Creon the Play Oedipus the

Creon The play Oedipus the King details the events that result in Creon becoming king. In the play, Oedipus seeks information about what has brought trouble to Thebes. He sends his brother-in-law, Creon, who is his wife's brother, to find out. Creon brings back information that rocks Thebes to its core, because he finds out that Oedipus, without realizing it, killed his father and then married his birth mother, Jocasta. This is more than either Oedipus or Jocasta. Jocasta kills herself, while Oedipus blinds himself and exiles himself from Thebes.

Creon ends up the new king, a position he claims he did not seek. While the play is called Oedipus Rex or Oedipus the King, Creon plays a prominent and important part. While Oedipus is king, Creon knows his place. He knows that although his counsel is greatly valued by his brother-in-law, he is not the king.

When accused of disloyalty by Oedipus, he protests his devotion as a rational and helpful supporter, saying, "A man of sense was never yet a traitor, I have no taste for that, nor could I force Myself to aid another's treachery." However, he is also manipulative, and it is apparent by the end of the play that Creon is glad to see Oedipus leave, even though he will be separated from his children and leave all he has ever known.

However, he is a careful and skillful politician, and insists on consulting an oracle before making any final decisions. He agrees to look over the daughters of Oedipus' and Jocasta's union since they have now lost both their parents. Perhaps Creon realizes that Oedipus' real crime was that of hubris. He ignored the warning signs that his actions would lead to disaster. The Creon we see in Antigone is a different man. He is now the king, but he has become king under difficult circumstances.

He is aware that the actions of his predecessor, Oedipus, angered the gods and put the citizens of Thebes in peril. Oedipus and his wife/birth mother Jocasta had had four children: sons Eteocles and Polynices, and daughters Ismene and Antigone. Creon is aware that unfortunate events put him on the throne. After Oedipus leaves Thebes, his two sons agree at first to share the throne, taking turns, but instead they fight each other for the throne. In this battle, both die.

Creon must be aware that no matter what his extended family does, the will of the gods seems to be ignored or perverted into something else. He feels he must show himself to be a strong and resolute ruler, in an attempt to get the ruling family of Thebes back on the right track again. This is a major departure from the Creon seen in Oedipus Rex and reflects his changed role. In addition, he sees changing one's mind as a weakness, "womanish," an undesireable trait in a king.

Once he's made a decision he feels he must stick by it even if he suspects it might have been incorrect. The first decision Creon makes that affects this play is that he will give Etocles a state funeral, but that Polynices' body is to be left out in the open, unsanctified, and left for the animals to eat. This is a terrible fate for a Greek, who must have certain rites performed to move on to the next life. Creon sided with Etocles, but both brothers broke the agreement.

Antigone is outraged that Etocles is to be ushered in to the next life proplerly but not Polynices. She takes a stand and decides to perform the rites herself. Polynices' body is seen with ceremIsmene onial dust on it, indicating that someone has disobeyed Creon's edict. He follows one bad, rigid decision with another: even though Antigone is his niece, and even though he promised her father he would look after her, he sentences her to death for ignoring his rule about Polynices.

In one way, it appears that Creon had more confidence in his role when he was a helper to the king than when he was king himself. As Oedipus' assistant, he knew exactly what to do and.