Polynices Creon: A Tragic Hero

Aristotle once said, “A man does not become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.” Aristotle believed that a tragic hero was one who was noble by nature yet endowed with a tragic flaw or hamartia. This hero is oftentimes morally equivalent to normal people, allowing the audience to relate to them. Over the course of their life, different virtues show up but they’re eventually matched with an imperfection and that leads them to make an irreversible mistake when faced with a serious decision. The tragic hero is responsible for his/her own fate which cannot be altered, also known as nemesis; and their downfall provokes pity or fear in the audience known as catharsis. In Sophocles's tragic play Antigone, Oedipus’s sons, Polynices …show more content…
He’s portrayed as someone who has good, rational reasons for his laws and punishments up until he allows hubris to take over. After his guards catch Antigone in the act of burying her brother, Creon does not let the matter slip by quietly. He makes sure she gets locked up in a rocky vault where she’d face her death. Creon’s hamartia brought about his downfall; he just would not listen to anyone’s advice. His stuberness and pride is so immense that he couldn’t bring himself to acknowledge that he could possibly be wrong. We see his hubris from the very beginning of the story. He denied a burial-something he knows is forbidden by the gods. Instead of completely refusing it, he could have arranged a small quiet, quick ceremony, apart from the rest of the bodies. There were other ways in which Creon could have demonstrated that Polynices was a traitor, but he chose this way in order to display his power. He even says “The city is the king’s,” a statement that he is superior to all, even better than the gods (Sophocles 30). Haemon, Creon's son, in tears begs his father to spare his bride, but Creon does not sympathize and targets women, “we must defend the men who live by the law,/ never let some women triumph over us./ Better to fall from power, if fall we must,/ at the hands of a man-never be rated/ inferior to a women, …show more content…
Antigone is determined to honor the gods and give her brother a rightful burial, despite the consequences of being executed for defying Creon’s demands. She says “he[Creon] has no right to keep me from my own” (Sophocles 13). Ismene, Antigone’s sister, attempts to convince her otherwise “You’re wrong from the start,/ you’re off on a hopeless quest” but Antigone won’t let Ismene words drag her down, “leave me to my own absurdity, leave me/ to suffer this-dreadful thing. I will suffer/ nothing as great as death without glory” (Sophocles 15). One of the traits a tragic hero possesses is acceptance of death with honor. Antigone does not fear death, she’s ready to face it if it means serving justice. Another major characteristic of a tragic hero is relatability to an average person. Antigone does not seem irrational, quite the opposite, most people would act in the same manner and do everything in their power to honor their dead family member. According to Hameon, the city people would say, “ No woman...ever deserved death less/....Death? She deserves a glowing crown of gold!” (Sophocles 30). However, Antigone fails to see the other side of this situation. She doesn’t think of how her action might affect her sister Ismene or her fiance Haemon: she’s too busy building up pride for disobeying Creon’s decree that she fails to resolve