Moral Law Vs. Civil Law

Moral law is one’s behavior and actions based on what they think from their conscious. Written law is a legal law carried out by a government. In “Antigone” Creon and Antigone are almost character foils because they have opposite beliefs on what laws they follow. Creon being the king of Thebes follows and makes the written law. Antigone defies Creon and follows her moral law.

Creon becomes king only after Eteocles and Polynices are killed so he needs written law to secure his position and keep power. He won’t let Polynices have a proper burial because he sees him as a traitor towards Thebes for seeking outside help to fight Eteocles. “Eteocles, they say he has used justly with lawful rites and hid him in the earth to have his honor among the dead men there. But the unhappy corpse of Polyneices he has proclaimed to all the citizens.” (Antigone 27-31).He thinks Polynices went against everyone so he forbids anyone from touching or moving his body in the street. After hearing that Antigone buried Polynices, Creon begins to subject her to death but instead imprisons her, saying that just because they’re family she’s not above the law.

Antigone follows her conscious instead of Creon’s law. She is very loyal to her family and knows that she would be subject to death for burying Polynices. As her sister Ismene tries to discourage her she says “He is my brother- and yours, too, though you deny him I will not prove false to him” (51-52). She thinks that although Polynices is somewhat wrong in getting outside help to go against his own brother but they’re still a family and he has as much as a right to be properly buried. She doesn’t want to be like Ismene and follow Creon’s law especially since he just became king. She chooses her family values over law.