Sympathy for Others As stated by Sophocles in Antigone, "Numberless are the world's wonders, but none More wonderful than man" (Ode 1 1-2). Landscapes like the grand canyon, the wide expanse of oceans, weather, tall mountains are all magnificent features, but none as great as Man. Man is the only thing in this world, that has free will to think about anything or do anything whenever they want to. If one wants to dance, he or she is free to do so, if one wants to sing he or she can do so. Man can also feel emotions such as happiness, sadness, or even confusion. The purging of emotions in reaction to something especially tragedies or music is known as a catharsis. In Antigone by Sophocles, the audience experiences a catharsis for a …show more content…

The desire for people of our day to have a love like this influences the audience to feel compassion for Haemon who died a loving man. Much like Romeo and Juliet, the two star-crossed lovers eventually meet their end due to the love for each other. The audience can only feel sorry for two lovers like this. In the end, Haemon's situations and tone cause a purge of emotions to arise in the audience. Although Creon is seen as a villain throughout most of the story, Creon's experiences influence the audience to experience emotions of compassion towards him. After the death of Haemon, Creon's son, Creon states that his "own blind heart has brought me From darkness to final darkness. Here you see The father murdering, the murdered son--" (Exodus 87-90). Creon causes the death of his own son due to his role in causing the suicide of Antigone. Instead of acting as a father, Creon treated Haemon as any other subject who must obey his command and pays the consequences for doing so. Also, the diction Creon uses such as "blind" and "darkness" suggest a dark tone where hope or happiness are unable to exist. The dark tone full of grief causes a catharsis due to the fact that Creon is going through extreme sadness. Shortly after the death of his own son, Creon learns of the death of his wife leaving him with nothing, but the crown he proudly held. In reaction, Creon exclaims "Let it come; Let death come quickly and be kind to me. I would not ever see the sun again" revealing