In the film Antigone, the debate on what is just and unjust is presented. This theme is of course a very popular topic in Greek literature. The Greek philosopher, Socrates, questioned many times what to follow based on what is considered just. The film depicts the character Antigone going against King Creon's decree by doing what she considers just, but ultimately, she died standing up for her cause. Creon, who is the current king to the city of Thebes, has recently taken the throne after the exile and death of the previous king, Oedipus, and the death of his two sons, Polyneices and Eteocles. After Oedipus left Thebes, his two sons were left to switch back and forth being king of the city. The first brother to have a turn was Eteocles. When the time came for his reign to end, he of course, did not want to give up his noble position. So based on his brother's inability to step down, Polyneices decide to revolt and started a war against the city of Thebes. Ultimately, both brothers were killed in the battle. After their deaths, Creon took the throne, and since Polyneices was the one who started the war, Creon deemed him a traitor and Eteocles a hero for defending the city. For Creon's first edict as king, he declares that Eteocles will receive a rightful burial, but Polyneices' body will be left in the desert unburied since he was a traitor and does not deserve a rightful burial. Antigone, who is one of Polyneices and Eteocles' sisters, does not agree with this edict, and viewers too might have conflicting views on this edict. Antigone is faced with the tough decision to either follow the unwritten laws of the gods that say to bury the body or the written laws of the city that say to follow the king's command. Antigone struggles with her decision, but since she sees Polyneices as her brother and not as a traitor, she rebels against the laws of the city and follows what the gods' command. Similarly, in the book Apology, the author Plato transcribes Socrates' speech of defending himself against living a philosophical life. Socrates too had to make a similar decision like Antigone to either follow the god that told Socrates to live his philosophical life, or follow the city's command of him stopping his philosophical life. Socrates, like Antigone, chose to follow the god because he thought it was more just to follow the god than to follow the city's laws in that situation. Due to them both rebelling against their cities' laws, Socrates and Antigone were both sentenced to death. Creon did not want her blood on his hands, so he left the decision up to Antigone to either live or die. Antigone eventually killed herself since she was put in a cave to die. She knew that she was ultimately going to be judged by the gods, so in her mind since she followed the gods' commands, she exemplified justice and had nothing to lose by ending her life for her just cause. At this point in the film, viewers may feel bad for Antigone's death since she was only trying to do the right thing, or they could agree that she broke the laws, and therefore, her death was justified. Socrates too decided to face his death instead of escaping. However, in the book Crito, Socrates reasons for facing his punishment were because the laws of the city told him to do so not the god. Because of this change in who to follow, one could argue that it seems as if it is just to follow both the laws of the city and the gods, but it may depend on the situation and person. So as a viewer of the film Antigone; however, we see that it is more just to follow the gods, because in the end they stopped hearing the prayers of the city and turned against Thebes because of King Creon's actions.
Review of Antigone
