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Antigone Hero's Journey Essay

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Out of the plays studied during this class, there is hardly a better example of the hero being so integral to the play’s plot and themes than Antigone. Antigone, whose name is the title of the play, strives to do what is right, despite being opposed by the law and her sister’s lack of initial support. Standing up to a seemingly invincible dictator with nothing but her convictions, the story of Antigone is empowering. Essentially, most of the lessons taught through Antigone are taught through the hero and the journey she goes through. By focusing on and analyzing Antigone’s role as the hero, it becomes obvious that Antigone is a true example of heroic archetypes, an idea that is strengthened by her motivations, as well as that Antigone’s values …show more content…

In Antigone’s case, her life would certainly be a mix between a quest for vengeance and a tragic quest. The initial stage, or as we learned, “Departure”, is certainly in the first scene when she confides in her sister that she wishes to bury her brother. She is then “initiated” when she confronts Creon and is willingly arrested for her deeds in giving her brother his last rites (1497), as she has accepted her fate and develops her resolve and convictions for her actions. Her “road of trials” is shown throughout her main struggles with Creon, such as when he threatens not only Antigone, but her sister (1498), and even when she threatens her marriage and expects his son, her future husband, to take his side (1500). Antigone then approaches her “innermost cave” quite literally when she is lead to die in her tomb, weeping and contemplating her own life and eventually taking it (1519). Overall, Antigone’s life is truly a hero’s journey, but because she is a tragic hero, she never experiences reintegration with society. However, her knowledge, in a way, is spread to society through her death, as Creon weeps over his mistakes and the misfortune that he has brought upon

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