Respuesta :

Character archetypes are common in pieces from antiquity, like "Antigone" -- in fact, Carl Jung's original theory of archetypes relied heavily on antiquity. That said, I would submit that not one, but two of those characters are archetypal.

If the question shows up on a test, the answer is probably Creon. He is the archetypal villain, because his edict to bury Polyneices is the catalyst for the tragedy which composes the plot. His philosophy as the tyrant is almost exactly antithetical to that of Antigone, the archetypal hero, who loves her fallen brother and wants to see him buried out of this love and love of the gods.

However, if I posed this question to a student, I would also accept the answer of Haemon as the archetypal innocent, one who is initially inexperienced and trusting, but experiences a coming of age. His innocence is initially what leaves him torn between his father, Creon, and his fiancee, Antigone; however, he finds his conviction when his father buries Antigone alive. It is this conviction by which he resolves to kill himself with Antigone.

Tiresias and the Chorus both primarily serve narrative and dramatic elements, so probably would not be listed as traditional archetypes. Yet I find a compelling case can be made for both Creon and Haemon as archetypal characters (again, a test would probably be looking for Creon as "the answer").

Hope that helps!