BUSINESS ENGLISH-2

THE CONECPT OF LAW DEPICTED IN THE PLAY

ANTIGONE

SUBMITTED BY MEMBERS OF GROUP 3

1. JEYADHAREN.K BC0190020

2. NIRMAL KUMAR.KU BC0190028

3. ABHISHEK.S BC0190002

4. ANAYA SONI BC0190004

5. SANJANA P. SHANKAR BC0190040

6. RASHMITHA. M BC0190035

SUBMITTED TO:

DR. V.A. ANIL KUMAR

ENGLISH FACULTY
 DISCUSS THE CONCEPT OF LAW AS DEPICTED IN THE
PLAY ANTIGONE

Sophocles' Antigone focuses on the conflict between human law and the natural law when
following both sets of laws at a time seems to be impossible. The play Antigone gives rise to the
conflict within a family group. The conflict arose between the members of the same family
which is je sanguine (by blood) which generally takes place in a monarch. The play Antigone
discusses about the conflicting claims of natural and positive law as the determinants of justice.
The concept legality and morality and put into a question. As the conflict rose Antigone was
supporting her brother as she is extremely attached to him. Anyhow he was killed in a war and
she cannot digest the fact and she thought the least that she can do is provide a proper death
ceremony for her brother. She knew her brother was wrong but still she denied the orders of the
king and was going against him as love is ahead law. The main concept of law is not only to
punish but also to forgive.

Antigone claims that the gods have commanded people to give a proper burial to the deceased,
and that she has a stronger duty to her uncle, which is why she is required to perform his burial
rites that she does to the city of Thebes law that prohibits her from doing so. In this situation, the
gods ' desires and the sense of duty that she has towards her brother are manifestations of natural
law. For Antigone these two natural law instances exceed every man-made law. In this scenario,
the play Antigone of Sophocles appears to confirm the supremacy of natural law over
constructive (man-made) rules. Antigone says "Neither did I accept that your commands were so
powerful that you, a mere man, might circumvent the unwritten and unfailing rules of the gods.
Nor now, nor yesterday’s, they always live, and no one knows their origin in time. So not
through fear of any man’s proud spirit would I be likely to neglect these laws, draw on myself
the gods’ sure punishment”. The conflict and struggle between Creon and Antigone is an
indication of the conflict that exists in the higher moral law- natural law, on one hand the man-
made law on the other hand.
Since it was a monarch most of the laws was derived from positive and common law system, so
over the years the behavior and attitude of people has been changed. But the laws which were
made decades ago will be suitable for the people who lived in that era, but due to the evolution of
time, people also eventually evolved and adapted to new social order. But the law remains
constant, which may or may not be suitable for the new changes or the new conditions of the
society, so the monarch should not only follow the ancestral or the prevailing laws but also
should make changes in the laws which are followed by the people as per the current scenario.

Creon pronouncements which are example of positive laws that Polyncices’ body should not be
buried are not only the embodiment of the arbitrary powers of rulers, but also of a transitory
nature. According t Augustine, such positive law is unjust law and therefore “no law at all. “This
is considered to be a revelation on the imperfections of man-made laws and serves as an
emphasis on their inferiority. Thomas Aquinas considers positive laws unjust when it affronts
natural law and therefore, such laws must never be obeyed for he says, “We ought to obey God
rather than men”. In this statement, Aquinas metaphorically associates natural law with God and
positive law with man. This association is used on the preconception that the former is higher in
value and power than the latter. Therefore, natural law is a creation of God and has an
unquestionable divine origin. Natural law is superior in its obligatory power to all other laws and
positive laws are of no validity if they are contrary to natural law. Moreover, the laws of God
(natural law), by virtue of the Divine Origin is regarded are superior to positive law.

