creon’s. Similar to the majority of Thebans here, she valued and prioritized religious and sacred laws above city and government laws. Deeply passionate, she believed that the laws of Gods were of higher status and therefore overruled the king himself. As we know, the Gods demand the burial of the dead, in which Creon refused the civic and religious duty. Nonetheless, by obeying the Gods, Antigone challenged Creon’s authority, but she feared not Creon nor death itself but rather death without honor. For that reason, as she disregarded Creon’s ideals, she willingly sacrificed her life for her religious beliefs, knowing that the pain she endured would win her the Gods’ approval and was only for the greater …show more content…
After all, he was undoubtedly guilty of treason, for he had assembled an army to attack our city. Despite having said that, Creon, under any circumstances, has no authority to forbid the burial of Polyneices, or for that matter, any of the dead. In addition, although Antigone should be disciplined for her stubbornness and refusal to abide by Creon’s orders, such harsh punishment was simply unreasonable and unnecessary, especially when considering she did the bare minimum to ensure brother’s soul would rest in peace. Furthermore, our elders have looked to Creon to direct our city into a new beginning. And as our king, Creon has pledged to keep Thebes safe and to protect the citizens he regards as his subjects. However, in his raging madness and fury upon receiving news of Polyneices’s burial, Creon responded irrationally by threatening and accusing an innocent guard of accepting bribes. Antigone’s sister, Ismene, was also accused of participating in the burial of her brother. And Creon’s track record of wrongfully accusing the innocent continued when he insulted me too by questioning my prophecies and suggesting that I had been bribed as well. Moreover, even though he has vowed to “steer the wisest course” (179), I can attest to his hostility as a threat to the security of this city. Thebes shall soon suffer the punishments for Creon’s blasphemy in his treatment towards Polyneices. The sickness and destruction