Based
on the description of a tragic hero, I believe that Antigone herself is the
tragic hero within the play. According to Aristotle, one quality that concludes whom the tragic hero might be, is the emotions such as pity and
fear for the character a reader possess. A. tragic hero is also to be considered a member of royalty with a tragic flaw such as a character weakness. Antigone possesses
all these qualities. Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus therefore being
considered a princes and a member of royalty. Furthermore, Antigone's brother, Polyneices,
who fought against Thebes, in the war, died in battle. Creon, the king of
Thebes," sworn no one shall bury him, no one will mourn him, but his body
must lie in the fields" (20- 21) as he was a traitor to his country.
Antigone is beside herself with rage as this action is disrespectful toward the
dead as well as her brother. Knowing fully well of the consequences of burying
and disregarding Creon’s wishes such as death, she with her own stubbornness
decides to bury her brother. After getting caught in action, she is
sentenced to death. The audience's response is to feel pity toward Antigone as the penalty
for her actions exceed the crime, and she gets more than she deserves. As the guard
takes her away the reader also feels a scene of fear for her as we understand
that the hero is better than us in a way and will still be punished. We also
hope for their safety and fear for the future, furthermore developing the idea
that Antigone is a tragic hero. Lastly, her fatal flaw could be her own
stubbornness. Although sentenced to die, Creon desperately tries to change his
fate in the end, deciding to save her. Arriving at the tomb he discovers, in
his grief, that she hung herself. Antigone, accepted her fate, allowed death to
arrive. However she had still not been sentenced at this time meaning she
believed very strongly in her ideas and was too stubborn to back down from her
opinions. All these ideas conclude that Antigone is the tragic hero is the
play.
