Creon's Arrogance In Antigone

In Sophocles’ drama Antigone, he develops his characters to convey that who they are influences what they do. Throughout Antigone, Sophocles reveals that Creon is a prideful king who commits to the laws of the city-state. Creon decrees that Polynices, who died attacking Thebes, is a traitor who can’t receive a burial. However, Antigone decides to bury Polynices anyway, due to her belief that loyalty to family is more valuable than loyalty to the city-state. Furious that Antigone has knowingly flouted his edict, Creon sentences her to death. Convinced that he is right in this conflict, he refuses to listen to anyone saying otherwise. Creon’s arrogance leads to his eventual downfall and reversal of fortune. Creon’s belief that subjects must always obey their king conveys his arrogance and ultimately results in a loss of everyone he loves. When he tells Haemon about Antigone’s punishment, the two begin to argue about the right way to rule. According to Creon, “He whom the State appoints must be obeyed / To the smallest matter, be it right – or wrong . . . / There is no more deadly peril than disobedience” (Sophocles 15-16, 22). Creon is so self-absorbed that he believes that he “must be obeyed,” whether he is “right – or wrong.” He believes that there is
He wrongly believes that he has infallible wisdom and immutable laws, and refuses to listen to the advice of others. His rejection of the opinions of others means that he doesn’t realize his mistakes until it’s too late, and instead believes that he is making the right decisions. His egotism also translates into misogyny, because Creon believes that women are substandard compared to him. This makes it easier for him to simply punish Antigone, rather than consider that she might be correct. Even people with the best of intentions can let arrogance blind