Ok, so after reading Oedipus I was a pretty big Creon fan. I mean, this guy took a tongue lashing from Oedipus and was publicly humiliated, so I felt pretty bad for him. Beyond all of this was the fact that he was calm throughout and did lash out at Oedipus. He was a subservient man that knew he was in the right and decided to just accept things and let fate handle the rest. After Oedipus' past comes to light, Creon is the first to attempt to hurry Oedipus inside to save him embarrassment, he also wishes to consult the gods and not be rash in exiling Creon. He was a very good guy, and ended up receiving the throne. Message: Good guys will be rewarded in the end.
Now we move on to Antigone. Creon has become the bad guy. Apparently he went against the gods in saying that Polyneices should not be buried. If Greeks should learn anything from these plays, it is that the gods always win. He is quick to anger, first threatening the life of the sentry, and then condemning Antigone. He even went so far as to proclaim a death sentence on Ismene. He was strong-headed and refused to consult others. Haimon tried to talk some sense into him, but he would not have it. Creon has become the "Oedipus", and Haimon is our new "Creon". Creon has all of the hubris of Oedipus, and is quick to anger, rash, and strong-headed just as his predecessor. What has happened to our Creon? Could it be that the responsibilities of the kingship ruins a person? Too much power in the hands of someone that is not fit for the job? Regardless, Creon's mistakes were costly. He lost many loved ones, and had no one to blame but himself. Granted, I don't understand why so much innocent blood had to be shed, but let the gods do their thing. All that I can think about is how drastically Creon has changed.
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Adam, I liked your post a lot and agree with just about everything you said. After reading Oedipus everyone seemed to think Creon was a great guy with a good head on his shoulders. After Oedipus I would have thought that Creon would make the perfect king because of his humility and not putting himself first. Then, in Antigone I felt like Creon was a completely different person. He went from being the guy that everyone liked to the guy that everyone hated. He let the power get to his head, which is a very easy thing to do. I think Sophocles is trying to tell the Greeks that they need to keep a level head and realize that they are not "better" then any other person just because they have a higher status. As we have learned a common flaw of the Greek tragic heroes is hubris, and Creon certainly gained too much pride in himself. He began to care more about himself then the people or the gods, which in the end caused three deaths. I think Creon fits in well with the saying, "With great power comes great responsiblity." He came to power quickly, but forgot how he got there in the first place and began acting irresonsibly. In Creon's character hubris claims its second victim.
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