Persuasion Through Language
In order to be overall successful with persuasion a person must use language
in a manner that doesn’t seem too anxious. In most cases someone that uses persuasion is
calm and open-mined but is also still set on the goal they want to achieve. Sophocles, the
author of Antigone creates a character similar to this which is Creon. Creon’s language
that was used to persuade throughout the play was very effective even once it began to
fail people were still partially persuaded. Creon gains power over Thebes by way of
persuasion, he does a good job of maintaining this power he has. Slowly but surely
his persuasion began to become less effective.
At the beginning of the play Creon is very successful in persuading others.
Once he became king of Thebes he tries to persuade the chorus to follow his ways and
rules. “I find intolerable the man who puts his country second to his friends.”
(Sophocles, 199) and “You see the kind of man I am! You’ll not catch me putting traitors
up on pedestals beside the loyal and true” (199). In those pieces of text Creon uses strong
language in order to persuade the leader to be in favor of him. He also uses fear as a
method of persuasion. “I swear by almighty Zeus whom I revere and serve, that either
you find the man who did this burial and stand him before my eyes, or Hades itself will
be too good for you until you’ve first confessed to everything yes hanging from a cross.
That perhaps will teach you, soldier” (203) Creon uses death as an extreme way of
persuasion, in the long run it seems to be very successful because the sentry brings back
the culprit who is actually Antigone. He utilizes strong language to persuade the Leader
and Sentry in a way that benefits him.
As the play continues in contrast to the beginning Creon’s persuasion starts to be
less and less effective but the people of Thebes are still on his side. Later in the play
Haemon, Creon’s son comes into...