Antigone_Essay

Throughout mankind’s history, there has always been the belief of a greater place, one that can only be reached by living an honorable life free of evil, and, that if that feat is achieved, when someone dies, they will go to paradise. The most crucial requirement of getting into paradise, however, was to live an honorable life; even if you had never done anything immoral, if you had the chance to stop a wrongdoer and you did not act on that chance, then you had not lived a truly honorable life. Honor was very important in the time of Sophocles, and it was believed that maintaining your integrity was more important than following the laws of mortals, because mortals could have differing ideas of right and wrong then the gods and goddesses of Mt. Olympus. The laws of the gods were final, and breaking them would be the equivalent of throwing yourself into a black hole. The gods were the ones that would decide your final resting place, so for someone to disobey them would have been folly of the highest degree. Sophocles placed great emphasis on following the gods’ and goddesses’ laws, and he has transferred those principles into his writings. Several of the messages that Sophocles sought to present in Antigone are based upon beliefs that are upheld even today, and yet they seem somehow alien to us. The idea that the gods’ laws were the ultimate definition of good and evil and that following them took precedent over the laws of mortals, for example, is portrayed in Antigone’s response to Creon’s question: “Creon: ‘And still you dared to disobey the law'’ Antigone: ‘I disobeyed because the law was not the law of Zeus, nor the law ordained by Justice, Justice dwelling deep among the gods of the dead. What they decree is immemorial and binding for us all. The proclamation … was mortal, and I, also a mortal; I chose to disregard it… I’ll die anyhow: death is almost a relief. If I had to live and suffer in the knowledge that Polyneices was lying above ground insulted and defiled, that would be worse than having to suffer any doom of yours. You think I’m just a reckless woman, but—Never, Creon, forget: you yourself could be the reckless one.’”(Heaney 29-30) One of the most widespread issues in human society is that the laws are not the same worldwide, so people that are raised under one set of laws will tend to subconsciously or consciously follow those laws, even if different laws govern places where they are living or staying. If given the choice, people tend to choose the local laws, but if they are biased, stressed, tense, or not thinking clearly, then they might revert to the laws they grew up with, or even forgo laws altogether. The same is true in terms of honor; if given the choice, then people will tend to do the honorable thing, but if under excess pressure or fearing for their life, their judgment becomes either clouded or instinctual, respectively. The message of living with honor that Sophocles intertwined into Antigone is the underlying concept that the rest of the story is based off of. It is clear that in Sophocles’ time, loyalty was to the gods and family first, and to mortal law second. Honor belonged to the individual, and it could not be inherited or bought. The concept that you have to earn your honor is stated clearly when Ismene is pleading with Antigone to forgive her: “Creon: ‘You bloodsucker. You two-faced parasite. The pair of you at me like a pair of leeches! Two vipers spitting venom at the throne. Speak, you, now. You helped her, didn’t you' Or are you going to claim you’re innocent'’ Ismene: ‘I helped her, yes, if I’m allowed to say so, and now I stand with her to take what comes.’ Antigone: ‘I don’t allow this. Justice won’t allow it. You wouldn’t help. We cut all ties. It’s over’ Ismene: ‘But now I’m with you. I want to throw myself like a lifeline to you in your sea of troubles.’ Antigone: ‘Too late, my sister. You chose a safe line first. The dead and Hades know who did this deed.’ Ismene: ‘Antigone, don’t rob me of all honor. Let me die with you and act right by the dead.’ Antigone: ‘You can’t just pluck your honor off a bush you didn’t plant. You forfeited your right.’”(Heaney 34-35) Sophocles wrote Antigone to show that preserving your honor is more important than following the law, and in his time that was accepted as fact; in the present, the law is more important than your honor, but many people still think like Sophocles did, because they think they are above the law. Honor is one of the biggest factors in real life, because it determines, to a large extent, how successful you will be: people will be more likely to entrust you with matters of importance if they know that you are honorable and ethical.