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Antigone - State and Family

 

            
             How does the theme of state vs family show the degeneration of Creons character?.
            
             Family and state have played an important role in Greek culture for a very long time and have been integral parts of the Greek society. The play Antigone, by the Greek playwright Sophocles focuses on the conflict between the protagonist, Antigone and her uncle and king, Creon. This leads to one of the main themes of the play, the theme of State vs Family. Finding a balance between state and family is considered a very admirable trait in a person in the Greek society and one trait that every leader should possess. Unfortunately, Creon got so absorbed in his power and trying to restore order in the kingdom that he neglected about his family duties. This leads to many conflicts with various characters over the course of the play and also leads to the degeneration of Creons character.
             The play starts with the kingdom in absolute chaos due to the death of Polyneices and Eteocles, the two sons of the former king, Oedipus. They die by each others swords and this leads to confusion as to who should take over the throne. Creon, the brother of Oedipus and uncle to Polyneices, Eteocles, Antigone and their younger sister, Ismene ascends the throne as he is the nearest surviving kinsman. In his opening address as the king itself, which is also his first scene in the play, we get a glimpse of how power hungry and assertive Creon is. As for a man who considers someone he loves to be more important that his country, I say that he is nothing. These lines just further my point that Creon was a very narrow-minded human being, for whom his country would always be first. His views were that even if it means protecting himself or protecting his family, a king should first think about the state and the best policies for it rather than try to save his loved ones. And he thought that this should be the case for everyone. He completely neglects the fact that it is possible for a subject of the state to carry out both his political and family duties equally well without any harm to either his country or his state.


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