The Story of Antigone

In the ancient city of Thebes, where tragedy seemed to follow the royal family like a shadow, there lived a young woman whose courage and devotion to justice would make her name immortal. This was Antigone, daughter of the tragic king Oedipus, whose brief life became a shining example of moral courage in the face of tyranny.

Antigone was born into a family marked by fate and cursed by the gods. Her father, Oedipus, had unknowingly fulfilled the terrible prophecy of killing his father and marrying his mother. When the truth was revealed, Oedipus had blinded himself in horror and eventually died in exile, leaving behind his four children: Antigone, her sister Ismene, and their brothers Eteocles and Polynices.

After Oedipus’s death, his two sons had agreed to rule Thebes in alternating years, but when Eteocles refused to give up the throne to his brother, civil war erupted. The brothers met in single combat and killed each other, fulfilling their father’s curse that they would divide their inheritance with the sword.

With both brothers dead, power fell to their uncle Creon, who became king of Thebes. Creon was not an evil man, but he was rigid in his thinking and believed that the stability of the state must come before all other considerations, including family loyalty and religious duty.

“Citizens of Thebes,” Creon proclaimed when he assumed the throne, “our city has been saved from destruction, but at a terrible cost. Eteocles, who died defending our walls, shall be buried with full honors as befits a hero. But Polynices, who brought foreign armies against his own city, shall be left unburied as a traitor. Let his body remain in the fields for the birds and dogs to devour, as a warning to all who would betray their homeland.”

This decree struck horror into the hearts of all who heard it, for in ancient Greece, proper burial was not just a family duty but a sacred obligation to the gods. To leave a body unburied was to condemn the soul to wander forever without rest, unable to cross the river Styx into the underworld.

Antigone, who had loved both her brothers despite their flaws, was appalled by Creon’s edict. She sought out her sister Ismene in the women’s quarters of the palace, her eyes blazing with righteous anger.

“Sister,” she said urgently, “have you heard what our uncle has decreed? He honors Eteocles but leaves Polynices to rot in the fields like a common criminal. This is not justice—this is an abomination before the gods.”

Ismene, who was gentler and more cautious than her sister, trembled at Antigone’s words. “I have heard, sister, and my heart breaks for poor Polynices. But what can we do? We are only women, and Creon is the king. To defy him would mean death.”

“Then we must choose,” Antigone replied firmly, “between obeying the laws of men and obeying the laws of the gods. I know which I choose. The gods’ commandments are eternal and just, while the decrees of mortal kings are temporary and often wrong.”

“Antigone, please,” Ismene begged, “think of what you are saying. If you defy Creon’s order, he will have you killed. You cannot help Polynices if you are dead.”

But Antigone’s mind was made up. “Sister, I would rather die with honor than live with the shame of abandoning my brother. If you will not help me, I will do what I must alone.”

That night, under cover of darkness, Antigone crept out of the palace and made her way to the battlefield where Polynices’s body lay exposed to the elements. Working quickly and quietly, she began to cover his corpse with dust and earth, performing the simple burial rites that would allow his soul to find peace.

As she worked, tears streamed down her face—not from fear, but from grief for her brother and sorrow for the state of her family and city. “Sleep now, dear brother,” she whispered as she completed the ritual. “Whatever you did in life, you were still my brother, and you deserve the respect due to the dead.”

But Creon had anticipated that someone might try to bury Polynices, and he had set guards around the body. When they discovered what had been done, they swept away the earth and waited to catch whoever might return to complete the burial.

Antigone did return, for she knew that her first attempt had been only partially successful. When the guards seized her, she made no attempt to deny her actions or to escape.

“Are you the one who dared to bury the traitor?” the captain demanded.

“I am,” Antigone replied with quiet dignity. “I buried my brother as the gods command, and I would do it again.”

When Antigone was brought before Creon, the king was torn between his public duty and his private affection for his niece. He had hoped that the culprit would be a stranger or a political enemy, not a member of his own family.

