How the Movie a Few Good Men and the Play Antigone Found Honor in What

It is not uncommon for the Civil Law to conflict with Honor. This means that the laws of

people, jobs, countries, and duties usually establish a problem with the glory, or respect of

people and their self-will, because there are different views of something on each side.

This statement is true because many aspects of life involve standing up for what you

believe in, while going against the laws of what you have to follow, even though the civil

people don’t have any patience for any excuses. In the play Antigone by Sophicles, and the

movie A Few Good Men, by Aaron Sorkin, Antigone, Dawson and Downy stand up for

what they think is right at that moment, and go against the laws they were to follow.

The Greek Tragic Hero Antigone is characterized as a person with great honor and

has a conflict with going against the civil law under Creon, and not burying Polynices.

Polynices was a traitor to Thebes and was killed in war against his brother Eteocles.

Antigone, Eteocles’s and Polynices’s sister wanted to give Polynices a proper burial.

Antigone buried Polynices twice and was caught the second time due to her screaming and

crying. “There is no shame in honoring my brother (Antigone line 430),” it is true that

Antigone stood up for what she believed in, even though there were consequences of

dying. Perhaps the honor that you have inside of you is more important than the laws that

are created for you. Creon, the King of Thebes did not like the fact that Antigone, Creon’s

own niece, would go against his ruling of not burying Polynices, who in fact was a traitor.

Creon is a selfish man who does not care about anything besides power. “Well, what do

you say-you, hiding your head there; do you admit or deny the deed (Creon line

370-371).” Creon tries to make Antigone confess to her wrongdoing, and she in fact-does

confess to it, because she is proud of what she did and won’t deny it. Antigone knows

what she did was right and won’t let a cruel punishment get in her way. It could be that

Creon does not even care what Antigone’s reason for burying Polynices was, all Creon

really cares about is finding the verdict and sentencing them to death, even if they are part

of his family. As a result of Creon being so cruel and unjustified, Antigone takes her own

life and Haeman takes his life as well, because there was so much depression and sadness

between them. Even though Antigone shows great honor and did what was right for her

family, she still went against the civil law and will be punished for it.

The movie is very similar to the play by having Harold Dawson and Louden

Downy stand up for what they believe is right. Dawson and stood up for what he

believed in and at the same time knew that he had to follow an order. When Dawson and

Downy followed the order of their commander to perform the Code Red, they also went

against the civil law because Code Red’s are not permitted, and they killed Santiago and

were arrested because of it. “Docit. number 411275VR-5. The United States vs. Lance

Corporal Harold W. Dawson and Private first-class Louden Downy. The accused are

charged with murder, the conspiracy to commit murder, and conduct on becoming a

United States Marine (Jack Ross).” Jack Ross states that the United States Government is

charging Dawson and Downy of murdering William Santiago, planning the murder out,

and not being able to follow their duties as a United States Marine. It is no lie that

Dawson and Downy