The Burial At Thebes Analysis

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In the play The Burial At Thebes, the powerful king Creon and fearless Antigone both seek the best for themselves by standing by their own values. Creon wants to be seen by the citizens of Thebes as the greatest and most powerful king in Thebes' history by showing them the authority he has through his bold actions. Antigone desires attention and praise from the gods by honorably burying her deceased, beloved brother Polyneices; even if it means she will perish for disobeying Creon's orders. Both Antigone and Creon are stubborn and unwilling to change either their methods to achieve the glory they wish for themselves. However, only Antigone successfully attains the glory she seeks through placing her family's well-being before her own. Creon's most cherished value is his image from the viewpoint of the Thebians and he is reluctant to do anything that might show weakness which, to him, includes ignoring the law for a personal matter. It is because of Creon's distorted views on authority and his image that he ends up being forced to live a tragic life, whereas Antigone…show more content…
Knowing that he could have been less obstinate and changed his assessment of power would have prevented Creon's son and wife from dying the way they did. Although Antigone was also persistent in not changing her own viewpoints, this worked in her favor because she was stubborn for a better reason than Creon. She stood up for her family because she knew it was the right thing to do. Creon did not show that he cared about anything but his own appearance for the fear that he will be observed as weak, until it was too late. By comparing and contrasting the characters of Creon and Antigone, one can assume that a lesson to be learnt from reading this play is that one should do what they believe is right based on their values and not concentrate on the thoughts of those who aren't important to him or

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