By natural law in Antigone, an individual has the right to deny the intrusion by community on
his / her rights to satisfy a personal duty. Comments Antigone says to Ismene on Creon's edict,
"He has no right to keep me from my own". The difference between opinions between Antigone
and Creon on the rules that are stronger than those of the state tell the numerous assumptions
they have on civil disobedience. Creon who seeks above all else adherence to the moral law,
right or wrong claims there is nothing worse than resistance to authority. Antigone, on the other
side, replies with the notion that state law is not total, and can be abused through serious civil
disobedience cases such as honoring the god’s whose authority and rule outweigh Creon’s.

Creon’s decree to leave Polyncices unburied in natural law is in itself a bold statement about
what it means to be a citizen and what constitutes abdication of citizenship. Given Antigone is
scripted in the culture of Ancient Greek; it was a firmly kept custom that each city was
responsible for the burial of its citizens. By prohibiting the people of Thebes from burying
Polyncices, Creon was placing him on the same status as the other attackers. Creon’s perspective
was based on the fact that, Polyncices has attacked the city and therefore he has effectively
revoked is citizenship and made himself a foreigner, because as defined by Creon’s degree,
citizenship is based on loyalty.

On the other hand, Antigone through her belief in the superiority of natural law believes that,
Polyncices has betrayed the state, but the betrayal doesn’t rob him of the connection that he
would have otherwise had with the city. This conflicting beliefs form a new axis of conflict in
the city. Creon believes that citizenship is contract-oriented, therefore not inalienable or absolute,
and it can be lost depending on the circumstances. The conflicting views on citizenship – citizens
is absolute and undeniable and citizenship based on behavior – are known to be citizenship “by
nature” and citizenship “by law” respectively.

Antigone holds a duty to respect her kin and the greater rule of the gods–natural law–in her
resolve to kill Polyncices. In several ways, she insists that she must behave to honor those who
are deceased as they carry greater weight than any king–the weight on natural law. Antigone
makes an appeal to her niece, Ismene, out of this deep desire to help bury Polyncices and thus
shield him out of sisterly love, even though he deceived their family. Antigone claims that there
are inalienable rights since they come from the very highest authority or jurisdiction, which is the
natural law of the gods and therefore sacred.

In the current setup there is a lot of buzz around regarding scrapping of Section 377 of the Indian
Penal Code. Section 377 deals with an unnatural offence which criminalizes homosexuality. This
debate is ongoing since a very long time. It was in the year 2009 that the Delhi High Court
declared Section 377 as unconstitutional, however, the apex court overruled this judgment way
back in 2013. It was in the initial months of 2018 that the Supreme Court decided to review the
earlier judgment.
There are mainly two arguments on this on-going debate. According to the positive law section
377 should be an offence because it is the law of the state, which is backed by a sanction.
Positive Theory of Law states that the man-made laws are to be considered as sacrosanct. On the
other hand, the Natural Law believes that man-made laws can never stand against the natural
laws. Everyone is born in this world with a special and a unique trait. Just because a particular
person attracted to a person from the same gender doesn’t or shouldn’t fetch him a punishment.

Sophocles’ play Antigone seems to confirm the superiority of natural law over positive (man-
made) law. The conflict and struggle between Creon and Antigone is an indication of the conflict
that exists in the higher moral law- natural law, on one hand the man-made law on the other
hand. Creon pronouncements which are example of positive laws that Polyncices’ body should
not be buried are not only the embodiment of the arbitrary powers of rulers, but also of a
transitory nature. Through natural law in Antigone, an individual has a right to reject society’s
infringement on his/her freedom to perform a personal obligation. Antigone is relevant in legal
context for it marks a turning point in western thought – which law is oriented to – when there
began a conflict between law of nature/God and the law of humankind. Natural law seems to be
particularly evidence in positive law. First, from a standpoint of natural-law theory, positive law
through common-law is one of the determinations the society might choose in establishing a
system, of justice, by settling on a particular and stable legal process. The second instance of
natural law and also positive law is in the process of reasoning in appellate courts. Natural law,
even though in principle is anchored in immutable human nature doesn’t prevent all change in
positive law and in some cases, it might even command it. The third natural law instance in
Australian positive law judging appears in the adage that nothing that is contrary to reason that
can be lawful even when the presumption in the common law is for the true and tried.