“Antigone,” he said sternly, “did you know of my decree forbidding the burial of Polynices?”

“I knew of it, my lord,” she answered without flinching.

“And yet you dared to disobey my direct command?”

Antigone lifted her head proudly. “Yes, I dared, for your command contradicts a higher law. The gods’ commandments are not written by mortal hands or proclaimed by mortal voices, but they are eternal and unchanging. No king has the right to override the sacred duty of burial.”

Creon’s advisers watched in amazement as this young woman, barely out of her teens, stood fearlessly before the most powerful man in Thebes and proclaimed her defiance of his authority. Her courage was so evident, her conviction so complete, that even her enemies could not help but admire her.

“You speak boldly for one who faces death,” Creon observed.

“Death holds no terror for me,” Antigone replied. “I have seen what life can become when justice is abandoned and when family ties are broken. If standing for what is right means dying, then I welcome death as a friend.”

Creon was deeply troubled by her words and her courage. Part of him admired her loyalty to her brother and her steadfast adherence to her principles. But he believed that yielding to her defiance would undermine his authority and encourage others to disobey his laws.

“You leave me no choice,” he said heavily. “To maintain order in this city, I must carry out the punishment for your disobedience. You will be sealed alive in a tomb, with food and water for a few days, so that the city will not be guilty of your murder, but where you will die alone and forgotten.”

Even this terrible sentence did not break Antigone’s spirit. “I go to my death without regret,” she declared. “History will judge between us, my lord uncle, and decide who served justice better—the king who left his nephew unburied, or the sister who honored the gods’ commandments.”

As Antigone was led away to her tomb, the people of Thebes watched in silence. Many were moved by her courage and began to question whether Creon’s rigid interpretation of law was truly just. The blind prophet Tiresias came to warn Creon that the gods were angry with his treatment of both Polynices and Antigone.

“The gods are not pleased with your actions, King Creon,” Tiresias declared. “You have kept the dead from their rest and condemned the living to death for an act of piety. Unless you relent, great suffering will come upon your house.”

Too late, Creon began to realize the magnitude of his error. He rushed to free Antigone from her tomb, but when he arrived, he found that she had taken her own life rather than die slowly of starvation and thirst. Hanging by her side was his own son Haemon, who had loved Antigone and had killed himself in grief at her death.

When Creon returned to the palace with the bodies of the two young people, he found his wife Eurydice had also taken her own life, unable to bear the loss of her son and the knowledge of her husband’s role in the tragedy.

In one day, Creon lost his son, his wife, and his niece, all because of his stubborn refusal to bend his will to the higher law of justice and compassion. He was left alone with his crown and his authority, but these seemed hollow victories in the face of such devastating loss.

The story of Antigone has inspired countless generations because it addresses one of the most fundamental questions of human existence: What do we do when the law of the land conflicts with the law of conscience? Antigone’s answer was clear and unwavering—we must follow the higher law, even if it costs us our lives.

Her courage was not reckless or thoughtless, but based on a deep understanding of right and wrong that transcended political considerations. She knew exactly what the consequences of her actions would be, but she chose to act anyway because she believed that some principles are more important than life itself.

The myth also teaches us about the dangers of inflexibility and the abuse of power. Creon was not a wicked king, but his inability to admit error and his insistence on absolute obedience led to tragedy for everyone involved. His story reminds us that true leadership requires wisdom and compassion, not just authority.

Most importantly, Antigone’s story shows us that one person, armed with nothing but moral courage and unwavering principle, can challenge the most powerful forces of oppression and leave a legacy that outlasts kingdoms and empires. Her name has become synonymous with the struggle for justice and the courage to do what is right, regardless of the cost.

In the end, Antigone achieved a kind of immortality that no king or conqueror could ever attain. She died young and was buried in darkness, but her light continues to shine across the centuries, inspiring all who face the choice between comfortable compromise and dangerous principle to follow the path of honor, whatever the consequences may be.