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Our staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in The Price of Arrogance, therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your The Price of Arrogance paper at affordable prices!Sophocles' Antigone is the story of Creon, the current king of Thebes, who condemns Antigone to the grave and denies a dead man, Polynieces, of a proper burial.Antigone, regardless of Creon's decree that anyone that would bury Polynieces would be put to death, buries her dead brother in order to do what she believes is the right thing according to her religion.Creon rules his country by fear, causing the senate to withhold valuable advice. He refuses to listen to Haimon with an open mind instead of a mind that he is all knowing, resulting in the catastrophe to come. He refused to follow the advice of the prophet Teiresias, whose counsel he has relied upon all of his life. It is not until after the loss of his son that Creon truly sees the error of his ways. Due to his blind arrogance, Creon has lost everything which he holds dear.
Early on the chorus says that they would dare not disagree with Creon because; "There is none so foolish as to love his own death." (l, ) Had the chorus disagreed with anything Creon decreed, they would be put to death. Ruling by fear is not the sign of a great ruler, but the sign of a dictator who will have things his way, and his way only, regardless of what may or may not be the best thing for the citizens or the state. If Creon had been a clear thinking and just ruler with the good of the citizens and the state in mind, he would have been willing to listen to those he trusted, not sentence them to death for not agreeing with him. The fear factor is further established when Antigone says in regard to the senate not agreeing that she is right in what she has done; "All that are here would surely say that's true, if fear did not lock their tongues up." (l, 54) And again when she responds to Creon's statement that she is the only one that believes that the senate will not speak out of fear, replying with; "No, these do too, but keep their mouths shut for the fear of you." (l, 55) Creon believes he is justified in his actions because there is no dissent. Unfortunately, he fails to see that the reason for this lack of dissent is due to fear of retribution from him.
Not only does Creon rule by fear, he refuses the wise counsel of others. Haimon attempts to tell his father of what he has heard from the people. "...the city mourns for this girl; they think she is dying most wrongly and most undeservedly of all womenkind (sic) or the most glorious acts." (l, 74) Haimon understands that a good ruler uses all of his resources to come to the best conclusion for all, and that the citizen's thoughts must be considered when making a decision. Haimon further attempts to make Creon see that he is only looking out for his father's best interests when he says; "Nothing I own I value more highly, father, than your success. What greater distinction can a son have than the glory of a successful father, and for a father the distinction of successful children? Do not bear this single habit of mind, to think that what you say and nothing else is true." (ll, 75-760) In saying this, not only is Haimon telling his father that he is concerned only in the interest of how his father may appear, but also gives him a kernel of wisdom when he tells Creon that he should not be so convinced that he is the only one that knows what is best for the state or the people of the state. Haimon continues on to tell his father that it is no shame to make a mistake and learn from it when he says; "A man who thinks that he alone is right, or what he says, or what he is himself, unique, such men, when opened up, are seen to be quite empty. For a man, though he be wise, it is no shame to learnlearn many things, and not maintain his views too rigidly. You notice how by streams in wintertime the trees that yield preserve their branches safely, but those that fight the tempest perish utterly." (ll, 761-76) Haimon sees the wisdom of bending in order to avoid breaking and is trying valiantly to get Creon to see the right of this. It is almost as if Haimon sees that his father's unwillingness to bend will be his undoing in the end. Creon, in response to Haimon's eloquent appeal for the use of reason, scoffs at his son and deems him a villain. Creon, in his arrogance, refuses to listen to anything his son has said. Even when Haimon tells his father; "Not at my side! Never think that! She will not die by my side. But you will never again set eyes upon my face. Go then and rage with such of your friends as are willing to endure it." (ll, 8-80), Creon dismisses him as being frivolous, but continues on with his plan. Creon could not possibly believe that anyone other than himself could possibly know what was best. He was, after all, their king. Arrogance such as this often leads to destruction. Unfortunately, the arrogant man will refuse to believe this possibility even if it is right in front of him, as with Haimon telling his father that he would never again look upon his face.
Not only does Creon totally disregard the counsel of his son; but also insults Teiresias, a prophet whose advice Creon has followed for most of his life. Teiresias comes to Creon to tell him that his plans are causing the city's sickness and Creon responds by saying; "Old man you are all archers, and I am your mark. ...But this dead man you shall not hide in a grave, not though the eagles of Zeus should bear the carrion, snatching it to the throne of Zeus itself. Even so, I shall not so tremble at the pollution to let you bury him." (ll, 101-1100) Creon not only accuses Teiresias of being a crook, but also thumbs his nose at the gods' will. He is filled with his own power and at this point is willing to go against the gods to prove that he is the power of the land.
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In one last attempt to get through to Creon, Teiresias tells Creon of what is to come; "You will not live many cycles more of this swift sun before you give in exchange one of your own loins bred, a corpse for a corpse, for you have thrust one that belongs above below the earth, and bitterly dishonored a living soul by lodging her in the grave; while one that belonged indeed to the underworld gods you have kept on this earth without die share of rites of burial, of due funeral offerings, a corpse un hallowed. With all of this you, Creon, have nothing to do, nor have the gods above. These acts of yours are violence, on your part. And in requital the avenging Spirits of Death itself and the gods' Furies shall after your deeds, lie in ambush for you, and in their hands you shall be taken cruelly...All the cities will stir in hatred against you..." (ll, 111-1160) It is not until Teiresias gives Creon a prophecy that has direct bearing on his own house and well being does he even entertain the idea that maybe he was acting rashly. Now that he thinks that possibly, some harm may come to those he loves or even worse, himself, he asks what to do. When he is told that the way to avoid punishment from the gods was to release Antigone and then to bury Polynieces, Creon, in his infinite wisdom chooses to bury Polynieces first and then to release Antigone. Had he followed the instructions precisely he could have prevented Haimon's death. He would have gotten to the burial site before Antigone hung herself, and therefore prevented both deaths. In preventing those deaths, his wife would have had no reason to kill herself. Creon, after not only losing his son but his wife as well, finally sees the error of his ways. This is most evident when after discovering Haimon he tells all; "The mistakes of a blinded man are themselves rigid and laden with death. You look at us the killer and the killed of the one blood. Oh, the awful blindness of those plans of mine. My son, you were so young, so young to die. You were freed from the bonds of life through no folly of your own only through mine." (ll, 140-14)
In most governments where the leader rules much the way Creon did, there is dissent and often destruction. Many times the leaders of governments such as these are overthrown or assassinated. Creon's firm belief that he could not possibly be wrong because he was king did not spare him from the gods' wrath. Creon's arrogance was an affront to the gods.Many were those that tried to make Creon see the error of his ways. They tried to tell him that it was a wise man that listened to the counsel of others. The horror that befell Creon's house was payment from the gods for his arrogance. Unfortunately, Creon saw, too late, the wisdom of those who counseled him.
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