Analysis of "Antigone" and Plato's "Republic"

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Analyzing Antigone Concerning Plato's Republic—With Special Reference to Obedience, Civil Disobedience, and Women's Role in Greek Society
Antigone is the story of bravery. It represents the awareness and courage to stand for one's right in the environment of monarchy and unchecked power. The lead character Antigone buries her brother against the will of the King to protect his civil rights. She was not threatened by the consequences that could be rendered upon her as following disobedience path (Atchity &McKenna 259). This story is the narration of people's treatment in the absence of real democracy, which devoid them of their fundamental rights and dignity. The story also narrates the dilemma of individual will as against the collective consciousness. The strong-willed person cannot surrender against his/her conscience to society's collective wisdom if it is wrong and against the morals.
Civil disobedience is not a new or foreign concept; somewhat, it has been echoed repeatedly through poets and philosophers' passage of time. In the work of famous philosopher Plato, glimpses of the concept of civil rights and disobedience can be observed. Republic, represented as the dialogue between Socrates and his companion, is one example of Plato's work on the subject. It has been argued that in the immoral world, justice means nothing more than a favor for the politically more emphatic (Plato 16). In comparing the concept of justice in Antigone and Plato's Republic, it can be observed that there are similarities among the practical understanding of the concept of justice. To a large extent, people have accepted that politically powerful people can twist or re-negotiate the law. Creon in Antigone had created absurd laws to bury one brother Eteocles and refused to bury other Polynices as per his own rules. Although they died in the same battle, both brothers were treated differently based on Creon's regulations to respect the throne (Atchity &McKenna 267). The law can be molded by the powerful, and the fundamental human rights are not granted equally to all citizens.
In Antigone, the notion regarding the civil disobedience of the main character is related to her bravery and fearlessness, even in the face of capital punishment. In the Republic of Plato, the concept of death is depicted as fear, as discussed by Socrates. The notion of conscience concerning death is also present in both forms of work. While in Antigone, the conscience is making the death fearless, while in the Republic, the dialogue favors facing death with a courageous conscience.
Another concept that is present in both pieces of work is the presence of human and divine laws. It is implicit in both writings that there are political laws and religious laws of morality. In Antigone, the depiction is obvious and narrated by Antigone and Creon (Van Den Berge 1). In the Republic, Plato has also discussed justice as the virtue of soul or, in other words, as the moral value that is superior to the human laws and the argument is drawn than a just life would be happier than the unjust one (Plato 25)
The concept of universal human dignity irrespective of societal laws and rules is also present in both works. Plato's human digni...