The Crucial Role of Teiresias in Sophocles’ Antigone...

The Crucial Role of Teiresias in Sophocles’ Antigone Antigone is a tragic play written by Sophocles in ancient Greece during approximately 441 B.C. The story is set in a palace in Thebes, a city within Greece. Teiresias is an old blind prophet who claims to be capable of seeing the future, he has yet to tell a prophesy to be untrue; he has immense credibility. A theme within the text is: quality not quantity. In this translation of Antigone, Teiresias has exactly 76 lines of text. Physically this is very little of a role; one could assume Teiresias is not an important character at all; however, this is untrue. Teiresias is a character with an extremely minute role, yet he has immense influence over the resolution of the story, the†¦show more content†¦Creon now says, â€Å"Old man †¦ Make profit, trade in Lydian silver-gold, pure gold of India; that’s your chief desire† (1034-38). The man who just two minutes ago had the complete respect of the king is now the prime enemy of Creon; accused of selling out fo r money. In most stories, any character with only 0.06% of stage time would not have the power to transform the leader of a society from polite to mean. Teiresias must be very important if he has the audacity to talk down to the king and not executed for it. This is evidence that while minor, Teiresias has much respect and possesses the capability to influence the attitude of extremely powerful characters such as Creon. Teiresias also has the ability to influence the mental status of Creon and his tragic downfall. After Teiresias convinces Creon to reluctantly free Antigone, he discovers that his son is now dead as an indirect result of the past decisions Creon has chosen to make. Anything resulting in the story subsequent of Teiresias’ brief stage time is the tragic downfall of our tragic hero, Creon. Actions such as, Eurydice choosing to take her own life because Haemon voluntarily took his own life, is an element of Creon’s tragic downfall. Creon says, â€Å"Take m e away at once, the frantic man who killed my son†¦ I cannot rest. My life is warped pastShow MoreRelated Comparing Hubris in Antigone and Oedipus Essay1052 Words   |  5 PagesHubris in Antigone and Oedipus      Ã‚  Ã‚   The idea of hubris is monumental in a plethora of Greek mythological works. In many ways the excessive pride of certain characters fuels their own destruction. This is certainly true with respect to the characters of Pentheus, Antigone, and Oedipus. All three of these characters demonstrate, through their actions, various degrees of arrogance that seem to undercut the traditional role of the Gods, and thus largely contribute to their downfall. 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