The short play, Antigone, was written in 441 B.C. by the Greek playwright Sophocles. It
deals with some of the most basic problems that affect a society. One of them is Civil
Disobedience. Civil Disobedience both a right and responsibility of a person to fight
an unjust law.
Government is given the right to control a group of people by the people composing the
group. If an individual has a problem with an injustice they feel has been placed against
them, then they have a right to convey this. Civil Disobedience allows one to convey
their thoughts and ideas in a passive, nonviolent way. It can be used when one believes
that they are morally right, and that others will agree with them. Antigone conveys this
thought when she tells, "No one will ever convict me for a traitor" (Page 61). In a
nonviolent from, Civil Disobedience is a basic human right.
Often society has laws that individuals feel is immoral, or unjust. Antigone decided to
bury Polynices, for she was obeying the gods, even though it was declared illegal by
Creon. "Look on me, you noble sons of Thebes- the last of a great line kings, I alone,
see what I suffer now at the hands of breed of men- all for reverence, my reverence for
the gods!" (page 106) This quote illustrates how Antigone believed that the power of the
gods was greater than the power of any king. If she had obeyed Creon, she would have
disobeyed the stronger power of the gods which could have had more of a devastating
result on her.
Antigone shows us, thru Civil Disobedience, that breaking some of societies laws is
both a right and responsibility.
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